Nikko Citigroup upgraded its rating on Sony's stock this morning, predicting it will break even on PS3 costs much earlier than expected. With a Blu-ray drive, Cell chip and RSX graphics technology, the PS3 is an incredibly expensive system to manufacture: one that Sony currently sells at a loss to customers.Analysts are now predicting August will be when the smaller chips will be used in the PS3. There are no details as to why August has been chosen as the date, but switching over to a smaller Cell processor and RSX graphics chip will undoubtedly lower costs for the Japanese electronics giant.
[Via Engadget]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
4-21-2008 @ 8:40AM
stargateheaven said...
This was earlier than expected. Hmmm, I wonder how much it costs to make the PS2?
Reply
4-21-2008 @ 12:09PM
Popfrogs said...
The PS2 is a money press for Sony just like the Wii is for Nintendo. Both are very low cost items, but the PS2 even more so since it's been in production for nearly 8 years now. The funny thing is, with games like Chains of Olympus, the PSP looks like it has more power than either the Wii or the PS2 at this point.
4-21-2008 @ 8:50AM
Nerdkiller said...
I wonder how long until Wretched comes along and ruins everything?
Reply
4-21-2008 @ 8:52AM
Andrew Yoon said...
He's already been banned. =D
Keep using that Exclamation Point at the bottom of a comment to report it. Enough reports and they get booted.
4-21-2008 @ 8:50AM
2Perfect said...
Hmm I thought they already lowered the cost enough to gain profit?
"As of January 2008, each unit costs around $400 to manufacture" (Wikipedia)
But yeah, I heard they've been producing the 45nm chips since Feb.
PS: What's the picture of? A scratched out PS3 or something? :S
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4-21-2008 @ 9:20AM
Kspraydad said...
Ice cold.
Jerry: Do women know about shrinkage?
Elaine: What do you mean like laundry?
Jerry: No, like when a man goes swimming afterwards.
Elaine: It shrinks?
Jerry: Like a frightened turtle!
Elaine: Why does it shrink?
George Costanza: It just does.
Elaine: I don't know how you guys walk around with those things.
4-21-2008 @ 8:52AM
Nate said...
Yeah, I was going to say, didn't they announce back in like january that they're breaking even on the 40gig models?
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4-21-2008 @ 8:57AM
Draco said...
well, at 400$ cost for the 40GB, then they would have to pay zero to the retailer and no shipping charges to break even.
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4-21-2008 @ 9:09AM
DMeisterJ said...
Nice.
Good job Sony.
Hope this means a price drop soon.
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4-21-2008 @ 9:57AM
o_o said...
I wonder, will this affect the PS3's performance?
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4-21-2008 @ 10:08AM
wonway01 said...
Chip size reduction does not increas performance at all. Makes it take less power to run and expels less heat. The big deal is it costs less to produce.
Also when they announced they got the production cost down to $400 they still were seeing a small loss as they sell it to retailers for less then that so they can sell it for $400
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4-21-2008 @ 10:23AM
JoJo said...
If chip size is reduced, does that mean that the PS3 model itself is going to be slimmer? I wonder how it would look like. If it looks tight and has some things i like, I would trade my 60g PS3 for it! BUT if the performance is the same and no upgrade or somthing, nah.. . . . . . . .dot dot... JUST 8 MORE DAYS TIL GTA IV COMES OUT BABY!!
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4-21-2008 @ 11:43AM
Nate said...
the chip itself is pretty small (what, about 2 cm squared? ). They would have to be able to shrink a whole lot more before the ps3 itself becomes any smaller. You'd have to change the motherboard, blu ray drive, and so forth before you'd notice anything.
4-21-2008 @ 10:26AM
chris.westermann said...
Actually shrinking chips is an effective way to improve performance. Look at the world of Intel and AMD, every shrink in their technology allows them to clock faster because the chips consume less energy and produce less heat resulting in more reliable operation at faster clock speeds.
Sony isn't opting to gain performance in the PS3, you have to design a game console that follows a set specification, having PS3's that work faster or slower would cause the game developers way too much grief. But the smaller Cell processor designed by IBM will see faster performance in other applications outside the PS3.
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4-21-2008 @ 10:27AM
Devin said...
Please God, make Sony price drop before Summer! Also, let them start including DS3, as well....as I don't want SIXAXIS anymore....
Honestly, I don't want to buy the current 40GB at $400....Sony needs to unveil a new SKU soon or else I don't see their sales doing any better than last months (here in the US atleast)....
Anyone else agree or in the same boat as me?
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4-21-2008 @ 11:07AM
The Aggie CEO said...
so you havent heard of the 80GB MGS4 bundle??
or you just dont wanna pay more than $400 for it??
4-21-2008 @ 11:25AM
Devin said...
I don't need BC, I don't care for the special color and I don't want to spend $499 on a console. All I want is a new SKU that sports either a price drop w/ DS3 or a HW revision w/ DS3 (at current price).......just something to add more value/justification for me to buy one (now that I've waited for over a year to buy one)....
4-21-2008 @ 11:43AM
Nate said...
of course... I know exactly the perfect system for you:
a blu ray player
a top of the line game system
a top rated game bundled with
the best controller on the market
and the prestige of owning it all in one complete freaken awsome package...
but it must be cheaper then anything else too.
if its not, and if its missing oen thing... there isn't enough value in it for you.
should we call you princess?
4-21-2008 @ 11:55AM
ryan said...
princess? no. smart maybe. I'm in the same boat too.
I've been waiting for a reasonably priced PS3 with all the fixings also. but I will most likely settle for the MGS4 bundle.
4-21-2008 @ 11:56AM
Devin said...
I've waited long enough to expect those things before I buy. I'm not asking for much. The console is worth to me what I'm willing to spend on it.
That amount would have to be either:
$349 = same HW, w/ DS3 and a decent bundled game
or
$399 = HW revision, w/ DS3 and a decent bundled game
I'm not alone when I say this either.