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19 May 2006
Sony's PlayStation 3 will cost gamers £425 at its launch on 17 November, roughly £18 more than it will cost elsewhere in Europe.
The version of the console that comes with a 60GB hard drive will cost €599 in Europe, which works out as £407 under the current conversion rate.
However, with no UK price mentioned for the 20GB version of the console, which will cost €499 (£339) in Europe, it is feared that Sony will not offer the lower-spec machine in the UK.
Ray Maguire, Sony's UK managing director, defended the price as "a bargain" when Blu-ray DVD players could retail for £600-£700.
The PlayStation 3 will face tough competition from Microsoft's Xbox 360 in the Christmas buying period.
Microsoft will package its next-generation console with a bundled HD-DVD drive for less than the price of the PlayStation 3.
Maguire admitted that Sony has a big challenge ahead. "The point is that most people don't realise what they're actually getting with a PlayStation 3," he told Eurogamer.tv.
"It's a games machine and we all know that, but it's also a high-definition video playback device through Blu-ray, and a lot of people don't really understand that part of the functionality."
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Do you agree?
Expensive But Worth It
PS3 is expensive but its worth it. You get what you pay for. I am definately going to buy it. I mean, people buy video ipods for £300 - £350 and what can it do, other than play mp3 and videos.
Posted by: Muna 16 Jun 2006
No 20GB
No 20GB for us Britons? I'll stick with my Xbox 360, thank you very much.
Posted by: Mike 01 Jun 2006
Rediculous
I think that the price is much higher than it should be and I would definatly not be paying that type of money for it, and i don't think that anyone in their right mind would pay that type of money. Not even the X-Box 360 cost that much when it was released! i think that sony sould either lower their prices or they are not going to sell as many as they were expecting!!!
Posted by: Nicky Young 22 May 2006
Sony cynical
The custom of large multinational corporations like Sony treating the British consumer with contempt continues. Sony, just like the car manufacturers did until a few years ago, looks at the UK as a "treasure island" where they can more or less charge what they like i.e. put a premium on what sells in the UK...simply because they can. What they should remember is that the UK consumer got wise to this with cars and so individuals began to import UK spec models from abroad.UK car franchises got the wind up. Result: they had to lower their prices. Now it's no longer neccessary to go to Holland to buy your Ford Focus or your Citroen C4 at EEC prices. The same will happen with PS3.... or have Sony forgotten the internet purchasing power of the UK customer? Wake up and smell the coffee Sony before it's too late.
Posted by: Dave Topping 21 May 2006
YA DE YA
Let`s face it they boobed and now its to late,no serious gamer will be taken in with that piffle about blue ray . My son`s just bought an X box and it`s fantastic.Sorry Sony but you should not treat your customers like idiots.
Posted by: Dave Scott 21 May 2006
Stupid
do sony not realise people who buy this product, the same as buying a 360 are really only interested in the gaming side of things? blue-ray may never take off and then there argument has gone down the toilet!!!
Posted by: Russ 21 May 2006
The public will still go crazy for it!
Yes! The price is ridiculous for a home consumer games machine. It may be able to play HD movies, but at the present time that isn't much of a bonus for the majority of consumers who are probably happy with dvd. Whichever way you look at it, this machine is made to play games. It's a ' games machine ' ... and that's why people will buy it! Sony and other console makers create these machines as a portal for the £40-50 games. They make their money from software sales more than anything. Without any games, the PS3 wouldn't offer much of an experience. It's not like a PC which can offer lots of free entertainment, such as web-browsing, free games, and other fun stuff etc... Away from the technical hype, and the marketing talk, 95% of consumers are going to be paying a high price for what is simply a machine to play games. Blue Ray films won't appeal, especially when they will probably cost more than regular dvd's. Greed is at the heart of Sony's PS3. The company are playing on their strong brand image, and trying to milk as much cash as possible from the consumer. Never in my 16years of gaming have I witnessed a situation where a console creator has had such a negative misguided attitude towards the massmarket! Don't buy one at launch, wait a couple of months, and if everyone does the same, the price will drop! The games may be tempting, but be patient... resist!
Posted by: Leon James 20 May 2006
BUY THE SONY PLAYSTATION 3
I would really like to buy the playstation 3 for my boyfriend he loves the sound of it. So could you please put one aside for me, as i am not bothered about the price!
Posted by: Bav 20 May 2006
Get Real
Some points for consideration... (1) True next gen games are likely to bennefit from the capacity offered by Blue-Ray. (2) Price up the parts required for a cutting edge PC to play games. Then buy Oblivion and discover you still can't run it at full tilt. You'll spend another £500 to £1000 again in the next 18 months. (3) This is a brand new platform that should last the next 4 or 5 years. Sony will find ways to manufacture it cheaper in the future. Many games are released on multiple platforms so if you can'f afford to buy Sony's latest machine, simply get something else.
Posted by: Mr. Sharp 20 May 2006
I'll pay.
I was disappointed when they announced two different machine specs. If the games for the ps3 are any good then i will pay the £425. If they try to shovel the tripe that MS did with the xbox 360 then i will just wait for some decent games to come out and hopefully pay a lower price.
Posted by: nuffmon 20 May 2006
Blu-Ray vs. HD
Blu-Ray and Power are probably the only two arguments that PS3 fans can use to promote their machine. Bearing this in mind, lets break the legs their arguments stand on: 1) Blu-Ray is pretty much the same as the HD format which will be available with xbox 360. The only thing to consider then is the success rate of Sony when it comes to introducing formats - betamax, minidisc, etc - complete failure! Micrsoft on the other hand is a world leader on innovation and has a year in advance to boost the popularity of HD-DVD. 2) More power? - extra costs with very little effect on "gameplay"! Remember N64? all that power yet failed when it came to gameplay! -- xbox 360 is about to teach Sony a harsh lesson in business!
Posted by: A Kadir 20 May 2006
Hmmm...
So there we have it. I picked myself up an Xbox 360 and, initially I was a bit worried how it would match up against the PS3 but, in all seriousness, not having a HD drive in it from the launch was not a big mistake. I paid £270 for a games console which has a fantastic arrange of Xbox exclusive games, either now or coming in the future. And, for me, it's the games that matter. I'll consider a PS3 but all I'd want from it, really, is a console and £425 is too much. So, for now, I'll stick with my 360 and probably pick up a wii at the end of the year. If the price of the PS3 comes down, I'll consider it but, in all fairness, there's no exclusive games that I've seen that would make me want one from the launch. I'm not knocking the machine at all, nor Sony (I like the PS2), but there's very little to put it above the 360 in my eyes, even if it was the same price.
Posted by: Alastair S Maggs 20 May 2006
No thanks PS3
I'm going to stick with my p.c. for playing games. At least I can update it in a few years instead of paying out for a whole new system and games (which are double the price). I have all this technology in front of me now
Posted by: swoosta 20 May 2006
We understand - but are not willing to pay
Sony doesn't understand that many people don't want to pay any money for a stupid proprietary Blue Ray disc player. Two questions: (1)Will Sony refund the cost of the drive if the Blue Ray tanks just like: Betamax, Minidisc, AIT, Memory Stick, A-Track, and whatever that thing is called in the PSP that all the movie studios are dumping right now? (2)Will Blue Ray come with complimentary SpyWare just like the virus that Sony loads into their music cd's? Sony is a train wreck, I would not have my pension locked up in their shares.
Posted by: Mr Peabody 19 May 2006