http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/ptech/0...eut/index.html


I was suprised by this article. I wonder if it is correct. I got mine in November from WalMart.com thanks to this forum. I have still not seen one in a store to this date.

Most PS2s are going to Japan where Sony charges more for the console and loses less money on every console sold. When the US and Europe were having big shortages Japan had a big relaunch of the system taking up a big chuck of the supply.

I dunno...I was in my local CompUSA the other day and they had about 20 units stacked on the floor. I've seen them readily available elsewhere too. They are pretty easy to find now.

My local Best Buy had some this week.... :)

Saw five decks at Target this morning.

That is cool. I have not been looking for them per say but do not recall seing a pile or stack anywhere. :)

yeah I was at my electronics boutique a couple of days ago and they had at least 15 sitting around.

I've seen them at the local Target on my last several trips. Haven't really looked other places, though.

they're extremly rare in NYC.
Keep in mind that if you see the box, it does not necessarily mean they have them. They can be for display purposes only.
Even playstation.com sells out of them within a day

But I think that the moral is that if you want one badly enough, you should be able to find it at retail price somewhere.

JoeC...and not in a bundle...

I picked one up for a friend at the local EB world the other day. They had a few of them.... Finally.

Actually every where I have seen them they have been in stock in fairly large numbers including CompUSA and EB. Maybe they are just easier to find here in the Bay Area.

I was on the east side over spring break and they had 20 at target. And no, they weren't for display. :)

Here in the Midwest they are everywhere. So if you can't find one call me, I'll hook ya up. :)

Oh, and the reason playstation.com might be selling out quick is because they are shipping most the units to the stores. Or maybe they are trying to give the "illusion" that the PS2 is still hot.

I think the drop of the DC to 99 and the sale on games took major steam out of Sony's PS2. That and there is not really that many great games yet.

playstation.com limits you to 1 per household, so I doubt it is the stores that are causing them to be sold out.
There is no Target in NYC, where exactly were you?
For some reason, none of the stores in NYC have them. Maybe SONY does like New Yorkers?
The only time I've seen them in NYC is the Mom and Pop stores that are selling them for $390. Any stores selling them for $299 are sold out.
I ordered mine from playstation last week (before it got sold out) and hoping to receive it this week.

i'm in nyc and i still seethem everywhere - bothe here and long island. call the stroes esp. the queens/brooklyn stores. i have seen them at best buy in queens and in eb's in li so often that i can't imagine that they are sold out. just last week two of my friends casually picked them up w/o any effort

Well, here are some specifics-

J&R - sold out- salesman has no idea when they will get them
Virgin Records on Union Square - sold out
EB on 34th and 6th Ave - sold out
EB and gamestop on lower broadway (bet 3-5th St) - sold out
Maybe its just Manhattan
Haven't really bothered to check outside of Manhattan since I already ordered mine.

Also want to add

ToysRUs/KBKids on Union Square
ToysRUs/KBKids on Herald Square

both sold out

Here in Torrance CA it seems the "Big Retailers" like Sears, Kay Bee toys, Toys r US, Best Buy and other only get a few and they seel out quick. The "Mom and Pop" neighborhood places are either only selling <b>$400-$500 + bundles only</b> or selling the base system for $400 instead of $299 like the "Big Retaliers".

So PS2 is NOT hard to find...just hard to find at a reasonable price here in Torrance at least.

And this area has a LARGE ASIAN population so the "Asian owned video games stores" have them when other stores don't...but you pay $400 and up.

<b>Can anyone tell me why some places ONLY sell bundles? Are the distributers playing HARDBALL with the local stores?</b>

When they were first released SONY told the retailers that stock of PS2's would be allocated by add-on sales, so a store that sold a shipment of 20 units, 20 controllers, and 40 games would get a larger allocation of units than a store sold their shipment of 20, 2 controllers, 1 memory card, and 10 games. Locally EB and KBToys are still doing bundles only.

soooo...and I admit I'm dense on this one, how does this help the CONSUMER?