Sony isn’t cutting the Vita price in North America due to international exchange rates

Posted on 21/02/2013 by Ben Gilbert

Despite the PlayStation Vita getting a recent price cut in its home country of Japan, Sony says it isn't getting a similar price adjustment in North America. The Vita recently dropped from 30,000 yen (3G) and 25,000 yen (WiFi-only) to 19,980 yen, but Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida tells Joystiq that that same price drop won't happen in the US. He cited exchange rates as the primary reason -- Japanese Yen has dropped in value to (currently) 0.93 cents to every US dollar, meaning Sony actually loses money in exchange on products sold outside of its home territory.

The Vita launched in February 2012 and has suffered from poor sales throughout the past year -- Sony's hoping to revitalize that a bit with PlayStation 4 connectivity. Via Remote Play, all PlayStation 4 games are streamable on Vita. Whether that'll be a feature that consumers use is another question altogether; Remote Play exists on PlayStation 3 already, and it's not what we'd call a great experience.

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds, HD, Sony

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Source: Joystiq

Barnes & Noble cut the price of Nook Tablet, Nook Color once more, really wants to be on your Christmas list

Posted on 03/11/2012 by James Trew

Barnes & Noble recently took the wraps of two new tablets, updating its range (along with everyone else it seems) in preparation for next year. That doesn't mean it's washed its hands with the OG Nook tablet and Nook Color -- in fact, both just got another price cut. Starting tomorrow, you'll be able to pick up the original 8GB tablet for $159, the 16GB version for $179 and the Nook Color for $139. With two price cuts in three months, anyone would think it was trying to get rid of stock. This still puts last year's lower capacity model shoulder to shoulder with Amazon's 2012 Kindle Fire (with ad subsidies), but with Christmas just around the corner, we're not complaining about more choice for less dollars.

Continue reading Barnes & Noble cut the price of Nook Tablet, Nook Color once more, really wants to be on your Christmas list

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Barnes & Noble cut the price of Nook Tablet, Nook Color once more, really wants to be on your Christmas list originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 03 Nov 2012 14:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Target, Walmart list price drop for B&N’s Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight to $119

Posted on 30/09/2012 by Brian Heater

Check those calendars. It's September 29th, which means, for those who follow the world of e-readers, that we're two days from Kindle Paperwhite day. According to Target and Walmart, it also means that Barnes & Noble's own illuminated e-reader, the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight, is getting a $20 price cut, down to $119. That price puts the reader on par with the entry-level Paperwhite (no 3G, with ads). Let the battle of the front lit e-readers commence!

Update: Check out some official pricing update info from B&N after the break.

Continue reading Target, Walmart list price drop for B&N's Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight to $119

Target, Walmart list price drop for B&N's Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight to $119 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 29 Sep 2012 21:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AMD FX-4130 delivers 3.8GHz quad-core on a budget, A-Series chips get even cheaper

Posted on 28/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

If you're building a starter desktop to get ready for school, you'll be glad to know that AMD is squeaking just a little more value for the dollar out of its processors. The new quad-core FX-4130 takes a 200MHz hop forward from its predecessor to a 3.8GHz base speed, and ramps up to 3.9GHz if it's feeling frisky. While it's thirstier than the earlier FX-4100 at 125W of maximum power draw, the unlocked chip's $112 retail cost is a potential sweet spot for those tailoring a system to a strict price. Anyone willing to trade overclocking support for yet more of a savings will be glad to know that AMD has been slashing the prices of its Fusion-based A-Series chips at the same time: the across-the-board cuts bring even the 2.9GHz A8-3850 down to $91. No breaks exist here for the performance crowd, alas, but AMD's new proposition might be just the excuse needed to build that budget Windows 8 PC.

Filed under: Desktops

AMD FX-4130 delivers 3.8GHz quad-core on a budget, A-Series chips get even cheaper originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Aug 2012 14:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony rules out PS Vita price cut in 2012, works to lower the price later

Posted on 16/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

It's time to get realistic about the prospects of a PlayStation Vita price drop. Sony Worldwide Studios' head Shuhei Yoshida dampened the fires of speculation at GamesCom this week by telling Eurogamer that it was simply "too early" to slash the price on the gaming handheld -- it was only just launched this year for every active region beyond Japan, after all. That's not to say Sony is determined to keep the PS Vita at $249 forever. Much like what it did for the PS3, the company is working to bring down the price by streamlining part costs. The cuts might be necessary given the mismatch between the warm reception to the quad-core, OLED-packing hardware and the actual sales; Sony would "like to see more uptake" than what's been seen to date, according to Yoshida. In the meantime, we'll have to be content with bundles like the European LittleBigPlanet combo if we want to eke out a little more value at the game store counter.

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Sony rules out PS Vita price cut in 2012, works to lower the price later originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Aug 2012 15:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ars Technica, Joystiq | source

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Sony rules out PS Vita price cut in 2012, works to lower the price later

Posted on 16/08/2012 by Jon Fingas

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Sony rules out PS Vita price cut in 2012, works to lower the price later originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Aug 2012 15:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ars Technica | source

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HTC One X might drop to $100 on contract at AT&T, tempt our wallets (update: confirmed)

Posted on 27/07/2012 by Jon Fingas

HTC might have turned green having seen the Galaxy S III steal the Android spotlight at AT&T, but it could be poised to use a classic trick to get the One X front and center once again: a price drop. An AT&T staff leak at XDA-Developers suggests the carrier is cutting the One X contract price in half to $100 on July 29th, putting it well under its Samsung rival and giving the similarly-priced Atrix HD no small amount of heat. Nothing's confirmed unless AT&T pulls the trigger, of course. If it does, we could see at least some shoppers deciding that HTC just makes more Sense (4.0) in the end.

Update: We've confirmed directly with AT&T that the price cut is official and part of the company's back-to-school promos.

Filed under: Cellphones

HTC One X might drop to $100 on contract at AT&T, tempt our wallets (update: confirmed) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Verge | source

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Intel pumps SSD 330 capacity up to 240GB, trims other drives’ prices to match

Posted on 17/07/2012 by Jon Fingas

If you haven't already dropped a solid-state drive into your computer, Intel just gave you a not-so-subtle nudge in that direction. Its entry-level SSD 320 has jumped in capacity from 180GB to 240GB, saving a few diñeiros for anyone who would rather not leap to the SSD 520 just to land a primary system drive. Either end of the price spectrum is also becoming a little more reasonable: the official reseller pricing has been slashed on the 320, 330 and 520 lines, even if Intel hasn't said by how much just yet. Intel's changes should be in immediate effect for those among us who just can't endure spinning storage one moment longer.

Filed under: Storage

Intel pumps SSD 330 capacity up to 240GB, trims other drives' prices to match originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 02:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola discounts the MOTOACTV $100, hopes you’re still in bikini slim-down mode

Posted on 16/07/2012 by Billy Steele

Still in the middle of your seasonal weight loss regimen? Well, if you're in the market for a new fitness wearable, Motorola has dropped the price on its MOTOACTV to $149.99 for the 8GB model, $199.99 for the 16GB version and $299.99 for the Multi-Sport Edition. Need a quick refresher? You can expect to keep track of your running, biking, golfing and other sporty exploits alongside GPS, MP3 playback, heart rate monitor and Bluetooth. You'll also be able to brag about those progress updates with your Facebook and Twitter mates alongside the $100 price cut. Ready to commit? Hit that source link below to do just that.

Filed under: Wearables

Motorola discounts the MOTOACTV $100, hopes you're still in bikini slim-down mode originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 16 Jul 2012 16:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony refreshes VAIO Z series with Ivy Bridge, price now starts at $1,600 without the docking station

Posted on 04/06/2012 by Dana Wollman

In case you didn't notice, Sony completely revamped its laptop lineup this morning. Unlike some of the other models on offer, the high-end Z series didn't get a redesign, but Sony at least took the opportunity to refresh it with new Ivy Bridge processors. Oh, and lower the starting price. The Z will no longer be bundled with the Power Media Dock, that external hub housing both a discrete GPU and optical drive. As such, the laptop will now start at $1,600, down from $2,000, while the dock will retail for an additional $400. Spec-wise, the Z still weighs a scant 2.6 pounds, but it's now constructed from carbon fiber and will be offered with a glossy finish. It will also be available with quad-core Ivy Bridge CPUs, though the starting model's processor is dual-core. Otherwise, it offers nearly the same specs as the model we reviewed last year, including a 1080p display and solid-state RAID drives. Look for the refresh sometime this month, and in the meantime we've included pics below to jog your memory on what this guy looks like.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Z hands-on