12GB PS3s coming to the US, $199 price point rumored

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It appears Sony is readying a new budget PS3. The 12GB PS3 Super Slim, already available in Europe, is making its way to the US.

The budget system has been priced at $199 in Canada. However, Engadget received a tip from a US retailer saying that the budget console will be available Stateside as well.

Last year, SCEA's John Koller said that the 12GB model wouldn't see release in America due to its inability to take advantage of digital distribution. "The smaller Flash drive isn't coming to North America, and a lot of that reason is the digital consumer," Koller said. "We really want to make sure, out of the box, that there is an option for them to be able to download that content. That is really critical for us, very very important." Crucially, PlayStation Plus would be rather ineffective on such a small amount of space.

Last year, we suggested Sony release a budget PS3 as soon as possible. However, $199 doesn't sound attractive enough. A GTA5 bundle, which includes a 500GB system and a copy of the game ($60), will be available for only $270.

Andrew Yoon was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

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  • reply
    August 13, 2013 2:00 PM

    Andrew Yoon posted a new article, 12GB PS3s coming to the US, $199 price point rumored.

    It appears Sony is readying a new budget PS3. The 12GB PS3 Super Slim, already available in Europe, is making its way to the US.

    The budget...

    • reply
      August 13, 2013 2:09 PM

      Can't you still put your own HD into it? It's not much, but I have a 40gb drive just laying around (which was taken from another PS3)

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        August 13, 2013 4:49 PM

        Ps3/ps4 seems the ideal place to reuse old laptop hard drives/ssds.

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      August 13, 2013 2:17 PM

      seems like a weird thing to do at this phase of the console cycle. Why not have done this ages ago if it actually allowed them to advertise a lower price point?

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        August 13, 2013 2:42 PM

        I don't know, but even now, $199 doesn't scream "budget" to me. Maybe they are counting on a comparison with the new consoles (400-500, plus extra controllers etc.) to make it appear like a deal.

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          August 13, 2013 2:43 PM

          they want to keep selling PS3s

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          August 13, 2013 2:47 PM

          $199 is traditionally a very important breakpoint in console sales. It has a large psychological effect even if it isn't significantly different from $250.

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            August 13, 2013 3:34 PM

            Yup. Nintendo dropped the price of the N64 from $249 to $199 even before the system was released (in the U.S., at least).

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        August 13, 2013 4:25 PM

        A ton of PS2 Slims were sold well after the release of the PS3. Not everyone wants to drop huge dollars on a brand new console.

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      August 13, 2013 2:22 PM

      I'm so glad I fixed my optical drive, the middle slim was the best. The New model is so ugly.

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        August 13, 2013 3:44 PM

        I hear ya, but it appeals to me if it's a good bit lighter.

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        August 13, 2013 4:06 PM

        I think it's awesome. Plus, it doesn't need a motor for loading and ejecting discs, which seems to break on a lot of consoles.

        It's damn quiet when playing downloaded games too.

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          August 13, 2013 4:16 PM

          It's ugly and it raped and murdered my wife

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      August 13, 2013 2:44 PM

      seems like a bad deal when the gta5 bundle is $270. thats basically $10 for 500gb

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      August 13, 2013 2:57 PM

      This is idiotic. Why would they sell a PS3 that essentially only plays disc games?

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        August 13, 2013 3:53 PM

        Because people still play Disc based games? My PS3 only has about 4GB of the HDD used in user files.

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        August 13, 2013 4:13 PM

        It kinda makes sense as a companion to a PS4. I suspect that eventually the PS4 will let you play your PSN games from last gen, so that'd be covered. Then you could also continue buying and playing PS3 games alongside your PS4.

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        August 13, 2013 4:19 PM

        because they'll probably make a nice profit on the sale of the console and whatever disc based games are offered for $20 or less during black friday and the holiday sale season.

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        August 14, 2013 12:09 AM

        You can still put a hard drive in it

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        August 14, 2013 2:24 AM

        never downloaded anything on my ps3

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      August 14, 2013 4:33 AM

      I may actually pick up a ps3 now.

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      August 14, 2013 8:47 AM

      Gran Turismo laughs at your budget hard drive capacity.

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