UK PS3 Slim will not sell early

By Robert Purchese Published 26 August, 2009

Sony making shops go to the wire.

ShopTo has told Eurogamer that sales of PS3 Slim are forbidden here by Sony until 1st September - the date announced at gamescom.

That squashes any hope of an early purchase. In the US, however, stock is already on shelves and being sold, as Kotaku points out.

ShopTo boss Igor Cipolletta said he expects a truckload of consoles to arrive tomorrow and can ship the machines as soon as Friday, as he runs a mail-order retail outlet.

The smaller, lighter and less power-hungry PS3 Slim was unveiled at the Sony gamescom 2009 conference. The PS3 Slim costs £249.

To get a better idea of its size, watch us un-box a PS3 Slim on the gamescom show floor and very nearly run away with it.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (41) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Pirotic #1 2 years ago

    I suppose it's quite tricky releasing something early, if you forget to tell someone they'll lose a load of sales and be pretty peeved. Doesn't seem to have stopped the US shops, on the bright side the kind Americans can make sure they have no serious flaws/faults before our credit cards get charged. I'm curious as to if they are louder or not.

  • Creasy #2 2 years ago

    well, its 230 pounds at shopto..

  • patch #3 2 years ago

    Interesting article on kotaku. Best Buy have been told to offer a free game to people wanting to return a recently purchased PS3 (within 30 days). I'd still take a slim.

  • Goodfella #4 2 years ago

    Had some delivered at work today (Comet) but obviously I'm not allowed to put it on display until the 1st.

  • IneptPercy #5 2 years ago

    I wonder if there will be a surge in sales due to this. There will be a something due people 'upgrading' but is it just be who doesn't really see it as a price cut. Before you could get them for £280 with a few games now its £250 with no games.

    Basically will this fuel the boost Sony needs or will it just cause a short term blip?

    Will be interesting to watch.

  • sneetch #6 2 years ago

    I'm not sure about the UK where the price cut probably ain't that great, but the stores near me are making a big deal of the price cut (as €100 is a load). No really good deals with the Slim that I've seen but there are a load of "PS3 prices slashed!" signs about and loads of bundles. Too bad the bundles tend to have shite in them.

  • Grievous1976 #7 2 years ago

    Its still a PS3 at the end of the day and still massively lagging behind the Xbox 360!

  • IneptPercy #8 2 years ago

    Another thought what will happen to the 'bulky' stock. That surely must get a bit cheaper.

    Also if the shops get a lot of 'bulky's traded in against these then they might lower prices to get rid, I saw this a lot witht he DS Lites as loads of people 'upgraded'.

  • RumpyStumpy #9 2 years ago

    I'll probably pick up another ps3 to have in the lounge as a Blue Ray Player.

    So I will add to any sales spike for the PS3 however I won't be purchasing any additional software, so not generating any additional revenue going forward. I wonder how many people will be doing the same. Good for harware sales but not good for the software attach rate.

    Only buy exclusives on PS3 as it is, but most of my purchases are for the 360. Both great machines though!
    Edited by 1 at 26/08/09 @ 16:16

  • Widge #10 2 years ago

    I'm waiting until a bundle surfaces with Batman, Infamous and Uncharted surfaces!

    *fingers crossed*

  • JahB #11 2 years ago

    So I will add to any sales spike for the PS3 however I won't be purchasing any additional software, so not generating any additional revenue going forward. I wonder how many people will be doing the same.

    well there are a few thousand other die hard fanboys out there that would buy a second PS3, but any person without brand obsession will not.

    i like my ps3, but buying a second one is downright stupid. you can get better blu ray players for less than 250

  • Skurmedel #12 2 years ago

    Widge: Would be nice, I just ordered the Slim and Uncharted, but I had to get Uncharted at another shop. Seems to be a shortage in supplies for Uncharted.

    First and foremost it's my BD-player, and as Rumpy said, I don't think I'll help their software sales alot, other than for the exclusives.

  • septimus #13 2 years ago

    I can't decide if I should exchange my Classic PS3 (w/ BC) for what could be a more reliable system. Only had one failure with the PS3, but I don't trust the refurb Sony sent... seems to run a little hot and the fan kicks in earlier than my old one used to.

    Anyone else considering this?

  • Madafunkola #14 2 years ago

    A few shops are dropping to £230 (inc ShopTo). If they throw in a recent game and a blu-ray, I might bite.

  • RumpyStumpy #15 2 years ago

    @ jahb:

    "well there are a few thousand other die hard fanboys out there that would buy a second PS3, but any person without brand obsession will not.

    i like my ps3, but buying a second one is downright stupid. you can get better blu ray players for less than 250 "

    yes but i have the option this way of playing my games on my 50" plazma when the wife goes to temple on a saturday night and also she can play singstar with her friends without me have to lug my existing ps3 all over the shop.


  • jim1975 #16 2 years ago

    i really want to see one in the flesh to see if it looks as cheap and nasty as it does in picture.

  • Hexagon #17 2 years ago

    Will the informed people actually buy the PS3 Slim for £249.99 when ShopTo.net is selling it for £229.99 and therefore offers a much better price?

  • iN5OMANiAC #18 2 years ago

    I traded in my ps3 phat last week at gamestation and now have credit notes waiting to get the new one. Trouble is, amazon are offering a great 2 game/blu ray deal for £249.99 while gamestation and game are only offering the machine itself for the same price.

    Heres hoping they have some bundles out on release day

  • keyboardmonkey #19 2 years ago

    I'm in the US at the moment :-) There was a pile of PS3 slims by the door in BestBuy (I was in there for an hour and i didn't see any go out the door) i just wasn't tempted enough. I will stick with my Chuncky version as I don't really use it that often. And it's hidden away behind frosted glass so only i would know the difference.

  • Liam64 #20 2 years ago

    A friend's PS3 Slim has already been shipped.

    So much for that, Sony!

  • waynenot #21 2 years ago

    The sound of shoulders shrugging is deafening. It's just too late this time round - they've gaffed, goofed and generally fucked every opportunity to be competitive this generation.

  • Rodster #22 2 years ago

    Picked mine up yesterday as they were released early in the US. They look nice but honestly my launch 60GB with BC kills the Slim in every way. And don't be fooled about the 45nm chips. The PS3 Slims run hot (bottom of the unit) just like the PS2 slims.

  • Skurmedel #23 2 years ago

    How does it kill it in every way?

  • Widge #24 2 years ago

    What about the noise? My 60GB is a noisy bastard when it gets going. The work 80GB is practically invisible, I'd be expecting the slim to better even that.

    I'd feel a bit *meh* at losing my usb and card readers though, but hey ho. Would keep the 60GB for upstairs but its too much for late night low volume TV.

  • NinjaWilliams #25 2 years ago

    Getting mine's for £170! will use the rest of me cobblers for a nice 500gb hd upgrade for it! ;)

  • Feanor #26 2 years ago

    Thanks for pointing that out, EB.

  • hailstorm #27 2 years ago

    I'll stick with Amazon I think. Never heard of ShopTo before and not sure if I'd trust them.

  • iN5OMANiAC #28 2 years ago

    shopto are fine so long as you dont intend giving them your bank details.

  • Gruffy #29 2 years ago

    Well... its not like it's a "NEW" console & thought they (Sony) would want all the extra sales they could get

  • swissorc #30 2 years ago

    Firstly I will be buying a PS3 only a matter of when not if. But, as stated the bundles available at HMV, GAME etc suck ass plus the blue ray player is poor compared to the panasonic's on the market. I watched iron man on blue ray through my friends the other day and it was down right poor doesn't even come to even BBC HD quality let alone stand alone blue ray players. Saying that though with the new technology that general electronics are producing which can hold upto half a tera-byte of data looking like they will hit shelves in the next 18 months you have to wonder why you would buy a stand alone blue ray player since the format looks like a stop gap between DVD and 3D film anyway.
    Just a though...

  • m0thr4 #31 2 years ago

    @septimus: I can't decide if I should exchange my Classic PS3 (w/ BC) for what could be a more reliable system. Only had one failure with the PS3, but I don't trust the refurb Sony sent... seems to run a little hot and the fan kicks in earlier than my old one used to.

    Anyone else considering this?

    Well, first of all, are you sure it's not just the recent hotter weather that's making the fan kick in earlier? Secondly, is the fan noise that bad? Even on its highest speed, my PS3 is way quieter than my Xbox 360 which I've modded with a Talismoon Whisper fan.

    The ultimate question though is: how much do you really take advantage of the PS2 backwards compatibility? Initially, I played loads of PS2 games, as there were few decent PS3 games worth playing, but that's simply not the case now and I haven't played a PS2 game in well over a year.

    I've heard that the new PS3 slim is actually even quieter than the original machine. If that's the case (because I find it difficult to believe a machine with cheaper parts can be quieter), then I'm severely tempted.

    Original PS3s with BC still go for a good price on eBay right now, so I'll easily cover my costs.

  • m0thr4 #32 2 years ago

    @swissorc: But, as stated the bundles available at HMV, GAME etc suck ass plus the blue ray player is poor compared to the panasonic's on the market. I watched iron man on blue ray through my friends the other day and it was down right poor doesn't even come to even BBC HD quality let alone stand alone blue ray players.

    If you're not trolling, then it sounds like you were watching on a non-1080p24 telly. The PS3's Blu-ray player is playing proper 1080p24 HD, and films at that resolution will only look good on a TV that supports that resolution. The BBC HD channel is usually playing either 720p or 1080i, all heavily compressed, but which tends to look better on a cheap TV than the PS3's attempt at downscaling to that resolution.

  • Skurmedel #33 2 years ago

    It's quieter because it uses less power. Parts gets cheaper after a while not neccessarily because they are inferior but because research has made the production less expensive. The processors that power most cell phones today are both cheaper and better, to use a poor analogy. Another example would be netbooks.
    Edited by 1 at 27/08/09 @ 09:02

  • m0thr4 #34 2 years ago

    @Hexagon: Will the informed people actually buy the PS3 Slim for £249.99 when ShopTo.net is selling it for £229.99 and therefore offers a much better price?

    No, they'll probably stick to s trusted and well-known brand such as Amazon or Play. You can go back and tell your employers not to get their hopes up.

  • swissorc #35 2 years ago

    Actually watching on a panasonic 42" 85B 1080p 24fps within intelligent frame creation on

    PS I take it you didn't watch Sin City on BBC HD when it was on looked stunning
    Edited by 1 at 27/08/09 @ 09:13

  • Skurmedel #36 2 years ago

    MilkybKid1985: I never said it there was either

    But my point is if it drains alot of power, alot of heat will be generated. That heat will have to go somewhere. Less power drain, less heat to get rid off. Power-draining CPU equals bigger fan or some other cooling solution (and if it's another non sounding cooling solution my point still stands.)
    Edited by 3 at 27/08/09 @ 11:35

  • layleeloo #37 2 years ago

    You just have to have a best mate who owns a game shop to get it early! haha hoorah. Although I cant see me replacing my unit just to have it early.

  • davisorle #38 2 years ago

    Less power hungry indeed. The original PS3 consumes electricity like a damn fridge lol. Anyhow. Not only the 1st is a choice and nothing weird about it but selling EXACTLY from day one of the month will be bigger numbers of sales on a clear month for them to brag finally for some good sales of their console, dont you think? :p Id go for it too. FIRST OF THE MONTH I say... anyhow. Personally I still dont plan on getting one. Bust your asses a bit more Sony to catch up. At least now you are doing something. Its no harm. Reasons to pay you for. :p

  • VMerken #39 2 years ago

    Good to know it's here soon, but I'll just stick with me bulky launch model.

  • Vroom #40 2 years ago

    Bah.

  • Hexagon #41 2 years ago

    @ m0thr4

    My employers? Don't be silly. Advertising a great deal doesn't automatically mean you work for the people who are offering said deal. Encouraging competition and low prices is a good thing. Perhaps you disagree?