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Barry
Mr. Do It All
Sep 24, 2004, 7:01 PM
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Question Remains - Sony PSP Final Cost
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Sony's PSP goes on sale in Japan later this year and overseas next spring, boasts the superb image quality of its home-console counterpart. However, following a public showing in Japan, the cost that remains up in the air is how much the PSP will sell for.
The pricing question is crucial as competition heats up in the game machine market ahead of the holiday season, when video game hardware makers rake in as much as half their annual profits. Despite widespread speculation, Kutaragi refused to give a price for the PlayStation Portable, or PSP, saying he wants to first gauge reaction at the Tokyo Game Show. Sony is hoping to repeat what it achieved a decade ago with its original PlayStation, when it rallied from behind to defeat the king of gaming, Sony's domestic rival Nintendo.
But can PSP do the same in handhelds to beat Nintendo's hit portable offering, the Game Boy? Nintendo has sold more than 150 million Game Boy machines around the world so far, they have a stranglehold on portable gaming.
"It's difficult to say anything about the PSP without a price," said Kazuya Yamamoto, analyst with UFJ Tsubasa Securities Co. in Tokyo, adding that retailers expect a price of about 30,000 yen ($271 US), which may to expensive to lure consumers.
This week, Nintendo said its handheld upgrade, Nintendo DS, a Game Boy with two screens, will sell for $149.99 in the United States and 15,000 yen ($135) in Japan.
The machine, which will be available in the U.S. market Nov. 21, includes a touch-panel display that allows people to exchange hand-scribbled messages by wireless as well as play new kinds of games. Will Sony follow suit with a similar pricing scheme? Or can they even release the PSP for such a low price?
It's clear the PSP offers the smooth dazzling graphics and quick response of the PlayStation 2. Besides the buttons on both sides similar to those on the PlayStation 2, a tiny button on the left works as a miniature joystick. The 11-centimetre display, which takes up most of the gadget's surface, feels big enough to play games without straining the eyes. Still, analysts note some downsides.
First, the PSP uses its own special UMD (Universal Media Disc) optical disc for games, meaning it's not backwards-compatible with other machines, even current PlayStation models. PlayStation 2, by contrast, can play all the original PlayStation games, which helped keep sales going strong. This is a moot concept in my opinion, one cannot expect to play old PS2 games on a mobile handheld device.
Eiji Maeda, analyst with Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo, believes most people aren't going to get too excited about watching movies on a portable. They probably won't be doing that on commuter trains, and you can already do it on flights, he says, so why buy a PSP?
Post your opinions regarding the new Sony PSP here.
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Barry
Mr. Do It All
Oct 29, 2004, 7:29 PM
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Sony says its new multimedia handheld game console will go on sale for 19,800 yen (US$186), cheaper than many videogame-industry analysts had predicted.
The PlayStation Portable (PSP), Sony's first portable console, will be launched in Japan on December 12th, 10 days after the DS, Nintendo's newest handheld console, goes on sale.
Ken Kutaragi, Sony's executive deputy president, told reporters at a press conference in Tokyo that he thinks the PSP is worth twice as much. However, he admitted that development costs meant the company was unlikely to make a profit from the device until 2005.
Software Availability
At launch date, PSP users will not be able to download films and music to their console. Sony is still holding discussions with prospective suppliers and does not expect to announce its film and music line-up for a couple of months.
However, 12 PSP games, including Tiger Woods PGA Tour, will be available by the launch date, with nine more to be added by the end of 2004, Sony said. The company aims to develop around 100 games for the PSP.
Europe and U.S.
Sony has not given any details of what the PSP will cost when it is launched in Europe and the U.S. in the first quarter of 2005.
The Japanese electronics company has set an ambitious target of selling 200,000 PSP consoles in the initial shipment, with an increase to 500,000 machines by the end of 2004 and to 1 million by March 31, 2005. Aggressive Price "Sony is being amazingly aggressive in terms of price," Gartner analyst Van Baker told NewsFactor.
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The Omniscient
/ Moderator
Nov 10, 2004, 5:45 PM
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Re: [Barry] Sony PSP Cost and Release Date
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The PSP will go on sale in Japan on Dec. 12 for about US$185 (19,800 yen), Sony Computer Entertainment said in a statement. The release comes sooner and cheaper than many analysts had expected. The company has not yet set a U.S. date or price for the PSP. Sony has said the PSP will arrive in the United States at the end of March. U.S. pricing for game hardware is usually similar to or slightly below the cost in Japan.
Sony announced the PSP last year in a high-profile bid to expand on its PlayStation 2 console, which dominates sales of home game systems. The PSP will sport an advanced display, a new optical media format Sony expects to also use for movies and music, and a processor only slightly less powerful than the one that powers the PlayStation 2.
While the PSP is expected to have a large ready-made audience of PlayStation enthusiasts, the device has been bedeviled by reports of delays and lackluster support by game developers. Several analysts have speculated that Sony would not be able to meet its target to ship the device this year. They've also forecast a steep price tag, with estimates ranging as high as US$300 due to the advanced technology behind the PSP.
The US$185 price sets up the PSP for a head-to-head tussle with the DS, the advanced handheld game player Nintendo will introduce in the United States in mid-November. Nintendo has long ruled the handheld game player market with its Game Boy franchise. The DS will sell for US$150, also far lower than initial expectations.
Schelley Olhava, an analyst at research company IDC, said the US$185 price tag shows that Sony is serious about competing with Nintendo. "It looks like they've decided to accept some really heavy (financial) losses on the hardware to establish the brand," she said.
Sony's announcement also offered more technical details, including an answer to ongoing questions about power consumption. The company said the device's built-in rechargeable battery will allow four to six hours of game playing or four to five hours of video playback.
Battery life could be an issue for Sony, Olhava said, since the DS is expected to have battery life similar to current Game Boy devices--about 10 hours.
Sony also said there would be 21 games available for the PSP at launch, including high-profile third-party titles such as portable versions of Electronic Arts' "Need for Speed Underground" racing games and Konami's "Metal Gear" action game.
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