Price Cut Leads To PS3, PSP Sales Boost

Klaidas writes "The BBC reports that sales of Sony's PlayStation 3 console in the US rose by 21% in June, though the machine still trails the Wii and Xbox 360. NPD numbers show 98,500 PS3s were sold, compared to 198,400 Xbox 360s (up 28%) and 381,800 Wiis (up 13%). Sony said that the $100 price cut to the 60GB PS3 led to a 135% sales rise over the last two weeks, though independent confirmation of that jump is not yet available. 'Nintendo's DS handheld sold 561,900 units , while Sony's PSP, which has been boosted by an April price cut, sold 230,100 units, NPD reported. Software sales in the US are 31% higher than the same time last year, the market research showed, buoyed by new consoles from all three firms.'"

Misleading headline

[EveryNickIsTaken]

Since the price cut occurred two weeks ago (for the PS3), these numbers don't reflect any bump from said price cut. The numbers that we'll be looking for are July, August, and September to see if the price cut leads to a sustained increase in sales.

Re:I Heart PS3

[Soul-Burn666]

So you love your PS3 for:
An FPS which could have been done better on a PC, a graphical bump to a PS1/PS2 fighting game and an emulated version of a PS1 game.
You probably live on an oil well if that seems like a good bargain.

Moreover, all of Assassin's Creed, Bioshock, Crysis and UT3 are not exclusive, headed straight to PC, 360 and PS3, so placing them only in one category makes it seem a tad biased.

The game I'm most looking for which is a PS3 exclusive is actually a much more casual game called LittleBigPlanet.

I never figured out why people are masochistic enough to play FPSes with dual-analog controllers (i.e on consoles).

Re:Poor Sony

[hibiki_r]

Sure you can play most PS2 games in the 60 gb PS3, but the 80gb version won't have the Emotion Engine built in, so the backwards compatibility advantage will take a significant step back. No Gran Turismo 4, no Xenosaga, no Metal Gear 2, no Bully, for example. The PS3 has a future if people actually want to spend $30-$35 a pop for blu-ray movies. If they'd rather spend $10-$20 for the normal DVD, they blu-ray becomes a liability, not an advantage. And, in the end, the PS3 needs exclusives to sell, and every big exclusive they had is either gone or delayed to 2008.

Re:Poor Sony

[Fozzyuw]

The PS3 is almost a year old and still has very very few exclusive titles! ~by Aladrin (926209) Alter Relationship on Tuesday July 24, @08:56AM (#19968961 [slashdot.org])

The console was first released on November 11, 2006 in Japan and shortly after on November 17, 2006 in North America, Hong Kong and Taiwan.! ~Wikipedia [wikipedia.org]

November = 11/12 month. July 7/12 month. That's about a 4 month difference before we see it's 1 year anniversary, or 1/3 (33.333%) of a year. You have a very loose definition of 'almost'.

According to this list [wikipedia.org], there are over 40 games slated to be released before their true 1 year mark. Over 11 of them exclusive. Of course, given the usual game development, some of this might be pushed back past November 2007.

Add to that the price difference and people have many reasons to buy a 360 over a PS3.

The "Elite" [wikipedia.org] price of the 360 is pretty much on par with the 60-GB 'firesale' price at $479.99 compared to $499.99. Add on the option HD-DVD drive [wikipedia.org] at $199.99 [amazon.com] and now you're looking at a console that's MORE expensive than the PS3, which comes with Blu-ray. Though, you do get a bigger hard drive (120GB compared to 80GB)

Nah, the 360 is not a better price comparison than the PS3, given similar setups. It is better for consumers because of it's optional features, but that will also be a drawback for it's system. One cannot put a game on HD-DVD media for the 360 because they cannot guarentee everyone has an HD-DVD drive. Well, one could do it, but it could scorn consumers who might purchase it (and you know there are people who will) thinking it will work because it's a 360 game.

There are only 2 main reasons for get a 360 over a PS3. Game library (as you already mentioned) and online support. Both of these can be categorized into the 'maturity' of the console because it has been out longer.

While I'm a Nintendo supporter, my crystal ball does predict the PS3 to overtake both the Wii and 360 in 2 years. It's going to be a huge gap to make up from the Wii but I believe you'll start seeing games on the PS3 that will just blow people away and everyone will be wanting one. One top of that, in 2-years that 80GB model will probably be selling closer to $400, which will be much more affordable for everyone as the prices of Blu-Ray and computer chips drop at their usual rate. Such games won't be possible on the 360 without a HD-DVD requirement.

You'll see the PS3 become more popular with developers as the 'casual gamers' market that the Wii is very effectively targeting, is also a market that does not spend gobs of money on games or as often. 1 game for a casual gamer family will probably satisfy them for months, while a hobby gamer (like myself) will 'beat' a game in a week or two and will want to move onto something else. Of course, this will depend on the game. MMO's will probably take over the 360 and PS3 consoles with the availability of a hard drive.

At that point, since "everyone"(tm) will be picking up a PS3, there will be a resurgence of interest in it as if it was part of a 'new' generation of consoles. Like "current + .5 generation". And maybe in the next 2 years Sony can correct it's PR from it's other department mishaps.

In 2 years, those gamers who sprang for a Wii or 'Wii60' while have $400 to spend on a new console and they'll see a good healthy library of games to c