Rumour: PS3-4000 skips gamescom, 16Gb Flash SKU goes cheap

VG247: A VG247 source has claimed that Sony will not announce PS3-4000 at its gamescom press conference on August 14.

[Emilio_Estevez]

Hmmm. Doesn't sound too credible, but VG247 is pretty credible to me. Have to wait and see I guess.

[Thatguy-310]

I'm really digging the old school look. Can't wait 500Gb HERE I COME :D

[gaffyh]

If it comes out at £99 I will be super surprised. That's insanely cheap for the UK, I really hope it is at GamesCom though. I'd rather see it before TGS.

[Red_Orange_Juice]

I dont care, Im fine with my slim, also my gaming table doesnt have enough space for a toploader so I dont plan on switching to 4000, rather waiting for dat PS4 :)

[gaffyh]

It's a sliding top loader, so the only space you really need is enough for your hand to go above the console.

[darthv72]

where does the hdd go? I cant quite tell in the current pics but obviously more will be revealed soon.

[pandaboy]

£99 lol... that's cheaper than a ps2 on amazon. I'll eat my feces and put the video on youtube if it turns out to be true.

[baodeus]

@DK

Don't provoke him, he might do it for real. :D

[beerkeg]

@dboyc310

Haven't you got a ps3 already then?

[problemchild84]

@pandaboy:
I'd watch that.

[PoSTedUP]

lol @ pandaboy.

no way its going to be that cheap, they will drop the price $50-$100 first if anything, that's all it really needs to take off again probably.

[MaxXAttaxX]

No less than $150.

[SolidStoner]

agree, I think it will cost around $ 150,

if this new super slim ps3 will cost $ 99,it will be a bomb on a market, imagine playing so much good games, for people who still dont have ps3 it will be best value for many in the stores!

[Army_of_Darkness]

As soon as I find out that the 16GB PS3 can for sure be upgraded to a bigger HDD, I will definitely buy one when it releases!!

[dumahim]

Same here. Already fixed my launch day system once and I think it might be ready to go out again. If I can buy the 16GB model and put in my own HD, I'm going to jump on it.

[GuyManDude]

Yeah I'm leaning that way too. My fat is starting to get pretty loud (80GB Motorstorm bundle PS3) and it's almost 5 years old. If there is a 16GB SKU and it's $150 (probably $200 at the most), I could turn that into a 1TB PS3 for $250/$300.

Yes please.

[beerkeg]

Yeah, I'm going to sell the ps3 I have already, so I can buy another one!

[GuruStarr78]

Yes, that would definitely work.. I've got an old 120gb hdd collecting dust, since I replaced it with a 500gb...

If I could get the 16gb one and put the 120gb in it, I'd definitely go for it, that way I could have a ps3 at work in addition to at home (work at a fire dept.).

[eldeladi]

It's flash memory, it's not 16gb hdd. the hdd slot will be empty and upgradable for sure.

[Larry L]

I understand the video game media mentioning unsubstantiated rumors that they catch wind of. That's always been the case in gaming media, and it's always been fun to see which one's pan out and which don't. BUT...........You know.......the last couple weeks, I'm getting really sick and tired of almost all the gaming media just putting out a continuous streak of these strange opinion pieces about rumors that are based on other rumors.

It's just really weird, all these expanding and branching rumors based on other rumors none of which have even the slightest official statements to base themselves upon.

This particular one for instance, is just based on a single bad google translation of some other site's rumor. With not a single word from Sony on the matter, not a single gaming "journalist" (what a joke) has the brains to think the google translate messed up, and it's 160Gb and 250, not 16 and 250 when PS3 already comes with 160 and 250Gb HDDs?!?!?! 160Gb HDDs probably don't even cost Sony 1 single dollar USD, they don't need to make a PS3 with no HDD and only flash for cost saving in any way, and it's silly to think so.

I don't know which is worse, these "16Gb PS3" idiots, or the "Vs13 is cancelled even though Nomura last month and a neogaffer that's proven he has good sources inside Square say development is coming along fine" idiots.

I'm telling you........the internet is making humans more stupid by the day.

[GribbleGrunger]

The internet is run by humans. What you should say is that Humans are making the internet more stupid every day... just saying

[ZoyosJD]

I'm sick of the rumors too, but I can understand if it was "sixteen" or if you were saying it could have been a typo, but a computer translating "160" into "16" isn't going to happen, othewise I'd be dirt poor.

"160Gb HDDs probably don't even cost Sony 1 single dollar USD"

Ironically, that statement made you sound just as much like the blathering "idiots" your decribing.

Try $40, with 250GB=$60, and 16GB flash=$2.

That is a big difference. With a standard price drop and HDD removal, the entry price could hit $150 ($100 sounds like someone pulling numbers out their *** for flamebait).

[Larry L]

@Zoyos
1. Are you suggesting Google Translate isn't dirt poor? And sure, it could have very well also been a typo. Trust me, I in no way think the majority of gaming "journalists" and editors are professionals. But either way, the source for the "16Gb PS3" was a google translated article. And common sense dictates it was supposed to say 160, 250 and 500, not 16 and 250 because PS3 already comes in 160 and 250.

2. You expect me to believe that Sony pays wholesale, AND in bulk for 160 and 250Gb hard drives, what I, as a consumer, could get 160 or 250Gb Hard Drives for retail and one at a time? If I can get a 160Gb hdd for $40 one at a time, Sony, buying them in bulk (probably 10-50,000 at a time), from a manufacturer they probably have close ties with, I highly doubt is paying much more than $1 per HDD.

[dcbronco]

Larry you're reaching with that $1 price. It would cost a manufacturer more in labor, electricity, taxes and benefits than a dollar. No way they're selling them to Sony at a loss. Sony's probably paying closer to $15 on those drives.

[cee773]

even in bulk hdd cant be that cheap $1 hell no and eventually 160gb will be phased out thats the lowest hdd at the moment
20gb hdd
40
60
80
120
soon 160gb will be phased out if not already

[Raiden]

@ All of the above

Bulk in business it is perfectly understood that if you buy in BULK a discount is always part of the deal, so look at it like this.

If Sony buys 100 hdd and get either 2 for 1 that 50 hdd or buy 100 and get 10 or 20 free. This is called buying loyalty. Anyway good luck with your purchase. i just cant wait for 6th November HALO4 MMMMMMMMMMMMMM.

Take care gamers and may the game be with you keep on gaming.

[Jamzluminati]

ROFLMFAO! a 100 dollar PS3. That's fricking sick. 3,000,000 units alone in September. Americans don't care about specs, they just like to get what's the cheapest, then complain after they find out there's something better. Sony, you're digging in that ass and I love it. I don't think it will see life in Japan though.

[_-EDMIX-_]

......did it ever occur to you that Americans do? And that they care so much and are such smart shoppers that they'll just add a 2.5 inch drive from Newegg for about $40 to $50 anyway? Sad...just sad.

[extermin8or]

Need a new ps3 to replace my YLOD 60gb, been using my little brothers for the last yearish however I want to use it more than just when he doesn't want to and with uni etc probably coming up it'd be useful so hopefully this is true :)

[Cocozero]

"A gamescom reveal had been planned, but stock levels of the current build are said to be too high for Sony"

Sounds credible just based on this line, because that goes inline with current sale numbers.

[zeddy]

£99 for a ps3? wow! if you dont have one, theres no excuses now.

[INehalemEXI]

Can't wait to see what it really do.

[shutUpAndTakeMyMoney]

It will play ps3 games.

[INehalemEXI]

Sold

[Red_Orange_Juice]

\o/

[WeskerChildReborned]

Haha yep it won't really add much except a new model.

[shutUpAndTakeMyMoney]

I am surprised to see a 16gb ps3.

[Patriots_Pride]

You and me both...I understand what people are saying that this is targeting the people who want to upgrade their PS3 but why not just make a model where it has 4gb internal memory and shave 50 bucks off the PS3.

My theory is that this is marketed for the casual market and will probably be bundled with Move or Wonder Book.

[bigcupofSTFU]

my guess would be this:

there are some parents that do purhase digiyal games/content for their children.

a great example is The kid i babysit. his parents purchased a 360 without a HDD.

then they learned about online and how arcade games are cheaper than retail games (fruit ninja comes to mind).

they then took the cheap route and purchased a 4gb flash drive. unfortunatly the kid lost the flash drive. well you know the rest.

So i say be sure there is at least some HDD space , because that could be some potential sales.

again, many casuals will not know upgrade their HDD

[gaffyh]

Because they want to offer more than the competition, plus 4GB is nowhere near enough because there are some games that have 8GB installs.

[Majors]

Wasnt the 16gb sku aimed at the bluray market as a standalone player ? I know it will also be able to play games as its a ps3, but its for people who want the best player for the money.
So therefor it may just have 16gb flash built in to keep the price low. But only Sony knows
Still a bargain Though

[KingOptimusOrigin111]

Yes it will.

[the worst]

yes about time
$150 for 16g
ill be upgrading from my phat ps3

[ChunkyLover53]

If you cant beat'em, join'em.

[yewles1]

16GB (PS3) vs. 4GB (360) and 8GB (Wii U) is beating them...

Edit: 4GB gets dogged on for restring features for certain games (I.e. Halo multiplayer, BF3 HD installs, original XBOX backwards compatibility, etc.), a 16GB PS3 only has problems with games that have mandatory installs, which explains not only why it wasn't done long ago, but why it'll be a gamble NOW!

[ChunkyLover53]

They should of had a version of this from THE START.

Curious to see how the spin doctors approach this one though, the ones that dog on the 4 gig Xbox 360 all the time.

Offering a console without a hard drive is crazy! and so on and so forth.

Gotta love N4G.

[Sono421]

@ Chunky, and the 360 should have been a reliable console FROM THE START. Sure you want to play this game? Can't wait to see how you spin this.

[MrBeatdown]

@ChunkyLover

I love when trolls try to stir things up by implying some hypocrisy among some massive group of gamers with a variety of opinions shared between them.

It basically amounts to "once I saw a guy say no HDD was the suxxorz, but you say it's okay. Teh Hypocrisy!!!"

You treat it like every PS3 fan is part of some hive mind that shares one single opinion on everything. Welcome to the real world, where different people have different opinions for different reasons.

If you want to troll, you're going to have to do better than crying foul when one guy on the internet says something different than some other guy on the internet.

"Only on N4G" indeed.

[NastyLeftHook0]

makes no sense, it is beating them.

[ChunkyLover53]

No, its not. For years people have been dogging on a Xbox 360 console that had no HDD, now all of a sudden because a Sony console comes out without a HDD its the best thing ever and its THE YEAR OF THE PS3?

I have scratched my head a lot at Sony this generation, they so badly want success that they are willing to copy just about anything.

@Sono421
Oh please, the PS3 should of had games from the start, shouldn't of taken out backwards compatibility, shouldn't have cost $599, should have actually promoted Move.....Pissing contests get us nowhere.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

One thing Sony has shown an incredible knack for is the redesigning of their machine into smaller form factor at cheaper prices. It's quite impressive if you ask me.

[Patriots_Pride]

Have to agree, Sony is very impressive when it come to that department which kind of bogles me that they can not compete with Apple in other areas.

[Withdreday]

Hell, even Microsoft and Google has trouble competing with Apple in "other areas". They're a juggernaut.

[Raiden]

@ Withdreday

What are you on about MS and Google, question how much stock do MS/ Bill Gates owns of Apple, every time a product is sold by APPLE,(MS/BILL GATES) get there cut. Bill Gates did not step aside because he wanted too, he had too, you can't own a large amount of stock from your rival and still maintain total control of your company. ? did Bill Gates ever sell all of his none controlible stock back to Apple when he helped Steve Jobs get them back into business or does still have them. MS is making money while Apple is doing all the work and that is so funny, youu people have no idea.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[bigcupofSTFU]

cant wait for this new model, thinking of finally biting for a ps3

[MaideninBlack]

Sony never confirmed it would be at Gamescom in the first place.

[GribbleGrunger]

Sony haven't confirmed it actually exists

[GribbleGrunger]

Two people disagree?! Show me the link people

[Withdreday]

Sony hasn't and never would admit it existed before it was ready to hit stores as it would kill current sells.

[CarnageXB]

I'm fine with my 60gb fat ps3. It still runs like day one. Alittle louder but it still works. I'm waiting for the ps4.

[fossilfern]

I should of just listened and waited before I bought my slim about 3 weeks ago! Oh well I prefer the design of the current slim I suppose

[DiRtY]

If the 149 € part is true, Sony needs to change their management sooner than later.

SCE (and ONLY SCE) just lost 1.2 billion USD last year.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum...

Sony overall reported a 6.4 billion loss just 3 months ago.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012...

And Sony will report another hefty loss in a couple of days for the past quarter.

Now they are literally burning hundreds of millions with the PS3 again. Money, they will never get back this late in a generation, just to become 2nd place. Nobody cares what place a console is at except nerds like us on N4G. 3rd party support for 360 and PS3 will be the same. Nobody wants to lose a 70 million userbase anyway.

This would be the dumbest thing to do in the sitaution Sony is in.

[portal_2]

Umm yeah, smaller form factor means less materials used, meaning manufacturing costs are reduced, replacing components with revised and cheaper counterparts means costs are reduced. removing the expensive slot loading drive means costs are reduced, replacing the HDD with a cheapo SSD means costs are reduced. Overall the rumoured new PS3 SKU will cost less to produce, allowing Sony to streamline PS3 manufacturing hence allowing them to give the consumer better value whilst still being profitable. At that price sales will skyrocket in this economy..Oh wait, you're just a dirty hater..my bad. fool.

[DiRtY]

SCE (only Playstation products) are not profitable with the PS3 being a $249 machine.

When MS introduced their slim console, costs went down as well and MS kept the price the same and still people were buying 360s like hotcakes.

How about Sony / SCE actually becomes profitable before they fight a war, that is already over?

MS kept the same price like 2009 and managed to be highly profitable with the 360 and even outsell their competitors in 2011. Sony should try to do the same thing instead of burning millions.

[portal_2]

No, you've got it all wrong, the PS3 has been profitable since 2010, so reducing manufacturing costs along with an appropriate reduction in RRP will allow Sony to remain profitable with the PS3 and increase yearly sales. The 360 may earn MS more profit, but actual sales are hitting a landslide- unlike the PS3 which outsells it every week.

[Withdreday]

@DiRtY
Microsoft's already at mass market price($199 and under), so they can afford to keep the price the same. And the price/console war isn't over as there's over a year left and they still have a few big time exclusives coming down the pipeline.

Plus, what they lose in hardware profits, they'll easily gain back in software sales and PSplus members.

I think someone's just crushed the ps3 will finally be at a competitive price point.

[Gridloc]

Don't forget the Motorola vs. Microsoft decision will be sometime in August. If Microsoft is unable to sell xboxs in the US then Sony probably won't lower the price of the PS3. Microsoft might also have another antitrust suit in Europe for IE. Bend over Microsoft.

[kma2k]

I can see sony dropping the price to $199 to match the 4gb 360, that would be a smart move. However this weekend i saw in Target ad that they are selling the 4gb 360 for $179.00, if sony did come out with the $199 units i could see 360 lowering theres to $175 just to be lower.

[Megaton]

This site cracks me up.

Microsoft Arcade model = worst thing ever.
Sony Arcade model = best thing ever.

100gb+ hard drives should be standard in all variations of all modern consoles, period. The industry should be going forward, not backward.

[OC_MurphysLaw]

well said, and agreed....move the industry forward not backward!

[SecretPsycho]

But wasn't the Microsoft model bad because its not exactly cheap to replace the hdd?

[PirateThom]

Spot on. This model, at least, allows you to cheaply upgrade the hard drive.

[_-EDMIX-_]

Sony's has a HDD, MS's doesn't.

One can always upgrade to a bigger one for about $30 to $40.

One can upgrade a 360 one for WAY MORE and WAY LESS space.

Get it right. MS DVD9 and lack of HDDs in every 360 is what gimped this gen and fractured there own market.

[Gridloc]

I doubt the 16gb will have a HDD slot. If it does, it will be the best selling PS3.

[sway_z]

I seriously doubt the console will retail at £99. Even a flip lid Blu-Ray and 16GB flash...with all those other components would put this at a loss for Sony....I can't imagine Sony taking an even bigger hit financially as they have recently...

I would imagine £129 - £149 for this unit...but tbh if you're a true gamer and enjoy Sony products...would you not have a PS3 already?

*excusing late party attendees (late adopters) and cash strapped families, who really wants to replace perfectly working console they already have for a cheapo version...IDK.

However, if your current PS3 is on it's last legs...this is a good replacement I guess.....

This is also a good sign the PS4 will hit quite soon, as this seems to be a move to offer the PS3 as an entry level product...cos big brother is coming!!!

Hey it's just an opinion....those intending to disagree "Hello"

:)

[itBourne]

If they were smart they would throw in just a little extra ram or processor or whatever it is they need to add cross game chat. If you did that a TON of people would buy another console.

[bub16]

wow at £99 you cant afford NOT to get one!

[Tzuno]

The question is how cheap it is? It does the same as the older brothers so it ain't wrong with this one. Maybe a reason to finally buy one. :)

[GamerElite]

Well,the come from the same parents. So I don't see why it won't be like its siblings

[MoreRPG]

I want my splash blue ps3 slim so make it available in NA

[CRASHBASHUK]

ps4 at gamescom?

[dcbronco]

The 16gb has to be aimed at the casual stream gaming market. Or those that already have a HD. It can't be intended for regular games. Two or three mandatory installs and you're out of space.

[st-BiOZ]

i get it - but game systems definitely aren't what they used to be. my old skool nintendo took more than a few blows from the mighty hand. i don't think this would survive 1... everyone knows this though. I like the idea of a cheaper PS3 as long as it's 100% the real thing and not "designed to fail"

* I've had [3] PS3's this generation because of hardware issues!! Hope others can relate with how I feel.

[Azazel]

I can relate. But think of the xbox users, lol. I have friends that have gone through so many more due to hardware issues.

[spinbot_lv1]

If the rumor is true and a ps3 cheap, intended for the casual market is really coming... well guys this mean that sony is ready for the next generation. I'm ready too. Can't wait.

[MultiConsoleGamer]

Random thoughts:

The $99 price point is a response to the upcoming $99 Xbox 360, which has been rumored in the press for some time.

PS3-4000? Nope. Here's a fix. Call it the PS4. That's what you should really be calling this device.

PS3 is the PS4.

[danthebios]

If the rumoured thingy is true,the product should come with a logo "now everyone can play".

[black911]

We dont need nex gen whee is last guardian,Gta 5,beyond twO souls,last of us...... Many more ps3 games

[Droid Control]

I think Nintendo should be more worried than M$.

The Wii U will launch this year against already cheaper current gen consoles with a far superior catalogue of games at cut prices.

With the rumoured £99 PS3 superslim, M$ will surely price cut the 360 S and the Wii U will suddenly seem like a total rip-off to the casual gamers out there that already own a Wii/