Courtesy of PS3 Vault

Rumors have been flying and sources have been talking. But now it seems a lot more official when it was revealed from an internal, Best Buy memo, that “The 80GB version of the PS3 is going closeout and won’t be replaced at this time. It will come off the planogram on Jan. 28. The 60GB version should already be gone from stores. Only the 40GB version of PS3 will be sold in Best Buy stores at this time.”

Another corporate retail source (not Best Buy) has confirmed that something is afoot but can’t comment further until the 80GB models are all gone. Janco Partners analyst Mike Hickey commented, “Sony is likely dumping the 80GB version because it has failed to meet internal sales projections.”

He added, “A recessionary environment will likely punctuate the 80GB version’s relative and absolute retail sales disappointment. The recently released 40GB version is getting traction at retail, suggesting backward compatibility takes a backseat to the console’s price point for current buyers.”

At this point, we’re not quite sure what Sony is up to. This author has the 80GB version and loves it though I certainly am not using all of that hard disk space. The 40GB model continues to sell well so it can be implied that backwards compatibility is not a big deal whereas the price point is very attractive to new purchasers. Perhaps a larger model (120GB?) is on the way? We’ll let you know as we hear more.

Tags : 40GB : 80GB : Best Buy : Discontinued : Model : PlayStation 3 : Sales : Sony

Comments

By: boa On: 05:46 Jan 28th, 2008 Offline	If it's price thats important, then a 120GB would be pointless. I used to count backwards compatability as important, now I think about the fact I already have a PS2 and if I didn't, they're stupidly cheap. So is backcomp really all that important? The new stuff coming may make people wish for bigger hard drives though.

By: Evren On: 05:46 Jan 28th, 2008 Offline	Wow, wouldnt that be because noone was buying a PS3 anyway? shrugs Im not entierly surprised TBH, its another thing Sony can't leave alone.

By: Mechanoma On: 03:03 Jan 28th, 2008 Offline	We'd better get ours soon, then. Matt was wanting an 80gig. Thanks for the heads-up, Michael! Hopefully we'll be able to get one sooner because of this.

By: ApplesauceNinja On: 06:56 Jan 28th, 2008 Offline	Believe it or not, I've been giving a lot of serious consideration lately to picking up a PS3. However, I'll be trolling the web for a 60 gig model. There's no telling how much longer my PS2 chunky is going to last, and I want that backward compatibility, dammit.

By: Black Convoy On: 10:47 Jan 30th, 2008 Offline	It's honestly hard to get behind Sony regarding this issue. It seems the PS3 is constantly faceplanting every step it takes. It's sad too, considering the PS3 has tons of potential.

By: boa On: 09:04 Jan 31st, 2008 Offline	Apparantley, these tactics are working as Sony have actually registered a profit. I can't remember the details, but I saw it on CVG. Apparantley, it's because they managed to halve the production costs and then the price drop caused people to buy loads. Kinda wish it hadn't been that easy for them, why learn from these mistakes if it's too easy to get past?