$400 PS3 SKU Rumored for Holidays

An "inside source" at Sony has reputedly given Ars Technica the scoop on a rumored $399 PlayStation 3 SKU with a 40GB HDD. The site lists the new SKU as part of a holiday pricing scheme that will include a $100 price cut for the new 80GB PS3 SKU, putting it at $499. One or both models will supposedly include a Spider-Man 3 Blu-ray pack-in. Sony's last-gen slim PlayStation 2 would also receive a price drop in the rumored holiday lineup, selling for $99, a $30 drop from the current $129 price point. The details and breadth of the pricing rearrangement lend some credibility to the rumor. The Spider-Man 3 pack-in makes sense because of previous cross-promotion efforts by Sony, including the Spider-Man 2 pack-in for the PSP and, of course, adopting the Spider-Man font for the PS3 logo. The timing for the new pricing would work out as well, with Spider-Man 3 arriving on Blu-ray October 30. Sony will also come into $2.9 billion from its Sony Financial Holdings IPO on October 11, giving it enough cash to comfortably handle a holiday price drop, as analysts have predicted. Ars Technica says its insider has been accurate about predicting the inclusion of HDMI outputs in Xbox 360 Premium consoles as well as the 360 Rock Band bundle's inclusion of a wired guitar controller, though this price speculation is still based on rumor. A Sony rep contacted for comment only told Shacknews the company hasn't made any announcements regarding new pricing schemes.