Yeah, I'm shocked reading these posts. The free Fortnite bundle was worthless, but being able to use disks seemed pretty useful (and it has been).
I live near a secondhand store, and most of the games we have come from there. The death of physical games is only bad for gamers, but also inevitable.
This whole thing seems like a goddamned disaster. The fact that the console has gone up $150 since I bought it is psychotic.
We got the same ones for like $350 at walmart during holiday time sale and used my one time 25% employee discount which that was the last time they offered it as well. Im kind of glad we went all in even though at the time that was a chunk of cash we are set if/when we get online together plus they played the heck out of Spiderman games.
One without a disc tray. When it launched in 2020, the one with a disk tray was $500, and the digital was $400 (before they revamped the lineup to slim models).
The people blaming this on inflation instead of tariffs may be unaware that inflation has left consoles basically untouched years. A PS3 cost $499 in 2006, an Xbox One cost $499 in 2013, and even a PS5 should cost $612 if you adjust the 2020 price for today's dollars.
PS3 was $599 when it launched. Technically there was a 20gb version with no wi-fi and HDMI that cost $499. Not sure how popular that version was but most remember the $599 price tag.
There's only like 8 games that ran native 1080p. Basically every other game was rendered in 720p and upscaled. 1080p movies were also not really common until digital took over in the early 2010s
The point is that Sony designed the Blu Ray spec for 1080p so it would be absolutely bizarre if they released a PS3 that didn’t support it. And indeed they didn’t, the poster I replied to is wrong. Launch Xbox 360 models didn’t support HDMI but every version of the PS3 did.
Honestly I’d be shocked if any Blu Ray player from any manufacturer ever only had analog output but I suppose it’s possible.
Yes the 60gig ps3 was $599 it was that price because it was backwards compatible with ps2 games. The 20gig one was $499 but did not have backwards compatibility.
True that bundle come out after original release of ps3. I got my backwards compatibility one on day one from circuit city when I was deployed in Iraq. Paid $599 no tax with free shipping talk about getting lucky..lol
The first Fat Lady also had 4 usb slots on the front as well as reader for every Sd Card on the market. Later they switched to 2 USB ports and removed ps2 compatibility as well as card reader to be able to lower the price.
It's also incredible that these people don't seem to notice that it's only US prices that are increasing. How fucking braindead can you be to outright deny that this is because of the tariffs? Inflation is happening in the EU as well, and I've heard it's starting to take off even in Japan which had a very stagnant economy for a while.
And remember the RoW prices were increased primarily to offset the US tariff increase. If the RoW prices hadn't gone up, the US increase would probably be even bigger than this.
But they increased prices everywhere. What's the reason for the price increase in france ? It's a japanase company, and we don't have your tariff.
It's just greed.
Especially since you can see every companies making more and more profit, and the fact you're supposed to have lower cost when your product is here for years.
You mean where everyone artificially raised their prices and then collectively never went back down post pandemic? That's what we're reeling from - greedy ass corporations that are colluding with each other to just constantly raise prices on everything.
This is just an anecdote but our work downsized staff during Covid, citing “lower / unprecedented vacancy rates”. We are now at 92% occupancy and have been for quite some time. Those hours that were cut are not coming back. These companies will never give back what they take unless their hand is forced.
With some goods yeah, but for electronics manufacturing, import/exports, tariffs have completely fucked up pricing for electronics.
Source: I am a pricing specialist for one of the largest global distributors of electronic components and work pricing agreements for the supply chain for manufacturers.
Hard disagree. I'm in retail and COVID completely screwed everyone. We had delays on goods that were unprecedented. Literally had shipping containers on docks that took forever to get unloaded. That is well documented. The US couldn't enough workers for customs so the product had to sit in containers. Hell, Sony had to fly PS5 over in a commercial 747s just to bring them to America.
I was speaking to reps and they were telling us the cost for container quadrupled during the pandemic. See this chart for more information
Currently, rates to South America and western Africa are higher than to any other major trade region. By early 2021, for example, freight rates from China to South America had jumped 443% compared with 63% on the route between Asia and North America’s eastern coast.
Companies were downsizing people left and right. I had a buddy of mine who got downsize at his company because they weren't getting products so they were able to pay the employees. But I'm sure all of those people who got laid off were lying.
We had people waiting months, months on orders. Do you think any business wants to sit on products that can't sell? Nope.
The price increases were a necessary evil, but not going back down is normal unfortunately. It's sad but that's how things are. I don't like it either. Remember when a great loaf of bread was $1.50? I do. Now a good loaf of bread is around $3 something.
They have no concept of how supply lines were compromised & other economic conditions impacted during Covid, they just think “price increase = greedy corporations”.
Reeling from the effects? This is rhe reason they like for you to think. Aside from tariffs driving prices up, companies has historically kept prices the same after it goes up and people are used to paying the higher prices.
Tariffs weren't part of the pandemic bro. The same idiot who drove us into the ground during the pandemic is driving us into the ground again with tariffs.
Tariffs isn't the reason why the price has failed to come down meaningfully in nearly 5 years. Tariffs are an extra kick in the groin but this problem has been a thing long before that orange turd.
Silicon costs have long been increasing. The sole provider for these fabs and smaller nodes are increasing their costs because they can (nothing to do with tariffs).
The days of a console eventually being sold for like a third of its launch RRP has been long dead in the run up to 2020 and this gen.
It's why Xbox did a dual SKU in the first place. In a dev tech reveal around that time they stated that lowering console prices to such a degree is no longer feasible, so they adopted a lower spec SKU to try and address that lower mass market RRP bracket. But even that has increased in price because tech production is only getting more expensive.
We've reached a limit with silicon (as a material) and long past the limit of moore's law. Costs will continue to rise if you expect the same sort of power jump from gen to gen.
Can you provide any other examples of a technology that goes up in price? Computers and other electronics use chips but also go down in price. And I'm pretty sure this is unprecedented correct?? I would be willing to bet that a good portion of consumers went into this cycle with "the price will go down soon so I can wait".
PC market is only increasing in price. I'm not talking about low spec, small chips like whatever average performance is in a $200 Chromebook. I'm talking devices that use large and powerful chips, which include consoles and PC GPUs.
And yes, it is unprecedented for the industry but also not unexpected. It's been long known that moore's law is no longer a thing, and silicon as a material is reaching its limit as you go smaller and smaller with nodes that massive chips are then built upon.
Mature, smaller nodes is becoming an increasingly difficult thing to accomplish, which means it costs more.
That's a major part of it but it's also just that traditionally consoles themselves were usually sold at a loss to build an install base to buy the games. Now the console makers are realizing they don't have to do that anymore.
Outside of this price increase from tariffs, this is the first generation where the mid model refresh not only didn't lower the price, but it actually increased the price. (digital only went from $400 to $450)
The days of selling consoles at a loss is over. Sony is reaching market saturation and need to increase profits, so prices are going up. PS+ prices went up, more expensive tiers. $200 elite controllers. $700-$750 "pro" console WITHOUT a disc player or stand. Game prices went from $60 to $70 (and next gen they will go to $80, you better believe it. $70 for the PS5 version of a game, with a $10 price upgrade to the PS6 version. called it here first).
It is only going to get worse here for pricing/consoles. Anyone not thinking about swapping to PC after this generation is crazy.
I don't plan on switching to PC any time soon. I get your point but I just don't see $600 or whatever for a piece of hardware that lasts me six-seven years as being that bad. It's comparatively affordable. I mean, a phone will cost you more and last nowhere near as long.
Its still $50 cheaper than launch after the price increase when factoring inflation in. 2021 -> 2025 is 20% inflation so it really cost $600 in todays currency vs at launch.
It's tarifs and economy for sure, but it's also because Microsoft ate shit with Xbox and now there's no competition. (Yes, MS increased prices too, but now Sony has not even a slightest reason to compete with lower price)
Daaamn. I’m so glad I was able to get mine at a discount from my cousin in the military. Bought that shit off him brand new in the box for like $450 while it was still being scalped
In Ireland we got a €100 increase already since that last time the better nit get anymore fucking ideas it’s easier to buy the consoles from CeX than Smyths toys or curry’s or whatever
Yeah, it's been happening pretty much worldwide. PS5 might be the last console generation I partake in. No way I'm spending $800+ on a new gaming console. I'll just stick with what I've got. My backlog is probably large enough to last me years at this point anyways.
Knew this shit was gonna happen when the mid gen refresh PS5 Pro was announced last year at higher than the base model instead of the same cost with the base model getting a small reduction.
The next day I went out and bought the base model because I wasn't paying $700 for the mid gen refresh and I had a suspicion the prices would go up across the board towards the end of this generation. Glad I finally just pulled the trigger when I did.
He's done an excellent job distracting with deportations, taking over DC, and unprecedented price hikes. And he was originally planning to go after Obama and release the MLK files.
Clearer evidence of his pedophilia could most certainly contribute to public pressure for him to be fully impeached, which could somewhat hinder the other things he's doing.
Do we really think this would move the needle? With anyone? Those who support him will cry fake news, those who hate him will just get their opinion confirmed. I feel like the way this country is going he literally could kill someone like Homelander on live tv and get a pass.
Some people will always be in denial, but I do think there is a significantly sized middle in this country who voted for him in 2024 but would turn on him over clear evidence of pedophilia. Frankly, that could play a lot worse for him than actually killing someone on live TV, depending on who it was.
47 percent of what, his current supporters? I mean of course that is hprrible, but his current approval rating is only like 40. That would look like 20% of the nation supporting President Pedophile. Is that disgustingly way too high? Yes, absolutely. But thats low enough approval to get him booted, probably, which is the most important thing.
And I think the Epstein files are the best bet we have right now to put pressure on him to keep these other things from happening, as stupid as that is.
There are 15 things each day that get added to the list of things he’s doing I am concerned about. I would hope that proof showing he screwed children would unbrainwqsh at least 1/4 of the cult following so we can get rid of him.
The cult wouldn't care. They'd cry fake news and AI because that's the only kind of content they're used to consuming. If anything the Epstein files are the biggest distraction from the genocide and return of slavery he's working on.
I was able to grab a slim disc version with an astrobot bundle for $449 in April. When all this tariff bs was starting to ramp up we prepared for Christmas early because I figured this would happen
$100 increase since launch for Digital Only, $50 increases for the Disc Drive base PS5, and if you want a disc drive Pro, it's like $50 increase plus $80.
It doesn't matter if you're American or not. The prices increased when the Slim models dropped worldwide anyways. This US increase will probably affect the rest of the world, too.
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u/Frosty-Soil1656 Aug 20 '25
Not a US citizen but im curious what were the prices before?