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NEWS > GAMES > SONY CONFIRMS PS3 SLIM MORE OR LESS THE SAME AS ORIGINAL
SONY CONFIRMS PS3 SLIM MORE OR LESS THE SAME AS ORIGINAL
August 18 2009
Tokyo, Japan – In the early 1990’s, when Sony entered into it’s now famous failed agreement with Nintendo that would eventually spawn the PlayStation it’s unlikely that they imagined it would have come this far. Now deep into the lifecycle of the third 
iteration of that machine the company has profoundly changed the videogame industry and helped bring it closer to mainstream acceptance than it ever has before. A combination of cutting edge technology and revolutionary games has established the PlayStation line as one of the most important consumer products.
Now as the company prepares it’s long awaited and much rumoured PS3 Slim the company is once again trying to solidify its position as one of the most important in the field. Running a distant third in the home console war the fall has been precipitous for the once dominant manufacturer and with a fresh price cut and a more toned down version of the machine is their latest attempt to get back to where they once were. Confirming the release of the machine Sony also confirmed that the machine was more or less the same as the original version, just smaller.
“We are happy and proud to be releasing the newest version of the PlayStation 3 Entertainment System. This new version of the machine will retain all the elements that people have come to love about the PlayStation brand and is a formidable and beautiful addition to the family,” said Sony CEO Kaz Hirai. “Blu-Ray playback, integrated media, Home, and of course all the great games that people have come to expect from Sony and the PlayStation brand are all a part of the new version of the machine. Now with a more compact and streamlined design we feel the PlayStation 3 will be the best choice for all homes.”
Hirai did state that a few elements present in previous versions of the system will not be available in the slim but that very few seasoned users had any need for them, never mind more casual users who will likely make up the bulk of the new users.
“There are very few companies who will give their customers exactly what they’ve had
before but luckily for Sony fans they are going to get just what they expect. They’ll get six-axis and blu-ray and Home something no PlayStation 3 owner will want to be without. All of that will of course be included in a much slimmer, much more compact box so they have that too,” said Scrape TV Gaming analyst Graeme Hawthorne. “Nintendo has had the market on being the unique system and has grabbed the casual gamer. Microsoft has been able to grab the hardcore and the online players. Sony though seems to have cornered a market that the other two have ignored and will potentially have a stranglehold on the gamers who are desperate to make their electronics smaller than they already were.”
The new version of the system is believed to be less expensive than the existing machine making it more likely for existing owners to seek out the smaller version of the machine in addition to their existing one, something that will help to significantly boost the companies’ lagging sales numbers.
“Sony has been way behind the ball in this generation. Having such a huge price tag and unproven technology mixed with a poorly defined and unappealing identity and a severe lack of quality games has tarnished the brand and put their sales, and their profits, in the gutter. Now they will be able to grab back some of that market not only with existing users but also with the growing consumer base that has been struggling with shelf space,” continued Hawthorne. “That is one aspect of technology sales that the industry has never dealt well. With so many components in most people’s entertainments centres they have little room for big bulky machines. That, along with all those other factors have hindered acceptance of the PS3. Hopefully now that has been solved.”
Sony has been producing new games in anticipation of greater demand for the system. With few exceptions such as the upcoming God of War III and Gran Turismo 5it is not expected that the enhanced library will have any impact on console sales.
Douglas Havermore, Games Correspondent
NEWS > GAMES > SONY CONFIRMS PS3 SLIM MORE OR LESS THE SAME AS ORIGINAL
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