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Analyst Pachter On PSP Go: “$249 Is Too Much. Period.”

As nifty as that new digital wonder is, some people think it's simply too expensive. When Kaz Hirai officially unveild the PSP Go! at Sony's E3 press conference, he made a point of saying it would launch at the same price of the original PSP: $249.99. But despite the advancements, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter says it's just too high.

Now, if you will remember, the PSP Go! is a fully digital gaming unit that disposes of the UMD software utilized by previous PSP iterations and relies entirely on digital downloads. But because it doesn't boast the iTunes App Store or downloadable music from iTunes, Pachter doesn't understand how it can compete with Apple's iPod Touch, which is priced at $229. Well, you should be able to put music on the PSP Go! but it won't be the streamlined process as it is with the iPod Touch, although we should probably point out that Sony's portable unit is still for games . This doesn't sway Pachter, though, as he said in a recent episode of Bonus Round: "$249 is too much. Period." He further doesn't understand the price point, as he claims it costs Sony less to manufacture the PSP Go! than the current PSP-3000. Added Pachter:

"The $169 PSP-3000 is a profitable device — the disc assembly, for a UMD, costs more than 16 gigs of flash does. So this new device doesn't cost them as much as the PSP-3000 and they jack the price up $80?. They're rippin' off the consumer … they're making a lot more money on the PSP Go than the PSP-3000."

Well, we can't fault a company that seeks to make money on a product, especially after they took an early beating with the first PSP models. But then again, we imagine many consumers will agree with Pachter's analysis; $249 is a little scary these days. What say you? Are you willing to pay the extra amount for this all-digital upgrade? Or is Sony gouging you simply to make a little extra cash? And if it's the latter, does that sway your purchase decision?  Or are you a Day 1 buyer?

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Kai200X
Kai200X
14 years ago

$249 might be too much (I'm still getting it) but I know I am not gonna listen to anything that "analyst" Michael Pachter has to say.

N a S a H
N a S a H
14 years ago

Michael Pachter is an idiot. Perdiod.

N a S a H
N a S a H
14 years ago

Michael Pachter is an idiot. Perdiod.

N a S a H
N a S a H
14 years ago

lol sorry for double post and period*

Edit button goes away after you refresh the page 🙁

MadKatBebop
MadKatBebop
14 years ago

Wow! never actually thought of that. But I think I'm still a day one buyer.(I'm not gonna let that analyst tell me what to do lol!)


Last edited by MadKatBebop on 6/10/2009 10:55:04 AM

LimitedVertigo
LimitedVertigo
14 years ago

I agree that the price is too much. I can't justify the purchase of a GO when I already have an older PSP model. If it was more reasonably priced I would at least consider the upgrade. But what exactly am I upgrading to?

The PSPGO is simply a restricted product with a smaller screen then its predecessors. My hands already get cramped on my existing PSP, I can only imagine what the smaller size of the GO would do for my hands.

therabbitkinge
therabbitkinge
14 years ago

It is to expensive but look at it as a tech investment when the ps3 came out it was way to costly but with multiple firmware updates and several improvements to the psn and its games its become well worth it and im sure the psp go! Will follow in suit.

jaybiv
jaybiv
14 years ago

For me, the PS3 was worth the launch price the second I turned it on. Just as with every Sony product that I have every purchased. They make solid products, period.

anjpikapp3
anjpikapp3
14 years ago

The PS3 was worth the $600 because at launch, the price of a bluray player was 1000-1200. for half that, you could get a console and a bluray player….SOLD.

As for the PSP GO…i think this will be a flop as ppl (gamers) still like hard media.


Last edited by anjpikapp3 on 6/10/2009 12:49:22 PM

jaybiv
jaybiv
14 years ago

Sounds like someone has been playing the old lemonade stand game. What does this hack know about pricing? The Go! is a premium device. Hence the high price tag, which Sony can always lower if they are not selling.

Some of you pinheads are just plain up cheap. You complain about the high price for premium Sony products but throw your money away on $5 coffees, $100 jeans, $300 iphone and such.

MadKatBebop
MadKatBebop
14 years ago

Nicely done jaybiv! totally agree with you!

dso8515
dso8515
14 years ago

I don't know about you but I would call an iPhone or any iPod a premium device, and can justify paying the money for it. Maybe if the PSP GO served as a phone too, I'd conider paying $249 for it which is $50 more than I paid for my iPhone.

Fane1024
Fane1024
14 years ago

@jaybiv
No, I don't buy $5 coffees (etc.), because I'm not stupid…and I won't pay $250 for a PSP go either.
No second analog stick (or gps or camera or anything else) = no real upgrade = no buy.

Pachter is 100% right, for once.

p.s. I happily paid full launch price for my PSP 1000 and my PS3.


Last edited by Fane1024 on 6/10/2009 7:43:48 PM

Oxvial
Oxvial
14 years ago

I'm going to pay 250 for the psp-2…not for a new umdless design of the psp.


Last edited by Oxvial on 6/10/2009 11:07:35 AM

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
14 years ago

250.00 is way too much. Besides that, the lack of physical media for the games is going to be a real problem. For one thing the memory is going to fill up rather quickly, and you are going to have to buy expensive sd cards on top of having to buy the games from the network, so you are going to be paying for games and paying for storage media. Then it is going to take all day to download a game. You are pretty much just buying a smaller psp 3000 with a different shape that doesn't have a physical drive for the games and movies ect… I think in general this system will not do well, especially with a price tag of 250.00


Last edited by crawdaddy on 6/10/2009 11:35:34 AM

fluffer nutter
fluffer nutter
14 years ago

I hope that one wouldn't be buying "expensive" SD cards as the PSP Go does not have an SD card slot. The device uses M2 and the prices aren't bad at all. I've seen 8GB cards going for around $22.

Kevadu
Kevadu
14 years ago

$249 seems high to me, too. Make it $200 and they might get my purchase.

As far as the UMD assembly costing more that 16 gigs of flash, that's BS.

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
14 years ago

You are pretty much just buying a smaller different shape psp 3000 that you can buy for 169.00 that just swapped a umd drive for a flash drive, and are going to pay 249.00 for it. Where is the logic in that?


Last edited by crawdaddy on 6/10/2009 11:50:35 AM

Mr Bitey
Mr Bitey
14 years ago

$250 is expensive, but if the Wii carries a $250 price tag, and the DSi carries a $170… I don't see the GO being anymore over priced than the Wii or DSi.

Patcher is the same guy who demands a price cut from the PS3,while constantly overlooking the Wii. Everything he says is rubbish.

crawdaddy
crawdaddy
14 years ago

This is about handheld systems, and the wii has nothing to do with it, and 250.00 is way overpriced compared to the 170.00 DSi you wanted to compare it to. You also have to compare it to its own previous model that is also 170.00. 250.00 is too high and a ripoff.

rogergent
rogergent
14 years ago

you think 250 dollars is bad sony are charging europe the same 250 euros thats 215 english pounds now thats too expensive so us in england will be paying 351 dollars so please stop complaining

Fane1024
Fane1024
14 years ago

ummm … VAT versus added sales taxes.

The difference isn't as big as you might think.

Ogibillm
Ogibillm
14 years ago

$250 would be ok if it's bundled with enough stuff. maybe some psn vouchers, some classic games, etc.

on its own though $200 is about all i could justify

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

It's 'bundled' with 16GB of Flash memory. An equivalent PSP-3000 bundle would set you back $250 for the PSP and separate 16GB MemoryStick.

LegendaryWolfeh
LegendaryWolfeh
14 years ago

I thought that was internal memory? or is it a way to rip someone off.

IonHawk
IonHawk
14 years ago

for 250 I think they should bundle a cable to connect the go to the TV – call me cheap, but I'm happier with my God of War edition PSP 2000. I only use it when I travel anyways – which hasn't happened in 6 months. My 2 home consoles (I have all 3, but the Wii has been gathering dust for a year now) are keeping me busy enough when I'm at home! 🙂

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

@LegendaryWolfeh

It's configured as internal memory. The thing is it's simply 16GB of flash memory, just like a MemoryStick, but it's physically installed as part of the system. I should have been clearer though, the 16GB is NOT a separate MemoryStick card, it is internal.

What I was trying to get at was that unlike all other PSPs that have no internal storage, this one comes with 16GB right out of the box, so it's effectively the same as having a PSP-3000 with a 16GB memory Stick in place.

Fane1024
Fane1024
14 years ago

For once, I have to disagree with The Highlander (don't cut off my head), who usually makes sense. As Pachter said, the flash memory is cheaper than the UMD drive, so you really aren't getting added value, since you can't use UMDs (or existing peripherals).

$200 would have been a reasonable "premium" launch price.

I wouldn't buy it at any price, for reasons stated earlier.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

@fane

Although there can indeed be only one, this is not the time of The Gathering….

About Flash memory and UMD drives. The street price for a 16GB MemoryStick is about $70 at best. Are you suggesting that a UMD drive costs as much as that? Unless Sony has specifically released a BOM for the PSP Go! to analysts, along side one for the PSP-3000, Patcher really doesn't know how much a UMD drive costs, nor how much the 16GB of Flash in the unit actually costs. One thing is for sure though, if you try buying a PSP-3000 and 16GB of MemoryStick together, you'll pay $250 give or take a handful of $.

From a Sony point of view the PSP Go! isn't the same as a PSP-3000, they are not directly comparable because the Go! introduces 16GB of internal storage, a new form factor with sliding case and at least one new technology (new to PSP) – BlueTooth. I just don't think that you can make a direct comparison between them and expect an equivalent price. The new Go does offer a reasonable upgrade. All this is just an opinion of course.

I bet we agree on one thing though, it won't sell for $250 during 2010.

I'm hoping that PSP2 will be a complete redesign with a bit more CPU and GPU, but total backwards compatibility. Integrated Camera and GPS functionality would be a plus…of course I'd buy both for my PSP-2000 right now if SCEA bothered their butt long enough to launch either.


Last edited by TheHighlander on 6/10/2009 10:50:53 PM

somethingrandom
somethingrandom
14 years ago

Don't forget the cost of adding bluetooth…

Anonymous
Anonymous
14 years ago

The screen is smaller? That sucks. I can't stand playing on the DS cause I'm so used to the awesome PSP screen.

It's too much. Wouldn't mind having one, but it's too much.

Jawknee
Jawknee
14 years ago

$250 does seem high but if it still has the ability to connect to your TV. ill still get it. i want to play Crisis Core on my TV. i have the PSP-1000 so i cant connect it.

GHill4Life
GHill4Life
14 years ago

Too much. I was going to buy one and even told my wife to keep it in mind for Christmas. Now I'll pass…

Jalex
Jalex
14 years ago

If I had paid no attention to E3, I would probably think that that was too high a price. But I was really impressed with their PSP line-up, and was almost immediately sold on it.
So I'm probably going to use some of the money I've been saving for the next console in order to get this (and I haven't felt like I've gotten my money's worth out of a handheld system since the Nomad).

Yogi
Yogi
14 years ago

*cough* fu** pachter *cough*

http://www.amazon.com/16GB-Ssd-2-5-Sata-Chips/dp/B000WW1TC4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1244654800&sr=8-3

and what is with him saying that Natal is going to be UNDER $50 while the PS3s wand eyetoy combo is going to be $249. Natal under $50, from the company that wants you to pay $100 for a wi-fi adapter. Yea, Pachter is either a fan-boy or getting paid by M$.

fluffer nutter
fluffer nutter
14 years ago

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820208384

You may want to do some research before you post an overpriced SSD. 😉

PSN French
PSN French
14 years ago

Sony already claimed they were marketing this to the "early adopter"… so I would say this is a perfect price point. I just bought my second PS3 (for my bedroom) and Sony has lost more from those purchases than they will profit from my purchase of this product on day one!!

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

What is it about Patcher that makes people even listen to him any more?

The PSP Go! does away with the UMD drive, but replaces it with 16GB of flash. Right now a 16GB MemoryStick retails at best for about $70. So, is patcher suggesting that a UMD drive costs more than $70? In which case a PSP with a UMD drive is pretty much a bargain.

PSP Go! has a new motherboard, new screen, new storage, it includes BlueTooth, and has the new case, including the slide opening. It's positioned to compete against other portable media devices, such as the various Apple products. The price point that Sony has selected reflects all of these things, and I highly doubt that it will retail the $250 price for much time past the start of 2010.

What really irks me about Patcher and a bunch of the folks commenting here is that all of you are ignoring several things and focusing on the price alone. Look at the competing devices. A 16GB iPod Touch at Amazon is $220 right now. That right there is the kind of device that the PSP Go! is in competition with. Unlike the Touch, the PSP Go has the sliding screen, and full gaming controls as well as a strong game library. It's primarily a gaming device with media features that match all that the Touch offers – in other words it offers significantly more than the Touch does, for a similar price.

Since the PSP-3000 will continue to be sold, and does not come with 16GB of Flash memory, Sony could hardly have justified bringing the new model in at the same price as the PSP-3000, it would make the 3000 very difficult to sell, plus the new model clearly has more to it than the 3000 does – justifying a higher price. If you buy a PSP-3000 and a 16GB memory stick, you won't get change from $250 right now, and you still won't have all the features that the PSP Go! offers, nor the enhanced portability of the smaller device.

I understand that everyone always wants more for less, but let's step back for once and have a little realism. Folks making Tier 1 consumer electronics have to sell their devices at a price that is tolerable for their economics. If you want a well designed, well built device, you have to pay for it. Apple's laptop computers are uniformly expensive compared to generic PC equivalents. Should apple drop their price to compete with SysteMax barbones laptops? Of course not.

Good grief, this is the same mentality that says a console that sells for $499 and costs well over $800 to build is over priced and a bad deal. People need to understand not only the value of the things they buy, but their cost, and analysts like Patcher really have to get out more, because it appears that he's suffering the dementia brought on by cabin fever.

NoMoreWar
NoMoreWar
14 years ago

thank you. i'm glad to see there IS someone else who gets it

Doosharm
Doosharm
14 years ago

I agree 100%. I always love a well written, well thought out argument on an internet forum… After reading so many poor arguments its just so refreshing to hear some good old fashioned logic.

IonHawk
IonHawk
14 years ago

Highlander- but here's the problem, I don't think any non-gamer out there will choose a PSP Go! over an Ipod touch (or even a Creative zen) – it just doesn't have the coolness factor that anything Apple makes seems to have for the general public. So, basically the market for the Go! comes down to gamers, both hardcore and casual. The smaller screen and high price isn't helping matters too, so at this point this seems like a misstep on Sony's part. I'm sure that was probably the lowest price they could post and still stand to make a profit, but it is still pretty high.
I hope it sells well for Sony's sake, but I certainly won't be buying one.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

I'm not so sure you're right about that. Sony is still a very well respected Brand, and a lot of people who'd lay down money on a Touch, might be tempted by the additional gaming functionality. Plus it has that cool sliding shell…

The important thing for Sony is to differentiate the PSP-Go! from the PSP-3000. I would hope that the PSP Go! is sold next to the other portable media players like the Touch in stores. While the more gaming oriented PSP-3000 can sit in the video-game cabinets.

IonHawk
IonHawk
14 years ago

i don't think the slider thing worked very well for the T-Mobile G1, people still preferred the iPhone, but yeah only time will tell.
The second thing you said I completely agree, they need to separate it from the PSP-3000 and market it differently, but in the past few years Sony has been strange with it's marketing – LBP and Killzone are prime examples – I saw the first ad of Killzone 2 a full 3 weeks after the game was released – by then whoever really wanted the game would have bought it already. Hope they do much better with the marketing this year.

NoMoreWar
NoMoreWar
14 years ago

@IonHawk: the G1 is made by a Taiwanese company called HTC, and the thing felt like a cheap POS in your hand that might break at any moment. One of my roommates is from Taiwan and he was telling me about HTC's reputation for making crap products. I guess i'm just saying its really no surprise that it wasn't a hit, and I don't see it as comparable to the PSP Go. However, I agree with you that the Go is not really going to steal any number of iPhone sales worth talking about. The PSP's focus target market is in the gamer fanbase while the iPhone is targeted at a much broader group of general consumers.

cheng
cheng
14 years ago

195$ seems like a much more reasonable price to me, esecially in these harsh time

Robochic
Robochic
14 years ago

I think the price is a little pricey but it's still my must have i need a replacement PSP anywase why get one of the older models when i'll just save a little more to get the newer model. In canada it'll probably be around 270 for us so i'll need a little over 300 for it.

artson1966
artson1966
14 years ago

In this gamers opinion, the launch window for this item is in the fall and around the same time that Sony most likely will lower the price point of the PS3. I personally would fork out the 299 for the PS3 long before i would dish out 249 for teh PSP GO period. I will admitt I want the PSP-GO, but I will wait until it is a the 169.00 or lower price point! I just don't feel thier is enough value added to this device to warrant the 80 dollar increase in price.

Reccaman18
Reccaman18
14 years ago

I dont care. Im saving now so I can get one. The best thing about no UMDs is that I wont have to lug around all of the games I want to get for it. They will just be on the internal flash drive. Oh, and its a little more than just a UMD swap for an internal flash drive. It also will let you tether your pone via blue tooth so you can have better internet access. Plus it will feature in game XMB just like the PS3, which, might I point out, the PSP 3000 does not do. But to each his own I guess.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

On a totally personal note, Right now, purchasing a 16GB MemoryStick ProDuo would be higher on my list than a PSP Go! since I already have the PSP. That way I keep the best of both worlds.

However if I were pricing a PSP right now and looking to buy one with at least 8GB of memory, and I wasn't concerned with a back catalog of games on UMD, then I would definitely consider a PSP Go!. For a start I don't have to purchase a 16GB MemoryStick, and the thing will fit in a pocket with ease.

TheHighlander
TheHighlander
14 years ago

On a totally personal note, Right now, purchasing a 16GB MemoryStick ProDuo would be higher on my list than a PSP Go! since I already have the PSP. That way I keep the best of both worlds.

However if I were pricing a PSP right now and looking to buy one with at least 8GB of memory, and I wasn't concerned with a back catalog of games on UMD, then I would definitely consider a PSP Go!. For a start I don't have to purchase a 16GB MemoryStick, and the thing will fit in a pocket with ease.

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