PS3 Sees Record Sales In Japan

[Evil Avatar]

Edge Online is reporting (http://www.edge-online.com/news/ps3-sees-record-sales-in-japan) that the Playstation 3 took a huge sales jump in Japan.

Sony’s PS3 has recorded its biggest weekly sales total in Japan since launching in November 2006.

According to figures from Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, the PS3 sold 150,832 units during the week ended September 6. The new PS3 Slim was largely to thank, racking up 150,252 sales.

The beginning of a trend?

[bean19]

Yes. I expect the PS3 Slim to be supply-limited through the holiday. They'll sell whatever they can bring to the market. After the initial batch and thus lack of supply we WON'T be seeing sales that triple the number of competitors though. . . simply because there won't be enough to sell.

[lockwoodx]

People ran out of things to buy

[Anenome]

Three years later.

[Mike Jones]

Wait until FF XIII drops in December. Those numbers are going to be huge.

[bean19]

Wait until FF XIII drops in December. Those numbers are going to be huge.
They'll have sold out on them by then (they already have actually), but good point. Too bad they couldn't manage a simultaneous world release.

[lost]

I wonder who the 500 people were that managed to find a shop carrying something other than Slims. I wonder if sold out shops were putting out old stock.

[revelation]

I wonder who the 500 people were that managed to find a shop carrying something other than Slims. I wonder if sold out shops were putting out old stock.

Probably.

Over here, Myer was clearing the original PS3 for $300AU nationwide.

[firecut]

I bought a PS3 slim here in Tokyo on launch day (09/03). I had been holding out since the original launch of the PS3 as I didn't want the 90nm or later 65nm Cell processor. 45nm and I'm happy but I'd like to know what the RSX is at in the slim. Is it still 65nm or has it also been shrunk to 45nm? I can't find any official information on this.

I will add that the dualshock 3 is an amazing piece of engineered hardware but I still prefer mouse+keyboard for FPS (WASD).

[Dag-Sabot]

i wonder if you can but that controller separately.

[92miata]

Yes. I expect the PS3 Slim to be supply-limited through the holiday. They'll sell whatever they can bring to the market. After the initial batch and thus lack of supply we WON'T be seeing sales that triple the number of competitors though. . . simply because there won't be enough to sell.

doubt it. everywhere i went today they had plenty. i traded my launch 60 gig for one at gamestop, yikes, because i got 150 credit.

this system is superb. silent, really nice. now if they would just release gran turismo 5 and get the bc back they would shank ms this holiday season. i don't think microsoft has anything up their sleeve.

get one if you are on the fence. i don't regret what i did today one bit!!!!!

[92miata]

and just to add, i thought this was going away, but.....

everything i purchased, which was only the new slim ps3 was made in china. the manual, the box, the system, everything.

while we sleep they work. while we forclose, they purchase....:)

gotta go watch they live everyone!!!!!

see you at costco!

[Anenome]

and just to add, i thought this was going away, but.....

everything i purchased, which was only the new slim ps3 was made in china. the manual, the box, the system, everything.

while we sleep they work. while we forclose, they purchase....:)

gotta go watch they live everyone!!!!!

see you at costco!

- So what? People who complain about overseas manufacturing are economically ignorant. The doctrine of pure self-sufficiency is a terrible one. It's what politicians told the African nations they should do; look where that got them. Meanwhile, we told Asia they should pursue world trade. Which looks like it worked out to be a better deal? World trade helps everyone, it's one of the greatest win/win scenarios that have ever existed.

Go get this book: "Basic Economics: A Citizen's Guide to the Economy" by Thomas Sowell
http://www.amazon.com/Basic-Economics-2nd-Ed-Citizens/dp/0465081452

If every person took a single week out of their life to read a single book on economics, we could change the world over night. Be the change you want to see.

The whole point of that book is to explain economics in a totally different way from the boring charts and graphs everyone wades through in Econ 101. He wanted to make the textbook he always wanted; one with simple language, not jargon, and without any pretense to math or dense logic. Just pure, understandable, explanation of the basics and why things are the way they are.

Still, it's about a 99.99999% chance that you won't read the book, and that's a shame. Your protectionist attitude is totally unwarranted and not even in your own interest and you have no idea why that should be.

[net7runner]

If every person took a single week out of their life to read a single book on economics, we could change the world over night. Be the change you want to see.
Which book? This will be hard to accomplish when you can rarely find two economists who can agree with each other on how to solve a particular problem. Sadly, world economics are unbelievably complex. That said, encouraging people to learn about this is a great idea.

As far as the China thing goes, it's great for China, but sadly not for us. The US is no longer a country that makes anything anymore. Thus, there's no "trade" - it's just us getting into greater and greater debt with China. If we turned our economy into one based on a technology service industry (considering we currently have a lot of the major tech players, not impossible) then...who knows.

[Johan]

Price goes down, sales go up? Holy crap...it's sheer chaos!

Good for Sony. Now, keep it up. One shot of price-driven-Viagra may seem satisfying, but if your hardware can't keep it up, you'll surely be disappointed.

[blackzc]

Three years later.

Whats the problem? I had a feeling this would happen and so did they. People get tired of shit PS3 was something not alot of people had.

[Anenome]

Whats the problem? I had a feeling this would happen and so did they. People get tired of shit PS3 was something not alot of people had.

Like someone said, should've launched with these specs / price-point. Blame Kutaragi.

[Anenome]

Which book? This will be hard to accomplish when you can rarely find two economists who can agree with each other on how to solve a particular problem. Sadly, world economics are unbelievably complex. That said, encouraging people to learn about this is a great idea.

As far as the China thing goes, it's great for China, but sadly not for us. The US is no longer a country that makes anything anymore. Thus, there's no "trade" - it's just us getting into greater and greater debt with China. If we turned our economy into one based on a technology service industry (considering we currently have a lot of the major tech players, not impossible) then...who knows.

That's hilarious, considering that we manufacture more stuff in the US than China does. See how brain washed you already are? Your view of the facts has been so distorted that you can make that statement with a straight-face. Here's another one for you: "In Defense of Global Capitalism" by Johan Norberg: http://www.amazon.com/Defense-Global-Capitalism-Johan-Norberg/dp/1930865473

As far as what kind, my own predilection is towards Austrian economics. Anything non-Keynesian would be a start though.

[the soUL TRAder]

As far as what kind, my own predilection is towards Austrian economics. Anything non-Keynesian would be a start though.

Amen!
Marginal utility FTW!

[blackzc]

Like someone said, should've launched with these specs / price-point. Blame Kutaragi.

If they did that it would have lost its exclusivity, sony is the one that brought up the gaming ghetto, and it perked MY ears. To me the 360 and Wii are the 99$ PS1 or dreamcast that everyone has and the PS3 does still have some appeal. And now its only 299$!! Nice!

Not really debating you just throwing out what might have been their plan from the get go knowing the 360 had a year head start, lots of exclusives. Kick back, give it the illusion of an uber console that not anyone can have and wait for the 360 honeymoon to end with its owners. I kinda makes sense to to me, and is genius.

And even though the Wii has outsold them both i believe sony when they say they are not in competition with them, but if they were they were also in the same boat as the 360. Only its going to age and become outdated even faster.

[Anenome]

Amen!
Marginal utility FTW!

Indeed. It's a pity that even the phrase 'marginal utility' is foreign to most people, to ask nothing of an explanation of the concept. People need to stop thinking in terms of zero-sum gain/loss, stop thinking in terms of perfect solutions (there are none) and start thinking in terms of trade-offs.

[Anenome]

Not really debating you just throwing out what might have been their plan from the get go knowing the 360 had a year head start, lots of exclusives. Kick back, give it the illusion of an uber console that not anyone can have and wait for the 360 honeymoon to end with its owners. I kinda makes sense to to me, and is genius.
- Genius in the marketplace is defined by success in the marketplace. Pet rocks were genius. The Wii is genius in this industry by that metric.

PS3? Fuckin' stupid. It's not genius when you nearly sink your company financially by betting it all, rolling the dice on a single product as if it were some kind of gaming version of the second coming.

Furthermore, Sony waited on launch because of a single piece of tech they couldn't produce fast enough: the Bluray holographic lens. Or was it the laser itself, I forget. They could've launched at roughly the same time as the 360 if it hadn't been for Bluray--and they would've loved to as well, I'm sure.

If that really was their rationale, it sure didn't work out that way, did it. And the whole 'Wii is a fad, motion control is a fad' claim--they sure backtracked on that too didn't they.

And even though the Wii has outsold them both i believe sony when they say they are not in competition with them, but if they were they were also in the same boat as the 360. Only its going to age and become outdated even faster.
- How can you possibly believe it when Sony says that? They can talk about target markets all they want, fact is the consumer still has to choose between the three of them as to where they will spend their money. If someone spends on the Wii over a Sony product, then Sony loses potential dollars. They're in the same industry. It's like saying that Lexus doesn't compete with the Camry. Of course it does, because if the Camry is good enough it can take dollars away from people who might've bought a Lexus. Even though that's a bad analogy I hope you see the point.

[blackzc]

- Genius in the marketplace is defined by success in the marketplace. Pet rocks were genius. The Wii is genius in this industry by that metric.

PS3? Fuckin' stupid. It's not genius when you nearly sink your company financially by betting it all, rolling the dice on a single product as if it were some kind of gaming version of the second coming.

Furthermore, Sony waited on launch because of a single piece of tech they couldn't produce fast enough: the Bluray holographic lens. Or was it the laser itself, I forget. They could've launched at roughly the same time as the 360 if it hadn't been for Bluray--and they would've loved to as well, I'm sure.

If that really was their rationale, it sure didn't work out that way, did it. And the whole 'Wii is a fad, motion control is a fad' claim--they sure backtracked on that too didn't they.


- How can you possibly believe it when Sony says that? They can talk about target markets all they want, fact is the consumer still has to choose between the three of them as to where they will spend their money. If someone spends on the Wii over a Sony product, then Sony loses potential dollars. They're in the same industry. It's like saying that Lexus doesn't compete with the Camry. Of course it does, because if the Camry is good enough it can take dollars away from people who might've bought a Lexus. Even though that's a bad analogy I hope you see the point.

Look, my point is they didnt know how it was going to turn out in the first year or so, who does? So they took the hand they were dealt and played it cool for awhile and are attempting to make a go of it, they think the PS3 is capable. And it might just work, for the first time in history. One company has never won 3 consecutive console wars

Oh and a Lexus ES is a re-badged camry with leather, just sayin:p I do see your point though.:)

[bean19]

- So what? People who complain about overseas manufacturing are economically ignorant. The doctrine of pure self-sufficiency is a terrible one. It's what politicians told the African nations they should do; look where that got them. Meanwhile, we told Asia they should pursue world trade. Which looks like it worked out to be a better deal? World trade helps everyone, it's one of the greatest win/win scenarios that have ever existed.
Really good point, but you have to admit that in Africa conditions are different. Africa is trying to move from a culture that was primarily tribal to one that is primarily democratic without any monarchy or other hierarchies in the interim other than despotism. This means that Africa does not have the infrastructure or the culture that could make it competitive in the world market.

Of course, these are generalizations. There are countries in Africa that have had advanced cultures and governments (and currently do) that are fertile ground for industrialization, but may unfortunately be waiting their turn. As India and China gain more medium income families from these globalized jobs, their economies will improve so that they want better jobs and like we did throughout the last century, they'll see these jobs sent overseas to places like Africa.

Anyway, that's what my economics professor HOPES will happen. He is the first to admit that he and other modern economists don't really know what will happen with globalization in the long run as it has previously always been small-scale.

[TeeCakes]

Ah yes. As great as it is to read these dozens and dozens of PS3 news stories where the Slim continues to shatter sales records (while crushing their competition at the same time), it must feel 10x as good for an actual Sony employee! After being the collective joke of the gaming industry for a few years, I hope to see some bragadocious guerrilla marketing out of Sony.

Like a series of online videos of some guy dressed as Kratos (who calls himself "The Vindicator") pummeling two guys in blatant Master Chief and Mario costumes!

[bean19]

Ah yes. As great as it is to read these dozens and dozens of PS3 news stories where the Slim continues to shatter sales records (while crushing their competition at the same time)
lol. Classic Teecakes.

Look, the PS3 Slim is a great thing from Sony and they are definitely going to do really well this year. Good deal for Sony fans, but they are making up lost ground, not "crushing their opponents". Even with a huge success this holiday they won't be able to close the gap with the 360, much less the Nintendo Wii. The 360 has over ten million more units sold.

While this will certainly improve Sony's position greatly, it is not going to change the fact that they are in last place after being far in first place for the previous two generations, so if they did choose to rub their 3rd place ribbon in their competitor's faces, I think they'd be the butt of their own joke.

Still, Sony fans should rejoice, this is a very good thing for their console of choice.

[blackzc]

Ah yes. As great as it is to read these dozens and dozens of PS3 news stories where the Slim continues to shatter sales records (while crushing their competition at the same time), it must feel 10x as good for an actual Sony employee! After being the collective joke of the gaming industry for a few years, I hope to see some bragadocious guerrilla marketing out of Sony.

Like a series of online videos of some guy dressed as Kratos (who calls himself "The Vindicator") pummeling two guys in blatant Master Chief and Mario costumes!


I love your dedication to sony, its refreshing. What the hell is wrong with fanboys anyway? Why did it turn into a bad thing?

[Johan]

What the hell is wrong with fanboys anyway? Why did it turn into a bad thing?

* They're mindlessly loyal to a corporation which wouldn't notice if they died in a fire, painfully and slowly, and thus disappeared from the planet?

* They ignore reality in favor of drooling hilarity and consuming their own regurgitated vomit?

* They perpetuate the stereotypical view of gamers as idiotic pre-adolescents who can barely find the nub of their penis to pee?

I could think of more. How about it's just so much more interesting to actually deal with reality? There's already plenty of entertaining and crazy stuff that's for real without blindly inventing stuff like a "fanboy" does.

Sony's in third. They've finally released the system that they needed at launch. None of the big three is in danger of disappearing from the hardware competition. They all have strengths and weaknesses. This generation will probably continue for a bit longer because of the crappy worldwide economy (bad time to launch an expensive new generation of consoles, I would think), so it will be interesting to see how it shakes out in the next several years.

[blackzc]

* They're mindlessly loyal to a corporation which wouldn't notice if they died in a fire, painfully and slowly, and thus disappeared from the planet?

* They ignore reality in favor of drooling hilarity and consuming their own regurgitated vomit?

* They perpetuate the stereotypical view of gamers as idiotic pre-adolescents who can barely find the nub of their penis to pee?

I could think of more. How about it's just so much more interesting to actually deal with reality? There's already plenty of entertaining and crazy stuff that's for real without blindly inventing stuff like a "fanboy" does.

Sony's in third. They've finally released the system that they needed at launch. None of the big three is in danger of disappearing from the hardware competition. They all have strengths and weaknesses. This generation will probably continue for a bit longer because of the crappy worldwide economy (bad time to launch an expensive new generation of consoles, I would think), so it will be interesting to see how it shakes out in the next several years.

I dunno i think it keeps thing interesting and real reality sucks. Ive been happier in my life when i was a fanboy, in fact im prolly going to go back to being one. A sony one no less.

[Dag-Sabot]

Id be a fanboy for who ever delivers GT5. So far my money is on forza.

[TeeCakes]

Sure, you have your negative connotation of the word "fanboy" that Johan pretty faithfully explains above. But we'd all do a disservice to forget that the root of that is the word "fan"; as at the core every Sony fanboy such as myself isn't anything more sinister/ignorant than someone being vocally passionate about their gaming preferences.

As to ignoring reality and being blindly loyal to corporations, the same could be said about fans of any industry. Are music groupies who follow bands on state-to-state tours more or less pathetic than Sony fanboys? How about the "idiotic pre-adolescents" that continue to "ignore reality" by worshiping Michael Jackson, despite him being a strongly suspected child molester?

In the end, I'd rather be accused of showing too much passion about my interests than sitting on a pedestal afar trying to maintain a safe distance. Seems like most anti-fanboys are afraid to dive in the deep end, yet totally willing to lob bon-mots of self-righteous mockery at the ones brave enough to be more honest with the world.

[Johan]

But we'd all do a disservice to forget that the root of that is the word "fan"

That's a good point. There's nothing wrong with being a fan of a particular product or company. After all, if people didn't enjoy the stuff they buy, one would hope they wouldn't buy it in the first place...hopefully.

The problem, if it even is one on a 'fan' site, is that people become blinded to reality in their overwhelming urge to defend their own chosen "brand" against others, regardless of the weaknesses and strengths that are present in each of the major gaming consoles available at the moment.

Also, I personally find it nauseating that anyone could be "loyal" to a company, when by their very nature they do not "care" about people and are simply in the business of making money, not making friends.

Seems like most anti-fanboys are afraid to dive in the deep end

I for one don't need to suck at the teet of a particular company to enjoy the products they sell, nor do I plan on trading my ability to think rationally about these companies for a swim in such a "deep end."

[Anenome]

I love your dedication to sony, its refreshing. What the hell is wrong with fanboys anyway? Why did it turn into a bad thing?

It's about truth. It's about being a Baghdad-Bob Mouthpiece for Sony, being a shill, a liar, a spinner.
Tee is among the best of them.

[Anenome]

Sure, you have your negative connotation of the word "fanboy" that Johan pretty faithfully explains above. But we'd all do a disservice to forget that the root of that is the word "fan"; as at the core every Sony fanboy such as myself isn't anything more sinister/ignorant than someone being vocally passionate about their gaming preferences.

As to ignoring reality and being blindly loyal to corporations, the same could be said about fans of any industry. Are music groupies who follow bands on state-to-state tours more or less pathetic than Sony fanboys? How about the "idiotic pre-adolescents" that continue to "ignore reality" by worshiping Michael Jackson, despite him being a strongly suspected child molester?

In the end, I'd rather be accused of showing too much passion about my interests than sitting on a pedestal afar trying to maintain a safe distance. Seems like most anti-fanboys are afraid to dive in the deep end, yet totally willing to lob bon-mots of self-righteous mockery at the ones brave enough to be more honest with the world.

- Even groupies don't typically lie about where their favorite artists new song is on the Top 40.

[Anenome]

Also, I personally find it nauseating that anyone could be "loyal" to a company, when by their very nature they do not "care" about people and are simply in the business of making money, not making friends.
- That still beats people who are 'fans' of certain political parties. At least a corporation needs your money to survive, and they will be very nice to you, and responsive to what you want in order to get your money.

In short, the mutually-beneficial relationship is extremely direct, unlike in politics. I'd rather be served by a few companies competing for my dollar than a political group that's both unresponsive and completely secure in their jobs.

[TeeCakes]

It's about truth. It's about being a Baghdad-Bob Mouthpiece for Sony, being a shill, a liar, a spinner.
Tee is among the best of them.

While I appreciate the 'compliment', you should check yourself. A shill is on the company payroll (I'm not). A liar can be proven wrong (you haven't and can't, seeing as I've only drawn logical conclusions from facts in this very thread.) And a spinner tries to take negative press and turn it into positive-- the OP is nothing but positive for Sony, so I fail to see anything valid with your entire statement.

...other than that I'm "the best"! :D

The problem, if it even is one on a 'fan' site, is that people become blinded to reality in their overwhelming urge to defend their own chosen "brand" against others, regardless of the weaknesses and strengths that are present in each of the major gaming consoles available at the moment.


I for one don't need to suck at the teet of a particular company to enjoy the products they sell, nor do I plan on trading my ability to think rationally about these companies for a swim in such a "deep end."

Well, I'll agree that anybody who didn't agree with the PS3 being ultimately lackluster in it's "reign" up until now is blind to reality. Sure, there are some fanboys out there that will be able to spin the whole 10-year-Doctrine into something that explains away all the missteps that Sony's PS3 Division has done up until now which effectively lost all the marketshare that the PS2 once dominated within the gaming sector. But who's to say the fanboys are wrong?

I personally treat my console purchases as a business relationship with the company. I buy a Wii or a PS3, only because I assume I'll be entertained via software/peripherals/features/etc. more so than I would with similar items at comparable prices that I could buy instead. When Nintendo or Sony delivers great software, I'm happy about my purchases and feel reassured that I made the right investments.

Likewise, when Microsoft announces a juicy exclusive title, I'm disappointed and a little pissed. Compare this to the perpetually fluctuating stock market-- you'll never really know which horse to back until the race is long over, which naturally makes a lot of people extra-protective of their picks.

I guess the "line" to draw here would be how some fans treat their business relationships with a given video game console as an extension of their own reputation. It's never fun being on a losing team, and for a long while Sony fans in North America had to resolve the fact that the PS3 was being outperformed by the 360 and Wii in the marketplace. The problem, obviously, is when these fanboys make the mistake of thinking that they're on the same "team" as Sony-- they're not.

To me, it's more like I've got a $299 bet riding on Sony to win the playoffs, and there's a decent chance I'll lose the bet at this point-- but that's why it's called gambling!

[the soUL TRAder]

IMO, the idea comes down to what you are a "fan" of.

There's no problem in my mind being a fan or even a fanboy of the creative and / or athletic prowess of an individual or group of individuals. On the other hand, to have anything more than a passive supporting attitude of the structure or vessel of those efforts is a joke.
You can be passionate about Liberalism, but to be passionate about the Democratic party makes you a tool. You can be passionate about the God of War franchise, but to be passionate about Sony makes you a tool. You can be passionate about the Yankees, but to be passionate about Yankee Stadium makes you a tool. You can be passionate about the Beatles but to be passionate about CDs makes you a tool.

And for the record, it's not much of a "gamble" to choose one platform over the other, it's basically a win/win if you have the time / income to have gaming as a hobby and you can't go wrong no matter what platform you choose. (PC, PS3, 360, Wii, Ds, PSP, cell phone, OnLive, etc,etc,etc)

[JazGalaxy]

- So what? People who complain about overseas manufacturing are economically ignorant. The doctrine of pure self-sufficiency is a terrible one. It's what politicians told the African nations they should do; look where that got them. Meanwhile, we told Asia they should pursue world trade. Which looks like it worked out to be a better deal? World trade helps everyone, it's one of the greatest win/win scenarios that have ever existed.

Go get this book: "Basic Economics: A Citizen's Guide to the Economy" by Thomas Sowell
http://www.amazon.com/Basic-Economics-2nd-Ed-Citizens/dp/0465081452

If every person took a single week out of their life to read a single book on economics, we could change the world over night. Be the change you want to see.

The whole point of that book is to explain economics in a totally different way from the boring charts and graphs everyone wades through in Econ 101. He wanted to make the textbook he always wanted; one with simple language, not jargon, and without any pretense to math or dense logic. Just pure, understandable, explanation of the basics and why things are the way they are.

Still, it's about a 99.99999% chance that you won't read the book, and that's a shame. Your protectionist attitude is totally unwarranted and not even in your own interest and you have no idea why that should be.

... about to buy it right now.

[Anenome]

... about to buy it right now.

Awesome, you won't be disappointed.