14 DAY TRIAL // Or so says this piece up on sky.com claiming that a certain news source well connected to electronic manufacturing has gained knowledge of Sony turning to Taiwanese manufacturer FoxConn, for the production of the rumored, cheaper 40GB PlayStation 3. Many people are surprised by Sony's lack of action as Halo 3 is currently selling Microsoft hundreds of systems, but "industry speculation," as the website reports, suggests that Sony will be making the big announcement at this year's Tokio Games Show.
According to the same website, while it looks like the 80GB model will still be put together by ASUSTeK, the company believed to handle the new 40GB model of the PlatStation 3 will be the same company in charge with manufacturing the PlauyStation 2, which Sony is so keen on focusing on lately.
Rumor or no rumor, the electronics giant behind the PlayStation brand is bound to do something if they want to get some attention onto themselves, as Microsoft is all set now with the launch of Halo 3 (not to mention the future downloadable content prepared for it) and Nintendo... is Nintendo. Tell me when the day Nintendo loses to another electronics giant comes, so I can change my whole reference system.
However, even if Sony does decide to roll out the new 40GB model of the PlayStation 3, which by the way, can happen as soon as this week at the Tokio Games Show, it's probably going to have some minuses. As the same website reports, "a few, more minor features, such as the console's USB ports or backwards compatibility" might not be implemented if Sony is keen on achieving a mass market price point soon, which, by the way (again), is $200, so they just have to go by these terms.
This is all for now, but don't go too far, as the Tokio Games Show is far from over and everyone's betting on Sony making the big announcement by the end of this week. Keep your fingers crossed if you've managed to raise at least $350 for Sony's almost intangible PS3 - you might just get it next week.