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PS3 250 GB Final Fantasy XIII bundle in Japan

While the Aussies (and most likely the Europeans and North Americans) will be getting 250 GB bundles with the standard, black PS3 slim console, the lucky Japanese will have something quite different.

The Final Fantasy XIII bundle in Japan will come with FF XII and a 250 GB white limited edition PS3 slim with Final Fantasy artwork, easily making it the prettiest PS3 by far. The bundle will be available for 42,000 Yen, or $460 USD.

PS3 Slim sales reach 1 million

Sony has proudly announced that the PS3 slim has sold 1 million units in only 3 weeks, making it by far the best selling console out there during that period. The new console is not only cheaper, cooler and draws less power than the original PS3, it’s also sold at $299, far cheaper than the original (remember the $599, 60 GB PS3 that launched in 2006?). For more on the PS3 slim, check out our PS3 slim review.

Sony expecting PS3 shortages

One sure way of hyping any consumer product is to make folks know there’s a shortage, whether it’s true or not. Sony Computer Entertainment America boss Jack Tretton told Reuters that there might be a shortage of PS3 slim consoles, if the sales continue the way they are now. “If things continue at this pace, it is conceivable that there will be product shortages,” Tretton said, after noting the console’s sales are up 300 percent over last year since its price was cut by $100. “We are up significantly versus last year”, he concluded. There’s no doubt that PS3 slim has been very popular, it has topped the charts in all three major territories, for the first time since its release in 2006.

Sony responds to why Linux was left out in the Slim

Developers and Linux fanboys aren’t exactly pleased with Sony’s decision to leave OtherOS support out of the PlayStation 3 slim. It was previously only speculated why it was left out, but today Sony gives a reason behind their move; money.

“The reasons are simple: The PS3 Slim is a major cost reduction involving many changes to hardware components in the PS3 design,” SCEE’s Sarah Ewen said. “In order to offer the OtherOS install, SCE would need to continue to maintain the OtherOS hypervisor drivers for any significant hardware changes – this costs SCE.”

Ewen continues on to say that the main objective behind the Slim is to offer a lower price, and the cost of OtherOS did not meet the standards to lower the price.

Be sure to read up on our review of the PlayStation 3 Slim in case you’re still on the fence about buying it.

Read (Exophase)

GameStop giving $150 trade-in credit for PS3 Fat towards PS3 Slim

The PS3 Slim is one of the most highly sought after consoles on the market to date (argueable, I know, but it’s just been announced) which might make owners of the PS3 Fat feel a bit left out.

Well, lucky for you guys GameStop has recently announced a promotion that will give $150 credit to anyone who trades in a PS3 Fat towards the purchase of a PS3 Slim.

Then again, you can probably just slap your PS3 Fat on eBay and get much more than you would from GameStop, but it’s the laziness that counts, right?

via psxextreme

PS3 Slim review

Sony has desperately needed a price cut for the PS3, which it now has received, among other things. The PS3 Slim — technically it’s just called a PlayStation 3 — is about a third lighter and smaller than the previous console. The Cell CPU in the new PS3 is built using the 45nm process, and combined with updates to other parts of the hardware, the console uses less than half of the power of a first gen PS3. It’s still unknown whether other hardware, mainly the RSX graphics chip, is also built using the new 45nm process, but considering the improvements on power efficiency, it doesn’t really matter at this point.

Spec wise, the PS3 has a 120 GB hard drive as standard (which can be replaced by any 2.5″ hard drive of any size), but like the other model, it can’t play PS2 games (PSOne are all playable). It’s also a more stripped down version — there’s no card reader, only has two USB ports, and a stripped down WiFi without draft N support, which is kind of a shame, as almost all devices support the far superior N draft. The new console has the same slot loading 2X Blu-ray drive, and we experienced it to be noticeably quieter when watching Blu-ray movies. Overall, the console seems to be running cooler and quieter, especially during Blu-ray movie playback, as mentioned before. More »

Rumor: PS3 Slim bundled with Madden 10 next month

Here we go again, more PS3 Slim rumors — Buzz circulating the internet suggests that the PS3 Slim bundle is, in fact, coming to market this August bundled with Madden NFL 2010.

This rumor comes to us from the 1UP.com’s latest podcast in which David Ellis has been quoted to say:

It’s gonna be in August. Everything I’ve heard says it’s coming in August, it’s tied with Madden.

And, to add even more heat to the flame, Ellis said that this may have been the cause for Activision’s much publicized threat against Sony. Apparantly, the megapublisher was mad that Sony had opted to bundle an EA game with the console as opposed to an Activision one.

Take this as you will but at this point it remains just a rumor. We’ll have to wait until next month before we find out if a PS3 Slim is actually on its way to market.

Sony to release PS3 slim in July?

The PS3 slim rumor has been around for some time now with its supposed retail box surfacing in early May. Since then, the buzz has quieted a bit and nothing much has been said about the PS3 slim, until now.

The latest rumor says that Sony is placing manufacturing orders with a Tiawanese company who will supposedly be making the PS3 slim. Furthermore, the orders are said to be ready for delivery by next month.

Are these rumors true? Like always, there is no telling until we hear official word from Sony. Perhaps if these rumors aren’t true we will see a PS3 slim come out when those reported price cuts roll around.

Read (Engadget)

Xbox 360 & PS3 getting price cuts soon?

Tech news outfit ArsTechnica claims to have a reliable tip from an insider, who suggests that Microsoft will do away with the Xbox 360 Pro SKU and replace it with the Elite, while still retaining the same $299 price point. The Elite is essentially the same SKU, but with a 120 GB hard drive instead of a 20 GB one.

This is supposedly to counter a move by Sony, which will indeed release a PS3 Slim (everyone knows this), which will be cheaper than the current PS3 SKUs.

Both of these rumors make a lot of sense, if you’re looking to buy either a PS3 or an Xbox 360, we’d suggest holding off for a few months and get a better deal.

Sony’s Koller more or less confirms PS3 Slim

Sony’s John Koller, head of SCEA’s hardware marking division, says that it’s “frustrating”, when leaks of new hardware occur, specifically pointing out the PS3 Slim, which was rumored a while ago.

But since Koller used the word “leak” and not “rumor”, and since he didn’t actually deny the “rumor” that a PS3 Slim would be released this Fall, it’s easy to assume that, in fact, a PS3 Slim is coming this Fall. That, and the fact that it shares the very same box art as the newly announced PSP Go.

Chinese firm tells Engadget to take down PS3 Slim photos

Adding even more fuel to the fire, Engadget has recently been issued a cease and desist regarding the images of the PS3 Slim thats supposedly in the works.

Now, why would a Chinese company care if images of a piece of hardware that doesn’t even exist circulate the internet? Well, the logical explanation is that this hardware does in fact exist but there’s no telling because Sony insists that it doesn’t.

Let’s just hope that Sony announces this thing along with a price cut at E3. Hey, we can dream, can’t we?

Sony says don’t expect a PS3 Slim anytime soon

The PS3 is the biggest, heaviest and bulkiest console of the current gen lineup, but it’s alsmo the most advanced and complicated one — consisting of several thousand individual parts. But that doesn’t stop gamers fantasizing about a slimmer, smaller PlayStation 3.

However, Sony UK officiallytold CVG that the company has no plans of a redesigned PS3. Considering that it took Sony four years to slim down the PS2, and that the PS3 will only turn 3 later this year, it’s gonna be at least well into 2010 before we can start thinking of a PS3 Slim.