New Slim PS3 Trimming the Price Tag

Sony has announced an upcoming, slim version of their PlayStation 3 console, which will retail for $299. The current PS3 console, with 20GB, retails for $499 and the 60GB version for $599.

PS3's sales have lagged behind Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii consoles, mostly on account of the hefty price tag. The Xbox 360 has been available for $299 and the Wii retails for $250. To this point, the Wii has been, by and large, the winning console in terms of units sold.

The reason for the success of Nintendo's Wii relies, in part, upon the appeal to the younger generation of gamers. The actual characters are fairly cartoon-ish and not nearly as realistic as those found in many Xbox 360 or PS3 games. Children are more drawn to the fun-looking characters offered on the Wii console.

Along the same lines, a Wii offers the opportunity to create a character which is based on yourself, or a complete fabrication of your creativity. If you want to make a character that wears all black, has purple hair, and opts for funky sunglasses, but you yourself are more of a conservative, corporate type, you can feel free to do so with the Wii.

Another reason for Wii's success is based on economics. Simply put, it has been the least expensive console of the three units and that is not a bad position to be in when the economy heads south. For anyone out there who is unaware, the economy went south over the past couple of years, and perhaps you want to check out the news every once in a while. Anyhow, $250 price tag is more appealing to the people who actually buy the systems.

All three units have their respective pluses and minuses. Wii has the fun, cartoonish characters and the controllers which allow you to be very active while playing a video game. Xbox 360 has a great collection of game titles and a powerful computer controlling the console. The strength for the PS3, though, is the capability of playing blue-ray discs. This feature has been a major selling point for the consumers who have already purchased a unit and will even be more so in the near future.

The PS3 has a hefty price tag in relationship to the other two gaming units, but has been less expensive than other blue-ray players. Now, faced with a $200 decrease in price, the advantage it has in the department increases greatly. The new, slim units will fly off the shelves.

Amazon.com is already anticipating a shortage and is restricting purchases to one per home. This would not be necessary if the company did not expect a great demand for the product.

With the reduced price tag for the PS3, it should be interesting to see if Nintendo lowers the price for their Wii units to counter Sony's move. One thing is for sure, though, and it's the fact that when companies go at each other like that, the consumer is the one who ultimately wins.