Everyone is up-in-the-arms about Nintendo's new console beating Sony's. The sales of the Wii in November (roughly 467,000) are more than double the PS3 sales (147,000), according to NPD. But what most articles about this don't talk about: the PS2 is still winning, and easily. It managed to sell 664,000 Playstation 2 units. That's a lot. Especially for an old console.
Why is this so? Many people probably like their PS2s. After all, that's why the Playstation 2 became so popular. The Playstation 3 also costs way too much. The Blu-ray support adds a lot of $$$, and Sony's been having problems with it. It's likely a reason why they couldn't ship as many units as Nintendo. Meanwhile, the PS2's prices are dropping as stores are trying to clear out the old units to make room for the next-gen consoles. It's a bargain.
The fact that Sony has been trying to future-proof the Playstation 3 may also be a factor. Many people don't want to buy a top of the line game console, when Nintendo and Microsoft equivalents are much cheaper. This doesn't mean that the Playstation 3 won't sell, however. Because it's future-proofed, it will likely gain more appeal in a few years. Prices for expensive parts, such as Blu-Ray, will also come down. This will make a more affordable console that will be able to compete better with the Xbox 360 and the Wii.
That's obviously not the case with the Playstation Portable. Sony's PSP has been losing to the DS, with DS sales in November (918,000) more than doubling PSP sales (412,000). But the reason I think the PS3 may actually beat the competition is because in the case of the PSP, Sony was launching a completely new product. Nintendo already had a solid base of users who followed Nintendo religously. Now it's Sony's turn. Their solid base of users is just simply sticking to the PS2 for the moment. Once it gets phased out, the tide may turn.
Wait and see. You may see the console giant striking back against Nintendo and Microsoft in this bitter, merciless console war.
