Get ‘em while they are hot. US 60GB PS3 phase out

Mike Bantick
Tuesday, 17 July 2007 05:30

Your IT - Entertainment

Will it be a collectable item?  Well only in the US as Sony decide to phase out the 60GB US$499 PS3, with the 80GB US$599 model its replacement.  Meanwhile in the rest-of-the-world….

It has been a confusing couple of days for potential PS3 purchasers in the US.

First an interview with David Reeves over at gamesindustry.biz indicated that the price reduction of US$100 on the 60GB PS3 would be a short-lived phenomena as the model was being phased out of the US market in favour of the US$599 80GB model.

Meanwhile over in the PAL territories the 60GB model is firmly entrenched. with a bundling option instead of a price reduction.

From the original interview:
So once the 60GB is gone, that will be the end of the 60GB then?
In America, yes.
Why not offer the 80GB model in Europe?
The difference between 60GB and 80GB is not really necessary. The difference in cost between a 60 and 80 is just Euro cents; it's nothing, because the cost of memory is so small.
Probably we could have gone for 80GB, but does it really make any difference? We just know that we get a better supply on the 60GB than we will on the 80GB. So we chose to continue with the 60GB until we find that we can get something better, maybe lower cost. It just didn't seem necessary to us.
Then, other Sony execs come out and state that Reeves comment above is gibberish and that there will be 60GB machines on offer in the US for “the foreseeable future…”

Well now it seems the “foreseeable future” is not that long with this report on boomtown today .  It gives us a comment from Sony spokesperson David Karraker

"The 60GB PS3 will be available in North America for USD 499 until supplies of that unit are depleted.  We have ample inventory to meet the immediate needs of consumers in this territory for several months to come. We won't be making any further announcements regarding our PS3 model hardware strategy in North America until the 60GB model is exhausted and market conditions are evaluated."

Ahhh fun and games, what to do with my consumer money?  Well according to vocal industry Analyst Michael Pachter, if I want an 80GB US PS3 I should hang on to my hard earned for just a little longer.

"In our view, the Sony entry level price of USD 499 is here to stay," he said.

"We believe that there are presently 2 – 3 million 60GB PS3s produced and not yet sold, and expect the entire supply to be diverted to the US to honor the new lower price point.

"Once these units are sold through, we expect the company to lower the price of its 80GB model to USD 499 on a standalone basis."