The Sony PSP Go’s price is too high, according to Wedbush Morgan’s infamous crystal ball gazer/analyst Michael Pachter. Pachter says the US price of $249 “is too much, period.” Particularly as Pachter believes that the PSP Go will cost less for Sony to produce than the PSP-3000, priced $80 cheaper.
Speaking on Bonus Round, Pachter said: “The $169 PSP-3000 is a profitable device. The disc assembly for a UMD costs more than 16 gigs of flash does. So this new device doesn’t cost as much as the PSP-3000 and they jack the price up $80? They’re ripping off the consumer.” Wonder what he’d think of the Sony PSP Go’s probable UK price point of £230?!
According to Pachter, the Sony PSP Go’s pricing is to compete with the Apple iPod Touch. “The comparison is favorable from a technology perspective,” Pachter told Kotaku. “However, the iPod Touch has a ridiculously loyal fan base, tremendous brand awareness, gigantic advertising support, a touch screen, an app store, and a lot of music. The PSP Go has a better gaming architecture and better games, but lacks many of the features that the iPod Touch has. Its price should be compared to the PSP 3000.”
Is Pachter right this time? Previous predictions of his have included no new consoles until 2013 (who knows?), a PS3 price cut imminent (said in January, wrong) and two-thirds of Grand Theft Auto IV sales going to the Sony PS3 (wrong again).
Out 2 October | £229 | Sony PSP Go (available to pre-order at Game.co.uk)
