What Up? Welcome to the blog for PS3 PLAYAS!

Current Sony Playstation release date is November 17th, 2006 in The United States.

Can’t friggin’ wait!

Sony PS3 Prices…What’s it going to cost a playa?

A quick look at the varying PS3 release date prices across the world.

The Sony PS3 is due for release in Japan and North America on the 11th and 17th of November 2006, respectively. The rest of the world, including Europe, Australia, South-East Asia, the Middle-East, and African markets will have to endure a delay until March, 2007, arising from a shortage of vital components for the Blu-Ray drive that is in every PS3. The PS3 release prices vary for the conditions of each of its respective markets, and not just according to exchange rates, which will be further diverged by Sony’s decision to release both Basic, and Premium versions of their console.

The main difference between the light and premium versions of the PS3, are that the light version lacks the internal CompactFlash card reader, integrated WiFi support, and comes with only a 20GB hard drive as standard. The deluxe version will include those features, and has a 60GB hard drive instead. The PS3 release date price in Japan has not been set by Sony. Instead, they have opted to let market-forces dictate PS3 prices, allowing retailers to set their own level. Based on this, it appears the PS3 release price for the 60 GB will float at around 75,000 Yen, which exchanges to a little under US$700. The Basic version is fixed at just under 50,000 Yen ($US420).

In the US, Sony PS3 prices are a little more modest. The Basic version’s RRP is $499, while the Premium is one hundred dollars dearer. This follows a similar scheme used by Microsoft during the Xbox 360 launch, where the premium version of  the console retailed for $100 more than the basic unit. Sony has managed to keep demand for the PS3 strong, despite several long delays, and the PS3 price-point being the highest for any console ever. Perhaps hardest hit are the European and Australasian consumers, who will have to wait an additional five months. Even then, the expected prices in Europe are 499 Euro for the Basic ($US630), and 599 Euro (US$750) for the Premium version, with customers in some countries within the EU expected to pay considerably more. The Sony PS3 price in Australia will be more or less the same as for the European markets, A$829 and A$999 respectively.

It will be some time before consumers can expect a PS3 price drop: Independent analysts speculate that based on the cost of components and workmanship, Sony stands to lose as much as US$100 per unit at launch, following a now familiar pattern among console manufacturers, where the company voluntarily settles for an initial loss, to later reap their profits from game and accessory purchases. It is expected that as production ramps up, the cost of the more expensive components – specifically the tooling and establishment overheads associated with launching the Blu-Ray disk format – will drop significantly. The PS3 price is certainly not cheap. Indeed, during this year’s E3 Expo, some quick thinking by Microsoft and Nintendo marketing reps started a word-of-mouth rumour that there were unofficially encouraging consumers to buy both a Nintendo Wii, and an Xbox 360 for less than the PS3 price! Subsequent news that PS3 game prices would also be above what is considered the industry standard only fueled the fire. But the PS3 is certainly a powerful machine, and clearly some buyers are more than willing to part with the extra cash in return for what will be the most powerful gaming console ever unleashed.