Crave

(Credit: Nintendo)

Nintendo has officially announced that the price of the Wii will drop to $199.99, effective on Sunday. The long-rumored $50 price cut comes in the wake of recent price drops for the PlayStation 3 ($299, with built-in Blu-ray player) and Xbox 360 ($299 for the 120GB version with built-in DVD player and Netflix support), which have boosted sales of the Sony and Microsoft consoles. (To date, the Wii remains the best-selling home game console of the three.)

Other than the price cut, there are no other changes to the current Wii bundle--you're still getting the console, along with the Wiimote and Nunchuk controllers and the bundled Wii Sports game. By contrast, there's at least one rumor that the U.K. will get a Wii package that adds the MotionPlus peripheral and Wii Sports Resort to the mix. Meanwhile, white remains the only color choice in North America (Japanese consumers can choose black as well).

Nintendo also took the opportunity to officially announce the release date for New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which had previously been slated for a vague "fall 2009" window. The multiplayer Super Mario game will hit store shelves on November 15.

So, what do you guys think? Does the price drop make the Wii more attractive? Would you prefer a more enticing bundle? Or are you holding out for the Wii HD? Share your comments below.

(Credit: Kotaku)

With Microsoft and Sony both slashing prices on their respective consoles, it's no surprise that Nintendo appears to be following suit. Last month, we explained why we think the Wii needs a price drop, and it sounds like we aren't the only ones who think so.

Just today, a tipster sent Kotaku a blurry photo of a Toys R Us circular clearly indicating a $50 price drop for the Nintendo console, bringing it down to $200. Since the circular is dated for the last week in September, the new price could go into effect on September 27.

A $200 price tag would once again solidify the Wii as one of the two cheapest consoles available on the market today. As of now, the Xbox 360 Arcade remains as the least expensive home video game console on sale.

This all technically remains a rumor, but we've got a sneaking suspicion that this one is probably right on the money.

It's your turn.

With both Sony and Microsoft dropping the price of the PS3 and the Xbox 360 Elite, the Wii is beginning to look like an overpriced console. There a few reasons why Nintendo needs to drop at least $50 off the company's best-selling home console and fast.

The shortage is over
Anyone who wants a Wii has one by now. Consumers in the market for a console will no longer look to the Wii for its affordability over the competition. In fact, an Xbox 360 Arcade can be had for less than the price of a Wii already.

The competition
Now that the Xbox 360 and PS3 battlefield has been leveled, the Wii stands alone with arguably less value. If the Wii remains at $250, it will be only $50 cheaper than two gaming consoles that offer high-end HD graphics, huge internal storage, and video marketplaces. Even the soon-to-be released PSP Go--while considered expensive--matches the Wii's $250 price tag.

The incentive
Consumers are concerned with value more than ever. At $250, the Wii does not offer enough of an added incentive packed into the box. Don't forget that this is also the console with the most accessories for sale. At least include MotionPlus, Wii Sports, and Wii Sports Resort in the box to sweeten the deal.

Maybe Nintendo is satisfied with the Wii's performance and will keep the console's price where it stands now. It's by far the best-selling console of this generation, so maybe there's nothing left to prove. That said, we can't imagine that console sales will continue to remain consistent when there's two consoles that offer so much more for only an additional $50.

If there was ever a time for a Wii price drop, it's now. If anything it will put Nintendo back in the news after what seems like months of nothing but Sony and Microsoft rumors, announcements, and SKU changes.

What do you think? Should Nintendo drop the Wii by at least $50?

The Sony PlayStation is finally getting a price drop, but some dummy retailers in Europe are actually increasing the price of the Xbox Arcade console set. In other news, a Twitter user is offering his followers a line to God, Starbucks says OK to freeloaders, and we also debate the most prolific technology of our time! You'll never guess what Wilson has up his sleeve...

It's a washing machine.

(Credit: First-Act)

In case you haven't heard, our economy is in a little bit of hot water right now, and while most companies like Sony are slashing prices to keep up with the competition, the geniuses at Microsoft EU are actually increasing the price of the Xbox Arcade from £129.99 to £159.99. Furthermore, the five Xbox Live Arcade games will no longer be included in the bundle. The company's excuse is that it is to "counteract the poor pound-to-euro currency exchange rate." Who allowed this to happen at Microsoft? At least fix the failure rate before you increase the price!

In other news, Starbucks is opening its doors to Wi-Fi freeloaders. We reported in the past that several cafes in New York are banning cell phones and laptops, cutting off Wi-Fi access to discourage freeloaders from just hanging out and surfing the Web for free. Starbucks has always been an easy place to gain paid access to the Internet, and it will continue to provide a welcoming environment for customers to enjoy their $68 cups of flavored coffee.

Many more stories to get to today, including a Twitter account that gives followers a direct line to God and a hilarious poem from our buddy CHRISTOPHER WALKEN!

We couldn't get enough of the Bonch on our 404th episode, so we invite her on today to hang out out with us and chat about the death of Saturday mail, Amy Winehouse, "District 9," and "Paper Heart." And stay tuned till the end for Bonnie's very special announcement! You heard it on The 404 first!

(Credit: Bonnie Cha)

The CNET offices in New York just got a little more exciting, because Bonnie Cha is in The 404 studio to brighten up an otherwise sobering Monday morning! She's only here for one more day, but make sure you listen to the end of the show, because she has a very important announcement!

Our rundowneth overfloweth today with quick little news bytes. The first one is about the U.S. Post Office no longer delivering mail on Saturdays! Calm down, the proposition is still in the infancy stage, but we're wondering if this is a real concern for anyone, or if this could just be another point on the board for THE INTERNET. Nevertheless, we're still going to miss our friendly neighborhood mailpeople who face dogs, weather, fatigue, and a million other things to bring us our daily book of ValuePak coupons.

Next up is a little rumor we've heard from TechRadar about Sony releasing an emotion sensor at tomorrow's GamesCon media conference. We're not sure if this technology will ever actually materialize, but we do know Sony has already patented plans for a gaming console that can be controlled by touch, movement, and even emotions including laughter, boredom, sadness, excitement, and anger. Personally, I can do without a box reading my emotions and affecting my gameplay, but what do you think? Could you get into something like that?

We also talk about "District 9" cleaning up the weekend box office, cocaine content of U.S. currency, and watch as Amy Winehouse has a complete mental breakdown, all on today's snapshot episode!

Tempted to upgrade yet?

(Credit: Sarah Tew/CNET)

For those tempted to give in to Dell's vision of thin-and-sort-of-light luxury, the Dell Adamo laptop has been lowered in price by half a thousand dollars; $1,499 gets you the 1.2GHz Core 2 Duo version of the 13.4-inch aluminum laptop with a 128GB solid-state drive, while $2,299 gets you a 1.4GHz processor, 2 extra gigabytes of RAM, and mobile broadband connectivity. You can still have your choice of pearl or onyx.

Suddenly the MacBook Air seems like a pretty good deal at $1,499 with a 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo and 120GB hard drive, or $1,799 with a 128GB SSD and 2.13 GHz processor--and, might we add, GeForce 9400M graphics.

All Dell needs to do now is lower the price by another $500, and we've got a quasi-deal.

In our review of the Adamo, we liked the design but made note of the relatively exorbitant price. Have any of you bought an Adamo? In this climate of ever-lowering laptop and Netbook prices, would a price drop like this convince you at all?

(Source: LogicBuy via Engadget)

Price cut coming: maybe--maybe not.

(Credit: Sony)

The rumors are flying about a possible big Sony PlayStation announcement for Tuesday. The only problem is no one is sure what the announcement involves, with speculation running from a PS3 price drop to a PS2 price drop to something about God of War 3.

Anyway, the original rumor came from an Australian publication, Smarthouse, but Kotaku says it's gotten word directly from Sony that an announcement is "imminent."

Furthermore, Kotaku thinks that we're looking at a PS2 price drop to $99.99, not the much-hoped-for PS3 price drop to $299.99. Joystiq concurs with a source at K-Mart saying the cut is coming April 5. How anticlimactic would that be?

So, what do you think Sony's announcing (if indeed, there really is an announcement forthcoming)?

Update: According to Joystiq, Sony is calling the rumors of a PS3 price drop totally false. However, it didn't deny rumors of a PS2 price chop (but who really cares, right?).

(Source: Smarthouse via 1up via Joystiq, Kotaku)

(Credit: TVPredictions.com)

Black Friday is still 11 days away, but for TV manufacturers looking to jump-start sluggish sales in the midst of a recession, it's already here--and will likely continue in spirit right through the holiday season.

Word of current and impending HDTV price drops is spreading rapidly. The HDGuru reports, for example, that Sony, Samsung, and Mitsubishi are rolling out MSRP reductions across the board, with some cuts as high as $500 on expensive models like the Sony KDL-52XBR6. Samsung is offering $200 off rear-projection models like the HL61A750, which was already a solid value to begin with. Looking for hot-selling prices last Friday, the Guru found deals like the 42-inch Panasonic TH-42PX80U plasma for $649 (although when we checked Monday it was back up to $729 online--still a great deal).

Looking for more? The latest Black Friday price watch (PDF) over at TWICE includes advertised price drops that range from 11 percent for the Sony KDL-46Z4100 to a drastic 33 percent for the LG 32LG30--one of the best deals we've seen so far at $549 at Best Buy. When we saw that price, we immediately added the LG to our Best cheap LCD TVs list.

We suspect even better bargains are yet to come. In past years, the best deals were available after Black Friday, in the weeks leading up to Christmas, especially on name-brand TVs.

The combination of the holiday season, nosediving economy and the impending DTV transition may be creating a perfect storm of low HDTV prices, but are people actually buying new TVs as a result? ... Read more

Cheaper than SanDisk? Could it be?

(Credit: Cowon)

No sooner had I posted an announcement about Iriver's holiday price drops than fellow Korean DAP manufacturer Cowon hit us with some news about some enticing pricing of its own. The company is lowering the MSRPs for all models currently marketed in the U.S., with the exception of the newly-released O2. For the rest, you can expect to see a drop of between $20 (for the smaller, flash-based players) all the way up to $70 for the 80GB Q5W.

You can find a complete list of the new prices below, but I wanted to give special attention to one player: the Cowon U5. The player was never pushed much in the U.S. market--in fact, Cowon declined to send us a test unit for this reason--but you can currently find the 8GB model for under $90 on Amazon. For those who are counting, that's $11 per gigabyte, making it the cheapest flash player by a reputable manufacturer--yep, it's even cheaper than SanDisk's Sansa Fuze.

It's no puppy, but that doesn't mean it can't beg to be taken home for the holidays.

(Credit: CNET/Corinne Schulze)

New MSRPs for Cowon MP3 players and PVPs:

• iAUDIO F2 4GB: $79.99
• COWON D2 4GB: $139.99
• COWON D2 8GB : $159.99
• COWON D2 16GB: $199.99
• iAUDIO 7 4GB: $99.99
• iAUDIO 7 8GB: $119.99
• iAUDIO 7 16GB: $159.99
• COWON Q5 40GB: $439.99
• COWON Q5 60GB: $469.99
• COWON Q5 60GB with GPS Cradle: $589.99
• COWON Q5 80GB: $499.99
• COWON A3 30GB: $299.99
• COWON A3 60GB: $319.99
• COWON A3 80GB: $349.99
• COWON U5 8GB: $109.99