James Delahunty
8 May 2006 21:09
Sony has revealed that the highly anticipated PlayStation 3 (PS3) console will cost up to $599 when it launches in the U.S. in November. A version of the console with a 20GB storage capacity will be available for $499 (which was the rumored price for the system) as well. The company believes that consumers will be willing to pay extra for the console mainly because it includes a Blu-ray drive that will play back high definition movies on BD discs.
According to Kazuo Hirai, Sony Computer Entertainment America's chief executive, the company will ship 4 million consoles by the end of the year. The console will be available in Japan on November 11th at a cost of 59,800 yen for the 20GB model, the 60GB model will be priced by retailers. The PS3 will then go on sale in the U.S. and Europe on November 17th.
Sony also unveiled a controller that allows gamers to control their games by waving it around in the air, much like the controller used by Nintendo's Wii console which is expected to launch in the fourth quarter. Hirai said that Sony will make 2 million consoles available at launch and will have shipped 6 million by March 31st.
"We didn't see a lot of innovation in Sony's presentation today," said Shane Kim, general manager of Microsoft Game Studios. He also pointed out that there is a significant price difference between the PS3 and the Xbox 360 console. He also commented that the controller unveiled by Sony appeals to a "niche market".
Source:
Bloomberg
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