Pick up a PlayStation 3 for $339.99 shipped

(Credit: Dell)

This one's for you, MakaiOokami: Sony PlayStation 3 deals are few and far between, but Dell is currently selling PS3s for $339.99 shipped (with coupon code PWXNZVNDRWWX1P, which expires October 29 or after 3,000 uses). This isn't some old refurb, either: It's a new PS3 with an 80GB hard drive.

Needless to say, the PS3 is a killer gaming console, notable not just for state-of-the-art graphics and gaming but also for doubling as a Blu-ray player. I'll cop to being an Xbox 360 and Wii guy myself, but some of the stuff I've seen on the PS3 just blows me away. Only the high price has kept me from taking the plunge, and $339.99 is getting in the ballpark of what I consider reasonable.

Okay, console fans, let loose: Is this a good enough price for a PS3, or does Sony need to drop it closer to Xbox territory? In any case, I suspect we'll see more deals like this (and possibly a permanent price drop) as the holidays approach. (via Gizmodo)

Update: Remember the Sony Reader deal from a couple weeks ago? You got $150 off by applying for Sony's credit card. Well, you can use that same offer on a PS3 instead. Just add the PS3 to your cart for $399.99, then apply for the card and get an instant $150 credit. That brings your total down to $249.99. Beat that!

[brettak81]

even at the price i paid at launch for my 60gb PS3 is still well worth it.

and yes i understand the argument that it'd be outrageous to pay that much for simply a gaming system. but factor in the blu-ray player and it'd be outrageous to NOT want this machine for this price. it's an excellent price for a Playstation and Blu-Ray hybrid.

[MakaiOokami]

You didn't have to call me out.. lol. That's better. You gotta realize though at that price you're getting both a system, a low end PC (you can install linux on it out of the box) AND a blu Ray player which your deals bring down to like 150 dollars, if you count the price of a 360 you're paying 200 dollars, I just don't get why people say it's so expensive when you really look at what you're getting.

Anyway I'm gonna go watch Hulu on the PS3 now that it has Flash Version 9.0. I just want to make sure that people get the best bang for their money. I'll quit buggin you about the PS3 deals. I just get bugged about someone saying a 400 dollar console that has free online is too expensive compared to a 200+ game console and 50 dollars a year to access online which will add up to being 200 dollars EASY in 4 years. Both systems have pros and cons but no matter how much I try and be fair to the 360 and brag on it you still can't forget the fact that those things are known to overheat and have a history of fail rates higher than any other gaming system I've seen (except maybe the virtual boy)

Little Big PLanet is just so much fun. You're really missing out if you like platformer games at all, have a wife, or especially kids. It's literally a game you guys can all enjoy playing with. Don't take my word for it, listen to some gaming sites like Gametrailers.com PS Nation or just look at the average reviews of 9.5.

Anyway I'll stop buggin ya but just promise when you see a good deal, you'll bring it up. I wasn't the only person who was buggin ya, I just felt like you were just blowing it off for no reason. Can you really drop a blu-ray player/console/web browsing machine/media extender/dvd upscaler/low end linux PC down to the price of a 360 or within 50-100 dollars of one? You get for what you pay for.

[stlrfrk2]

drop it closer to xbox territory? last time i checked, the 360 elite was $400, and the 60gb 360 was $300. $40 more for wifi and blu-ray compared to the 60gb 360 seems like a pretty damn good deal to me.

[mil2civ]

Hey - looks like Dell INCREASED their price to 399.99. It's the Broida-factor at work again !!

[mil2civ]

Disregard my last...probably get the 339 deal after you put in the coupon code...sorry.

[Eauboy]

I think it's a great bargain. Blu-ray player, upscaling DVD player, streaming media client and game console. Get the cheapest 360 and you still need a few more components to get you to that level. Not a knock on the 360, just an observation that those who compare on price alone are not making a fair comparison.

[Dragon_Myr]

Sorry, it's still way too expensive for me. If it had backwards compatibility I'd buy it, but without that it doesn't have enough value for me to purchase. The price has to drop to $300 or below for me to seriously consider it, and even then the lack of backwards compatibility is still a big impediment for me. I still can't imagine spending $340 on a video game machine, but it's very easy to pick up an Xbox 360 at $200 especially since I have no interest in Live and therefore do not get hit with the high costs later. I already have a Wii.

Now I know people are going to say "but it's a blu-ray player" and "it surfs the web" and "it's a media hub". I'm not interested in spending double or triple the cost of a DVD to buy a Blu-Ray Disc, especially when the filtering technology on my DVD player and HDTV does such a great job. I don't want to surf the web from a PS3 because I've got a computer that can do that. I already have a media that's portable to any device and not restricted to a particular hub of hardware such as a console. The only thing I'd use the PS3 for is playing video games mostly offline -- that's it. Therefore the price is too expensive.

Rick, it's a good deal for some people, but I still think it's overpriced for the value in which it delivers. Btw, just out of curiosity of the final price after tax, I tried the shopping cart and got a "We're sorry, the coupon code you have entered has previously been redeemed" message.

[guitarbandit7498]

I would also agree this is a great price. Considering what it has to offer the launch price was a great price IMO. I do understand however that the majority of the people buying the PS3 are getting it as a gaming console and justifiably so. So the games better be there if people are going to shell out $500 for a game system, and unfortunately 360 has the advantage there. I do feel though that in a matter of a couple years as the price of technology drops and therefore the price of the PS3, on top of developers getting more comfortable with the PS3's design, the games will come in droves. More people will turn to the PS3 for a better gaming experience and the 360's success will drop off. Since the 360 is working basically on older technology it has a shorter lifespan than the PS3. The PS3 is ahead of it's time, more so than the PS2 was and therefore scared off a lot of developers in the begining. Now better design tools are available to developers and the games coming out exclusive to PS3 kick ass. If Sony stays behind the console, the long run will prove PS3 to be the superior console...

[jcarithe]

Looks like the coupon is invalid now, anyone else seeing that?

[rickbroida]

The coupon may well have gotten "used up," but did you check out my update at the bottom of the post? If you don't mind applying for a new credit card, you can snatch up a PS3 for $249.99!

[dudejustop]

ummm the sony agrreement for the 150 dollars off says you have to buy it at sony or sony style to get the credit........ the price for a 339 ps3 is at the dell store........ so will you get the credit?

[rickbroida]

No, you'd need to buy the PS3 from the SonyStyle store. It's $399.99, but the $150 credit drops you to $249.99. Sorry if that wasn't clear.

[ultimatebuster]

expired. not getting it anyway lol

[dcnguy]

$150 Sony Credit with credit card app still available!!!

I dug around and found a live link to the offer:

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ContentDisplayView?cmsId=sony_card&XID=A:227502:10554222::CJ&ref=http://www.techbargains.com/news_displayItem.cfm/137398