Taking a glance at the ongoing console wars for a second, Microsoft has now publicly said that they are befuddled that the PS3 STILL has not issued a recent price drop down from $399.99 for the 80 gb model. NPD numbers don’t lie and since the Xbox 360 Pro is now under 300 bucks and the Arcade under 200, people are buying it up. It is not often where a direct competitor makes such a statement, but this did happen. Here is what was said:
We absolutely expect the PS3 price drop to happen in the next couple of months. We’re frankly surprised it’s taken this long. … I would expect they’d have to move on price, sooner than later, for sure.
MS is claiming that as of now, 28 million Xbox 360’s have been sold since its launch in Fall 2005. Pretty staggering. Was this a shot at Sony? Probably. No one can deny that the PS3 is a superior machine tech wise, but Sony claims that they are losing money selling its console at $400 and cannot afford to go any lower. Whether they are willing to eat even more losses and lower the price is to be determined.
Gotta hurt to have your competitor say they’re surprised you haven’t cut price yet. Hey Sony – how about dropping the PS3 price now that Microsoft is calling you out?
I bought a $400 360 Elite a year ago, and theres no way I wouldn’t buy a PS3 if they dropped the price, but seriously Sony, you gots to do something. You won with the Blu-Ray, what dirty tricks you got up your sleeve, now that MS is laying it on pretty thick with their victory dances…
Word is Sony’s sales were stronger than expected over the holidays so once they achieve break even this year I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a price cut.
people have definitly been calling out for a ps3 price drop for a while now. i payed 400 for the 40gb model a few motnths back and id say it was definitly worth it.
having considered that they are just about to break even on the price of manufacturing one and selling it.
blu-ray did win and it is definitly a big deal. considering that mgs4 didnt even take up one disc. on the xbox it would take about 4 discs. im definitly not a total hater of microsoft, they have quality games. but i had 3 systems red rind so i just got fed up. as an avid gamer i dont like having to go without games for a month while they repair it. thats a big reason why they have the low price. ps3 on the other hand has a miniscule failure rat. and (in my opinion) somewhat justifies the higher price.
I hope the PS3 gets a price cut so that more of my PS2 owning friends finally take the plunge like I did a few months ago. I think a $50 drop would bring a lot of that massive PS2 install base back into the active fold.
Of Microsoft’s impressive 28 million units, I have to wonder how many of those have been replaced because of hardware problems? Has there ever been any official word on this yet?
@ chad
I’ll definitely agree with you at some points. But reality is, as much as I love my PS3, unless Sony isn’t making a profit with a price drop, there isn’t a single reason why it should maintain its high price. Usually, the point of which a console manufacturer shaves off their prices is because they are making profit. Sony has released that their production price has gone down 35% before the holiday seasons. There’s going to be a price drop soon. Guaranteed.
I’ve had my first Xbox 360 (that I had since launch) red ring on me in November. I’m not happy at the poor hardware the 360 has at all. But I still enjoy gaming on it as much as anything. The PS3’s superior architecture and minuscule failure rate is no reason to continue charging consumers $400 for a console. But Sony is a very strategic company from what we’ve seen these past 2 years. I wouldn’t hold it against them if they hold price until God of War 3 is released. The lineup of 2009 are guaranteed system sellers and they know that people will buy. Maybe during the holiday season this year, they will think about it.
the issue with the PS3 is that people think of it as a Blu Ray and a game system so it can never go below the price of a Blu Ray player, they would hurt themselves.
@ yaris- i agree with you completely on the fact that if theyr making a profit its crazy to charge 400$ for a ps3. the thing is, alrthough the production price has gone down 35% they still arent quite making a profit. but they are very very close. once they hit that mark. a price drop will be definitly in order.
any word on when god of war 3 is coming out btw?