PlayStation Price Chop: A Sign of Evolution or Extinction?

TheStar writes: As more consumers access low-cost video games through their smartphones, Sony recently announced it was slashing prices on its popular PlayStation 3 gaming console.

But if you think the price reduction is a desperate attempt by Sony to keep pace with mobile phone competitors, think again.

[BakedGoods]

The PS2 hit $150 within 5 years of launch--that was half it's launch price. The PS3 has a similar pattern, $500 at launch (depending which model you use) down to $250 five years later.

So any 'price drop doom-and-gloom' stories are probably just bored gamers waiting for Uncharted 3 ;)

[rezzah]

i thought the price was $500 at launch...Must be one of those false memory thoughts.

Btw

Where's the 360 opinion version of a possible evolution or extinction topic?

There is ALWAYS something negative pointed out for anything Sony. Whereas MS gets a free ride at positiveness every time.

[gamingdroid]

I don't think there was doom and gloom before the price drop or after, but Sony missed their target last fiscal year for PS3 shipments.

http://www.videogamer.com/n...

Furthermore,

"It's also worth pointing out that fourth quarter PS3 sales came in at 2.1 million, down from 2.2 million in Q4 fiscal 2009. In fact, it's the second quarter in succession which saw a sales decline: Q3 FY10 managed only 6.3 million units compared to 6.5 in Q3 FY09."

So I think Sony was under pressure this year to show growth, while Xbox 360 has had a tremendous growth. Sony with no products in the pipeline to change the trend, price cut is the most obvious and generally the last thing a manufacturer will do to stimulate sales.

Of course, now MS is under pressure the second time in a row too! How the heck did MS compete with Sony with no price drops for 2-years?...

I'm almost certain MS will drop their price soon. How do you compete with a a $250 PS3 with a $300 Xbox 360?

[DebateMaster]

MS has a 199 360. not sure you knew that

[NukaCola]

The $199 Xbox 360 comes with nothing. It's an empty shell dude. I hate when arcade models are brought into it. If you want a 360 that is usable, you still need to spend a little more cash. And with PS3, they extra $50 gets you bluray, 320gb HDD, and all the other features of PS3. Not saying a 360 is bad, but the PS3 is a phenomenal deal.

[kneon]

@NukaCola

Yes the arcade is quite bare bones but the average consumer is rather clueless. They see the cheap one and buy it not understanding all the extras they will end up paying for in the end.

BTW the arcade is often on sale for $149, and once and a while I see refurbs as low as $99.

[fear88]

This article is beyond dumb. There is a big difference between dropping the price based on supply and demand and based on production costs.

Computers used to be $500 at the most affordable price.
Now they are 250. Does that mean that computers are becoming desperate for sales? No. It's a sign of production becoming more affordable. It's evolution.
.
The HP touchpad used to be $500 at few months back. Now it's $100 on clearance. That's because there was no supply and demand.

The ps3 was on sale at $300 for 2 years. Now it's 250. They are not desperate or in fear of extinction. Production costs have gone down hence the price. For Crap sake its a new model revision.

How dumb do you have to be to not understand that?

[gamingdroid]

***This article is beyond dumb. There is a big difference between dropping the price based on supply and demand and based on production costs.***

Prices are never dropped due to production cost, it is always supply and demand stemming from competition.

If production cost goes down, guess what? It is pocketed by the company as profits, until another company provides better value.

That is why the PC goes down in price, because there is room for it, and somebody was able to offer it cheaper to attempt to steal sales from the competitor, not because the company JUST WANTED to give you a better deal.

If there was no competitor to PS3, Wii or Xbox 360, none of those guys would be dropping the price. NONE!

It's not charity, it's maximizing profit. Capitalism at it's finest!

[SuperStrokey1123]

Wait, are they comparing the PS3 to mobile phones?

[vyke3]

obvious troll article is obvious.

[badboy7428]

I honestly think it's preparing for PS3 Vita bundles.

[Rage_S90]

The retardation is strong with this one.

[TheFirstClassic]

lol awesome comment.

[NukaCola]

@TmanX1

Is this one good?

[Stealth2k]

enough with these dumbass articles

[JsonHenry]

Its a sign of great desire to be competitive.

[MrDead]

.............................. ...............?

[user8397144]

I was starting to wonder where these articles were.

[diehardgamer1000]

Shut tha fuck up

[digitaledge]

Of course it's a sign of evolution. Price drops happen as the product gets cheaper to produce etc. It doesn't mean that the end is nigh for the PS3 at all.

Look at the 360 too - the price has dropped on the 250GB model too, but no successor has been announced yet.

The price dropped on the 3DS too, but that's only just got started.

All it does is create more demand for the product, increase market share, and ensure that the audience is there for future big releases.

[DragonKnight]

...

[cervantes99]

Man, the internet is full of stupid article writers.

I wish there was a stupid filter I could install on my browser to weed out these ignorant and stupid article writers.

[Kaizin514]

It's ok, using the logic of this article, every item in existence is a sign of extinction. Come 2012, all items will be cheap and the world would end.

Can't stand articles like this. "Let's write something stupid so we can get lots of hits on our site."

[SweatyFlorida]

What?

[kingdoms]

It became hard for Sony to hide the fact PS3 was being outsold by the 360 WW so they went ahead the drop in reaction to the forecast predicted for the holiday looking too strong for the 360. Sony tried to rely on PS3 fans to use the hazy myths created from lesser tracking companies but after releasing their company internal official figures first this time and MS 2nd it revealed the truth even to the diehards and investors.

[TheComedian]

(O____________________________ ________________________O)
...
wait what?
Edit:ok I read your comment once...then twice...then a third time more...I am not going to lie it is like reading your own personal fanfiction over there

[TheFirstClassic]

Just ignore him. Why do you think he only has one bubble? I've seen him post some serious trolling comments on this site.

[MysticStrummer]

LOL Keep up the good work man. You're still a 2nd tier 360 troll but I feel with dedication you could end up in the 1st tier. Maybe mixing in some facts would help. I guess if the lower PS3 price means extinction, then 360's even lower price must mean it never existed in the first place.

[rezzah]

lol nice way to twist his logic against him.

+bub - funny.

[GarandShooter]

C'mon man, you know he's always going to be a low intellect, bench warming, sub par troll.

You should be ashamed of yourself for getting his hopes up of making the big leagues.

[Moerdigan]

"Sony tried to rely on PS3 fans"

seriously?

[thehusbo]

Wow....

[Skateboard]

Lol, we got another one. That is why i went to Gamestop today and had three people ahead on the line preordering games on the PS3. I should have told them "stop that PS3 is going to disappear no one iz going to find it cause they will implode derp".

[solar]

the more a hardware dev sells of hardware is more money from software. thats all this is. a lower price means more casuals buy the hardware, and more software revenue.

[cliffbo]

MS has lowered the 360 loads of times and i cannot remember anyone saying its the end for MS bus soon as sony lowers there price its the end.

also what about the 3DS £80 off the price now only a £150 now thats desperation only months after its release.

[InTheLab]

I honestly don't get this whole Smartphone taking over gaming BS. People don't buy $500 phones to play $2 games. A lot of us use the more obscure features like phone calls and emails. $2 games that get deleted after a power session on the toilet or when you get to the front of the line.

I couldn't imagine getting home from work, grabbing a beer, firing up Angry Birds, then burning off the top layer of skin off my fingers from playing that trash for 2 hours.

[banana420]

why can't we just have sonysoft or microny and fix the gaming world :D

[digitaledge]

Because the world would implode at that point, that's why. lol.

And if you take away the one thing that a lot of people on N4G do more than play games, which is stick up for and protect their 'brand' of console (whatever the cost), then we would just have utter chaos in the streets as people argue violently about whether Coke is better than Pepsi (which it is, by the way. :P).