PS3 Slim Rumors Surface Again

I read an article yesterday about speculations of the announcement of the PS3 Slim during GamesCom, which is happening next week in Cologne, Germany. What I found interesting about the story were the comments made by Michael Pachter, a game-industry analyst at Wedbush Morgan Securities. In case you don't know him, he's a frequent guest at GameTrailers.com's video game talk show, the Bonus Round, and is often quoted on various major gaming magazines and websites.

Pachter mentions two telling clues. First he says that there are reports of "increased PS3 component orders out of China". And second, that there were also reports of "declining stock in Japan and Europe, with comments from retail that they have been told not to expect new supplies of PS3s until the end of August or early September."

Increased orders for parts, but no supply? With Sony's history of excellent manufacturing, I doubt this was a production management mistake. Definitely something major is going to happen to the PS3. I'm thinking one of two things...

One possibility, of course, is the PS3 Slim. The alternative, however, is not a slim-type PS3, but perhaps an internally restructured PS3 using cheaper components, thus giving it a lower price point.

If it does turns out to be the PS3 Slim, I hope Sony will lower its retail price; otherwise this will not be a long term solution to Sony's less than stellar sales. Yes, it will generate some interest for a while, and then it will just be like the old PS3... a console that's a hell of a lot more expensive than the Xbox 360. This will be especially true if the rumored $100 price drop of the 360 Elite turns out to be correct.

To make matters worse, the game industry has been feeling the heat of the economic recession, which means that any interest generated by a $400 PS3 Slim will probably die out quickly.

CONCLUSION: I'm basically putting my money on one thing: the announcement of a lower PS3 price point during GamesCom, whether it be in the form of a slim or fat (but still sexy) console.

[ THIS ARTICLE IS A CONTRIBUTION OF JM TAYLOR ]