PlayStation 4 Price Could Fall To $299 On Black Friday 2015
Sony announced this week that the popular PlayStation 4 will now be available for $349.99. This is the first official manufacturer price drop since the PlayStation 4 hit the market for $399.99 on November 15, 2013. Over the past year and a half, Microsoft has dropped the price for the Xbox One without Kinect two different times, so Sony appears to be poised for a big holiday season for their award-winning gaming console. As we saw last year, a manufacturer price drop on a gaming system in October usually means double the discounts for Black Friday.
In the press release, Sony provided their reasoning for the holiday price drop.
“Since the launch of PS4, we have been thrilled with the amount of gamers jumping into the world of PlayStation for the first time. Our goal at PlayStation has always been to provide the best gameplay experiences at the best value, and we feel this new compelling price will open the doors to even more gamers that have yet to purchase a system.”
In addition to discounting the console, PlayStation 4 bundles have also seen price drops. The new UNCHARTED: The Nathan Drake Collection PS4 Bundle and the upcoming Star Wars: Battlefront PS4 Bundle will both be available for $349.99. Since this is the same exact price as buying the console by itself, it is recommended that you always choose a bundle for the free games.
The upcoming limited edition Disney Infinity 3.0: Star Wars PS4 Bundle and the limited edition Star Wars: Battlefront PS4 Bundle will be available for $399.99. The upcoming limited edition Call of Duty: Black Ops III 1TB PS4 Bundle will be the most expensive one at $429.99.
Since Sony is discounting the PlayStation 4 so close to the holiday season, it would appear that stores would not be able to drop prices any further during Black Friday. When Microsoft announced last October that the Xbox One would be available for $349.99 for the holiday season, gamers everywhere were excited, but it appeared that this would be the final Black Friday price. A few short weeks later, holiday sale flyers started to show the Assassin’s Creed Unity Bundle for $329.99, according to Polygon. As the season went on, other retailers sold it for as low as $299.99.
With the speculation over the past few weeks about the rumored PlayStation 4 price cut, the confirmation from Sony makes a few of the Black Friday 2015 rumors more believable. According to the Palm Beach Post, experts believe PlayStation 4 bundles will start as low as $299.99 this holiday season. While this will be the price for the cheapest bundles and consoles, the article states that the average bundle cost will be around $349.99. For even more savings, stores have apparently been known to include gifts cards of up to $50. If that is the case, some bundles will have a net price of around $249.99 after the discount and the gift card.
While there is no news yet from stores on potential PlayStation 4 Black Friday prices, it should come out before November. Usually one store will set a price point, and other stores will come pretty close to this value. As the season goes on, certain stores will offer additional incentives to have the best possible console and bundle deal. Last year during Black Friday, the top PlayStation 4 deals were the Grand Theft Auto V and The Last Of Us Remastered Bundle and the Family Bundle with LittleBig Planet 3 and Lego Batman 3 Bundle for $399.99 each. These were the prices that the majority of stores offered. Very late in the season, midwest retailer Meijer came out and also included a $50 store gift card with both of the bundles, giving them a net price of $349.99.
While the $299.99 PlayStation 4 price prediction this Black Friday is only speculation, history would say there is a good chance that it happens.
[Image via Christian Petersen/Getty Images]
