80GB PS3 drops to $399

Peter Gill (Buddy J) Sony announced a new model 80GB PS3 to retail for $399.

July 16, 2008 4:57 PM ET in News, ,

Sony announced a revamped 80GB PS3 model at its annual E3 press conference. The new model will cost $399, down from the current $500 package price.

The price drop doesn’t come without its caveats. The new model loses the following features: 2 USB 2.0 ports, flash card readers, SACD support, and all PS2 backwards compatibility support. The new 80-giger hits shelves in September.

Oh but fear not PS2 loyalists, you shall not be forsaken. They’ve announced that 130 new titles will be released for the system this year. SCEA is aiming to have 10,000 PS2 titles out by the end of the year. To celebrate, they’re releasing a new family-friendly PS2 bundle with the system, controllers, and a kiddie game for $149.99.

3 Comments:

  1. primesuspect
    17 Jul '08, 12:30 am

    Losing the backward compatibility was a major fail on their part. I'm glad I have the original 20gb PS3 with the Emotion Engine hardware built right in. I can play any PS2 or PS1 game and never have to worry about it. The PS2 library is GIGANTIC and there are still tons of games I want to play for it.

  2. mertesn
    17 Jul '08, 2:41 am

    While it really sucks that two USB ports are disappearing (and how much are they really saving on that anyway), I can't really say I'd miss the media card slots. It took a few months before I accidentally found the flip-up cover for those.

    Now the PS2 compatibility...that's a big loss. I guess Sony figures everyone will just go and buy a PS2 if they don't already have one (and who doesn't by this time).

  3. MAGIC
    17 Jul '08, 5:26 pm

    Ok, that makes for absolutely no incentive to buy a 80gig. Just buy the even cheaper 40gig and put a 200gig drive in with the money you save...

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