Ben-DutkaThe hottest current rumor is that Sony will drop the price of the PlayStation 3 and introduce a new model at the same time. In other words, the PS3 Slim would become the default machine on the market and retail for a lower price than the current 80GB PS3 that sells for $399.
French website JeuxVideo seems to have stumbled across some information that verifies this rumor: they say the price cut will indeed come with a new model, and Sony will make this announcement at the upcoming GamesCom event in Cologne on August 18. An update shows that this new console will retail for 299 Euros, although none of this can be considered "official" just yet. There's no point in asking Sony about it because they'll just respond with the standard, "we don't comment on rumor and speculation," and besides, we only have to wait a few weeks to determine if this rumor is indeed true. The timing would appear to be correct, as the PS3 Slim and the corresponding price drop would probably come about for the holiday rush, and just in time for a few great exclusives in the fall. We can always refer you to the "if there's smoke, there's fire" saying, simply due to the sheer amount of supposed "leaked evidence" out there, but we won't make any assumptions. That's another saying, but one that is frequently accurate.
Anyway, we'll certainly let you know if any more news shows up concerning either the PS3 Slim or a price cut. As far as we're concerned, it's the last major obstacle for Sony's machine. And as a quick update, it seems a listing for the PS3 Slim has just been spotted at Amazon !
