It wasn't the first or last big announcement at Sony's E3 2008 Press Conference this morning, but it was the one we least expected. Taking the stage for the umpteenth time at downtown LA's Shrine Auditorium, CEO Jack Tretton announced that "starting in September," Sony will begin selling an 80GB PS3 package for $400.
"Today, I'm pleased to announce we've decided to make the 80GB PS3 a primary focus of our hardware lineup going forward," said Tretton as the image directly above appeared on the overhead projector. "Starting in September, we'll launch a PS3 with the same functionality as the current 40GB PS3."
While the phrase "same functionality as the current 40GB PS3" is worrying considering that unit has no backwards compatibility, no memory card readers and two fewer USB ports, Tretton prefaced his announcement with the words "we continue to work hard to increase the value proposition for consumers by improving our hardware," and followed them by proclaiming that Sony was offering "the same value" of the existing PS3 for $400. Considering how cheap hard drives have become in recent years, we doubt the price of an additional 60GB would come close to parity with the features lost.
On the other hand, the image makes it clear that the new 80GB PS3 will come with a DualShock 3 controller. We'll obtain confirmation from Sony as soon as possible.
Though rival Microsoft revealed Monday that its own 20GB Xbox 360 would be replaced by a new, 60GB model at the same $350 price point, the news likely came as a surprise to investors more or less assured Friday that Sony was not considering similar maneuvers.
Update: TechRadar has today reviewed the new 80GB PS3, and discovered that as previously feared, it has no backwards compatiblity and no memory card readers.
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July 15th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
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