Foster City, Calif. –
Sony
Computer Entertainment America
said Tuesday that it will offer its
PlayStation 3 (PS3) gaming system in two versions distinguished by hard-drive
capacity starting this fall.
The North America product offerings will consist of models with
160GB ($300 suggested retail) and 320GB ($400) hard disk drives.
The 160GB version is offered at the same price as the current PS3
model as a stand-alone console with the same advanced feature set, but with
increased storage capacity.
The 320GB version will be featured starting Sept. 19 as part of a
bundle with the PlayStation Move, which is the new motion gaming system. Called
the PS3 Sports Champions Move bundle, the package will feature the larger
capacity gaming machine, one PlayStation Move motion controller, the
PlayStation Eye camera, a copy of Sports Champions, and bonus Blu-ray game demo
disc.
Sony said the new offerings will afford up to 33 percent more
storage capacity.
The increased HDD space addresses the growing demand for the
digital content offered on PlayStation Network, Sony said, adding that more
than 1 billion pieces of content have been downloaded as of July 2010.
“With the launch of PlayStation Move just around the corner,
we’re expecting many new consumers to join the PlayStation family. The PS3
Sports Champions Move bundle provides those families with everything they need
to get into motion control gaming at a great value, with the 320GB model PS3 system
as the centerpiece of the package,” stated Scott A. Steinberg, SCEA product
marketing VP. “Also, as PlayStation Network continues to evolve with exciting
new services, the hunger for digital content grows — these larger storage
capacities address that demand and encourage consumers to take full advantage of
the complete PS3 experience.”
