Remember back in June when when all those Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots bundles for the PS3 went on sale? Did you miss out on your chance to get one? Well, Walmart has your back because they are selling the Limited Edition Kojima Silver MSG4 40GB PS3 Bundles for $399.99–but you may want to check for availability before you head down to you nearest boxmart.

You can, however order one online and if you want to save $19.94 on shipping, you can have it delivered to your nearest Walmart store for pick-up. Kind of like Circuit City but without all the lies.

Now that we know these bundles are still in demand after all these months, let us hope that those of us out there who still want the 80GB model will be shown some love as well relatively soon.

(Thanks VG247)

Back in August, Sony announced that in November they would be releasing a limited edition PS3 bundle that should make anyone with $499.99 to burn shaking with anticipation.

True to their word, this bundle has been spotted at a Best Buy and according to Engaget it includes Naughty Dog’s swashbuckling hit Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, a PlayStation Network voucher for PAIN, a DualShock 3 wireless controller and the big 160GB PS3 console. We assume that the 160GB console will be available separately from the bundle–but the catch is that it is NOT backwards compatible. Most people still own a PS2 anyway, so unless you are a stickler for that sort of thing it should not be that big of an issue if you really want one. If not, there is always the $399.99 80GB version if your local store had gotten new shipments of them in–the ones around me have not.

Most likely the bundles will be available at other retail stores as well, but to save on gas money you may wish to call around to make sure.  I would apologize about the blurry picture, but Engadget has already done so.

We all know that the 20GB Xbox 360’s price drop is just artificial — once those units sell through, it’ll be gone, and we’ll be back to the three current price points for the Arcade, Premium and Elite SKUs.

Todd Greenwald, an analyst with Signal Hill, has told investors that the “Xbox 360 needs a real price cut.” This temporary cut isn’t enough to stave off the fierce competition from the Wii and PlayStation 3.

“We remain very sceptical of Microsoft’s pricing strategy and competitive positioning versus the PlayStation 3.

“At USD 349, with a 60GB hard drive, we just don’t think it is a compelling product compared with the PS3 at USD 399 with an 80GB hard drive (along with more processing horsepower, Blu-ray, Wifi, HDMI, and going forward, more exclusive content),” Greenwald said.

“We’d also note that the Xbox 360 has just been surpassed by the Wii in the US, despite Microsoft’s one year head start over Nintendo.

“We do think that the Netflix announcement is a significant addition for Xbox users, though its far more of a positive for Netflix than it is for Microsoft in our opinion,” he said of one of the new features in the ‘new Xbox experience.’

“Sony’s biggest announcement was a strong counter-punch to Microsoft’s USD 50 price cut on the 360.

“We think this should give Sony a leg up versus the 360, along with several exclusive titles like the just-released Metal Gear Solid, LittleBigPlanet, Resistance 2, Killzone 2, Gran Turismo 5, God of War 3, etc.

“Beyond Gears of War 2, Microsoft doesn’t seem to have the same library of exclusive, must-have titles,” he concluded.

Greenwald makes a good point. If Microsoft could drop the price across the board and get the system under or equal to the price of the Wii at $250, it would be an extremely helpful selling point going into this holiday season.

via GamesIndustry.biz

In the days leading up to Metal Gear Solid 4’s release, the bundle featuring an 80GB PS3 along with the game was in ridiculously high demand. Websites offering pre-orders for the bundle were sold out within minutes (and in some cases, shut down entirely) and some stores held impromptu lotteries on launch day to decide who would be walking away with one of their very own. Luckily, Sony has noticed the demand and plans to ship more bundles out in early July.

“While we can’t provide specifics on inventory levels, the Metal Gear Solid 4 PlayStation 3 bundle is a limited-edition offering that’s experiencing high demand from Metal Gear and PlayStation enthusiasts,” the SCEA statement read. “We’re pleased with the strong consumer interest in the bundle and are working to ensure that additional shipments are provided to retailers.”

At this time, the 80GB bundle still seems to be one of the best deals for anyone interested in getting a PS3. Hopefully the people that missed out the first time will get a second chance at the bundle in the coming weeks.

Via GameRush

Ho…lee…crap. I knew the new 80GB PS3 bundled with Metal Gear Solid 4 was in high demand, but still, wow. At about 10 AM PST, Amazon.com began taking pre-orders again for the upcoming bundle. By 10:07, they were all gone; thousands of them in mere minutes. So many people flooded the site in fact, that it looks like Amazon.com is down for the moment. It makes sense really, considering you’re basically getting a system with a top-notch exclusive thrown in to boot, which is one heck of a deal. I was actually placing a pre-order myself earlier today, but didn’t want to wait the extra few days it would take for the bundle to arrive. I really hope I don’t end up kicking myself for that decision next Thursday.

Via PS3Fanboy

Scott Steinberg who is head of marketing with SCEA says that the company has been surprised by the demand for the 80Gb SKU for the PS3. With the different ranges of pricing and SKUs, Sony is a bit shocked that there has been a shortage of the 80 GB PS3.Speaking in an interview, Steinberg had this to say:

“Our strategy at the end of the year was to offer up a $399 40 GB, which we thought was the magic price for a Blu-ray machine and then a $499 80 GB. What we were surprised to see is that $100 really didn’t matter to a certain customer. Our sales were fairly equitable according to TRST and our internal numbers through the holidays and even into January; we’re pretty dry on the 80 GB as a result of us underestimating the demand for the 80 GB and thinking that most folks, because the price message was such a big part of the pundits and the analysts decrying the differences between the 360 and the PS3, [would prefer the 40 GB]. Reality is the price wasn’t that big of a deal and $499 sold a lot more than we thought, so the 80 GB got dry at retail not due to us artificially compressing it but the demand became greater than we thought. So you’ll see us replenish these in the marketplace. We’re still committed to our current strategy and there is much to do about nothing, I think is the way to think about it.”

Fantastic – this means that the rumors of Sony phasing out that particular PS3 can now be put to rest. Personally I was worried that I would not be able to get my hands on the 80GB when I finally got around to purchasing a PS3, but considering the fact that they plan on putting more on store shelves, my worries have now subsided. Granted, I originally wanted the 60GB but thanks to a domestic partner who shuffles his feet when it comes to what he deems “unneeded spending” that ship has basically sailed. However, the thought of an 80GB PS3 is fine with me, because the bigger the better I always say.

Source: Game Daily

Metal Gear Solid fans who have been waiting for Guns of the Patriots to release will be glad to hear that a perfect bundle will be released to coincide with the game’s release – an 80GB PS3, a copy of MGS4, and a DualShock 3 controller for $499.99. Sure, it doesn’t equal big savings for you, but you’ll guarantee that you’ll have a DualShock controller and a copy of the game.

Of course, if you do opt for this bundle and pre-order the game to gain access to the Metal Gear Online beta, you’ll end up with two copies of the game. Unless you cancel the pre-order after you get your beta access, of course.

via PlayStation.Blog

While Sony is issuing no comments on the rumors that the 80GB PlayStation 3 is being phased out, Opposable Thumbs’ extremely reliable source has tipped them off that this is indeed the case. Sony will be sticking with the two SKU setup, however, as they will introduce a new high-end system that will take up the 80GB’s price point. The new system would be packed with either a 120GB or 160GB hard drive, and the new Dual Shock 3 controller.

“Sony is, in fact, phasing out the 80GB PS3. Sony is going to stay with the two-SKU approach though, and the prices look to stay the same,” the mole said.

“The Spiderman 3 pack-in will disappear as well once the 80GB unit is gone. In order to maintain a similar value proposition to the 80GB/Spiderman 3 bundle, I expect to see a storage increase to 120 or 160GB at the same price point, plus the new Dual-Shock 3 controller.”

Perfectly believable, but we’ll have to wait and see if it happens. It only seems like a natural evolution of the current SKU setup. There’s no telling exactly when this new SKU would be introduced, but it’s probably a few months away at least.

Perhaps we’ll get an announcement at GDC?

A smaller, and less expensive Blu-ray player has been developed by Sony and Nichia and are expecting the new laser unit, which is 3mm thick to come equipped in Sony’s laptops sometime this year. While this is good news for those looking for a new laptop at a lower cost due to the smaller Blu-ray player, gamers who have yet to purchase a PS3 may be able to get in on this as well.

Since the new Blu-ray unit is able to handle disks with organic dye in the recording layers which in turn can be churned out from existing DVD production lines, this will save the company loads of money, which hopefully will be passed on to the consumer as well. This smaller, less costly Blu-ray laser unit might be one of the contributing factors to the phasing out of the 80GB PS3 model (besides low sales), and although Sony has yet to comment on any further price cuts – it is indeed plausible to assume it will happen.

It is not known yet whether Sony will be replacing the 80GB PS3 with an entirely new SKU or just continue to push the 40 GB, we will keep you posted as this story develops. Hopefully, Sony will be making an official statement soon.

Via: Tech.co.uk

An internal memo circulating through Best Buy stores has surfaced indicating that the 80GB model of the PS3 may soon be discontinued. The full text of the memo reads:

“The 80GB version of the PS3 is going closeout and won’t be replaced at this time. It will come off the planogram on Jan. 28. The 60GB version should already be gone from stores. Only the 40GB version of PS3 will be sold in Best Buy stores at this time. This means that there currently isn’t a version that is PS2 compatible.

At this time, Sony hasn’t made any announcements about new products.”

Combine this memo with other rumors about a lower priced PS3 model and a recent FCC filing for a white PS3, and I think it’s safe to assume a new model will be announced soon by Sony. So in a few days there will only be one version of Sony’s system readily available. On the plus side, we may see some 80GB PS3s go on sale pretty soon.

Via PS3 Fanboy