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20 GB PS3 kicks the bucket.
By Patrick Klepek Just as Microsoft's about to introduce a new Xbox 360 SKU, Sony's announced they're removing one from the marketplace. Sony Computer Entertainment America announced Wednesday they've officially dropped the PlayStation 3 20GB SKU and will no longer be offering the cheaper, Wi-Fi less model to North American retailers. Sony says a 10-to-1 retailer demand for the 60GB SKU has prompted the move. Don't panic, though, as 20GB owners will continue to receive the same customer service support they were guaranteed upon purchasing the machine. The architecture between the 20GB and 60GB SKUs are the same, save for a few feature differences, so the shift is minimal from a customer relations and development perspective -- unlike Microsoft, who cannot drop support for the Core SKU, as that model doesn't come with a built-in hard drive. "At launch, we offered two separate models of PLAYSTATION 3 to meet the diverse needs and interests of our PlayStation fan base. Initial retail demand in North America was upwards of ninety percent in favor of the 60GB sku, so we manufactured and shipped-in accordingly. Due to the overwhelming demand for the 60GB model from both retailers and consumers, we have ceased offering the 20GB model here in North America," said SCEA senior director of corporate communications Dave Karraker. "In addition to the larger internal hard drive, the 60GB PlayStation 3 features added storage media slots and built-in Wi-Fi not found in the 20GB system. Based on retailer and consumer feedback, we have decided to focus our current efforts on the more popular 60GB model," he concluded. And so it's official -- less than six months after the launch of the PS3, the 20GB SKU is officially dead |
So we can finally end the "PS3 is only $20 more than the Elite" and "only $100 more than the 360" comments?
Probably not. ;) |
So now Xbox has 3 skus that are less than a PS3. :) I still think MS should have dumped the core and made the Premium $300 and the Elite $400. That would have been a better pricing for the consumer.
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Totally agree with the desired 360 pricing, but now Sony has effectively cut the 360 price and I don't foress Microsoft taking any steps like that on their own for a long time. Maybe even early 2008 :(
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I think they were losing a lot more money on the 20 gb, since the 60 gb is just selling you extra accessories (wifi, bigger hd, and card reader) for $100 more. I'm surprised, with the release of the elite, Microsoft made the 20 gb PS3 seem like a good value, I think Sony could have used that to their advantage.
I think Sony just essentially had a price increase, because whenever price discussions came up, you could always mention the 20 gb model, which really has all the core functionality of the 60 gb (blu-ray, hard drive, hdmi) for $500. But now the PS3 is effectively $200 more than the 360. They must have ended it a while ago, because it seems like nobody has been able to get one for quite some time. |
Unfortunately, the lack of built-in wireless internet in the 360 effectively bumps up the price $100 in comparison to the 60 PS3. Still cheaper though. :)
Due to the overwhelming demand for the 60GB model from both retailers and consumers, we have ceased offering the 20GB model here in North America," said SCEA senior director of corporate communications Dave Karraker. |
I went into Best Buy the other day and they had 60 PS3s stacked on the floor. One of the sales people said they are only selling 2 a day.
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Originally Posted by Draven
Unfortunately, the lack of built-in wireless internet in the 360 effectively bumps up the price $100 in comparison to the 60 PS3. Still cheaper though. :)
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Early word of warning.
DO NOT get started on the whole price debate thing. The thread will be locked if it starts to go down that dangerous path. |
Originally Posted by SteelgearX
The lack of built in wireless makes it a $100 cheaper. You can spin things however you want, see? In the end it's an option, not to mention you can use just about any device you want to make the 360 wireless.
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Originally Posted by DodgingCars
That was my thought. Wireless is a nice feature, but barely necessary.
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I DO NOT buy the idea that they dropped the 20gb because there was no real demand. I have been looking for one for months, and have never been able to find one in stock. I have been able to find 60 gb models nearly everywhere, though. I finally got the 60 with a sony credit card offer to bring it to $545 shipped, but I would still have gone for the 20 gb if there were any to be had.
They droppe it because they were a bigger money loser. Someone had the numbers and the 60gb models represented a loss of around $3xx per unit sold, while the 20 gb model was $4xx. So when you figure guys were buying it as a good BR player with no intention of buying games, and mainly using netflix, it wasn't worth producing them, imo. |
Originally Posted by darkside
This depends on the person, but I consider wireless a must. That is one of the reasons I own a PS3 and skipped the 360.
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I'll buy PS3 someday but not now. Unless they drop down $200 or more. Oh well, this year is XBOX 360 RULE & DS :)
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I got a 20gb a few weeks ago and have to say for me, its perfect... Im not a good gamer, and its mostly used as my BD player. Now, I wonder if this will be worth any money in the future :D...
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Originally Posted by Draven
Overwhelming? Really? I've been able to get a PS3 since June, no problem. It's "whelming" demand at best.
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I think there's more behind this. Think about it, a brand new system not even a year old and there's a major production change. I think the lack of strong sales with the PS3 has really stung them and the success of the Wi has added to it. Throw in the game forecast coming this year for the 360 and the PS3 may end up in the back of the pack. I wouldn't doubt more changes are coming.
Kenny J - Buzz Starhopper |
Originally Posted by Chris_D
Considering how cheap it is to buy a 3rd party wireless bridge (buying the 1st party MS wireless adapter is probably even more silly than buying the Sony hdmi cable), I hope your other reasons have more weight..
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I figured this was coming given I've seen the 60 GB all over the place since mid January but have never seen a 20GB unit in a store anywhere.
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does anyone else think this is a pre-emptive move, and they will drop the 60GB to $499 by the end of the summer? i think that would be the best idea for sony, and to do it soon as the $479 elites hit the market. then there will not be much of a debate about bang for the buck between the 2 systems....
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Originally Posted by Tracer Bullet
That's a neat trick considering it wasn't released until November. ;)
Whoops - I meant January :blush: I actually own a wireless bridge I used for my Xbox - I got the 360 one because it attaches to the console and doesn't require an extra power cord and cabling. That was worth the money to me. |
Originally Posted by SoonerDoc
does anyone else think this is a pre-emptive move, and they will drop the 60GB to $499 by the end of the summer? i think that would be the best idea for sony, and to do it soon as the $479 elites hit the market. then there will not be much of a debate about bang for the buck between the 2 systems....
I don't think so. All sources point to Sony not dropping the price anytime soon. In addition to that MS is only having the "limited edition black" at the $479 price. I belive they will offer the elite at $399 during summer. |
Yeah, I really don't buy that the 20GB was dropped due to lack of demand. To me, it sounds like they're pretty much saying "We thought people wanted the 60GB model, so we produced 10x more of them than the 20GB. Since launch, the 20GB model has only sold 1/10 as many units as the 60GB, so it's clear that we were right about the demand. Goodbye 20GB."
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Like the Core 360, I think the 20GB was just a PR move for launch to be able to say they are only $100 more than the 360. That obviously backfired, so why continue to bleed money? They cut their losses and are moving on.
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I got the 20 GB as a Blu-Ray player mostly. Nothing coming out for the thing til the end of the year anyhow.
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