Sony on Wii Pricepoint

It looks as though Sony will use a cut price slimline PlayStation 2 to lure away potential Wii buyers, as US lead Kaz Hirai fires a shot across Nintendo's budget-focused bows.

Speaking specifically of the Wii and the power/functionality trade-off it offers in an interview with CNET, Hirai said, "Some consumers will compare features or software offerings and decide that they may want to go with a different console. You also have to realize that we have a very strong, market-leading console called the PlayStation 2, which is at a very affordable price right now."

Of course, this is likely to be a case of pissing in the wind for investor's sake, mixed with a smattering of reality. Sony will shift a decent number of PlayStation 2 units this Christmas. They'll be about 60GBP in the US for instance - comedically cheap for a cracking little console on which you can play Gran Turismo all day long.

Hirai continued, "Consumers will also understand that if you buy a PlayStation 2 right now, and you make some software investments, when you feel it's right to move onto PlayStation 3, those software titles aren't going to go by the wayside. Consumers will take that into consideration. I don't think price is the only determining factor when consumers make a choice in looking at their console purchase decisions."

We would agree with Hirai 100% that the price is not the only consideration. The inclusion of an entirely new style of controller is also a huge lure, though his point that the slimline PlayStation 2 will be an absolute steal is totally valid.