This is breaking news out of the Tokyo Game Show, but in Sony’s press conference they have officially announced a newly remodeled PlayStation 3.  It has 20 percent less volume and 25 percent less weight compared to the current PS3 Slim.  Here’s the breakdown for pricing and availability per region.

North America

  • 250GB – $269 (Bundle Only) – September 25th
  • 500GB – $299 – October 30th

Europe and PAL Territories

  • Flash Memory 12GB – 229 Euros - October 12th
  • 500GB – 299 Euros – September 28th

Japan

  • 250GB – 24,900 Yen – October 4th
  • 500GB – 29,800 Yen – October 4th

Currently this is all the information to go by, but I’ll update with more once I have it, like what’s included in that 250GB model for the North American market.  I’ve got to admit that as of right now these price points seem a little high for this late in the game.  I’ll reserve full judgement until I find out all the details, but $269 is rather steep for a five year old console, wouldn’t you agree?

Update:

Here’s what the new system looks like.

Let me start by saying that it is very clear Sony is doing whatever it can to cut costs with this new design.  This system doesn’t even include an optical bay like the other systems, instead you take the right portion of the top there that says PS3, and slide it left to open.  We went from a super sexy and sleek system to something…less so.  I’m usually a big fan of Sony designs, but this really looks cheap in my personal opinion.

We also have confirmed on what’s included in that new bundle I mentioned above.  It features UNCHARTED 3: Drake’s Deception: Game of the Year Edition and a voucher for more than $30 worth of bonus digital content for DUST 514.

That’s about all that Sony announced at their press conference outside mentioning that the PS Plus service will be hitting the Vita this November and that existing PS Plus members will automatically receive the goodies on the Vita.  In other words, pay for one subscription and you gain access to the digital goods on both platforms.