Ha ha ha lol @ Shambolic.

Here is the scoop.

United States:

Now: 80GB, with BC through SE

Japan:

Now: 20GB + 60GB, both BC with SE, no announcements what will happen with these two, soon 160GB??

Europe:

Now: 60GB BC with SE, soon 40GB without BC, when 60GB is sold out, 40GB only. No announcements about other versions, besides this one.

Whoa, this is getting pretty confusing. o_O

Are the different regional branches of Sony more independent of each other than those of Microsoft and Nintendo? It's starting to look to me like they're all doing their own thing with far less coordination than what you'd expect.

@ONNA

No the 60gb stays. in europe. The starter pack is the one that gets sold out no more will be sold. 60 GB is permenant in EUROPE.

 Expect a price cut as well in japan when released with Dual shock 3.

Wow , this was fats :o

*sigh* Leo-J, 60GB is going to disappear out of Europe. As soon as the starterpacks have sold out, Sony "no longer" will ship any 60GB consoles. Don't you read any news around here properly?

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What wasn't clear from the release was what exactly was going on with the 60GB model, which is being reduced in price to €499. "...Turns out it is indeed going the way of the US version of the 60GB model...."

From Nick Sharples, Sony's Director of Corporate Communications in Europe:

The 60GB Starter pack will remain on sale until stocks run out (a number of months, depending on territory.) Thereafter, the 40GB model will be the ONLY SKU in the SCEE region.
I feel like we need to have a wake or something. Meanwhile the SCEA folks remind us that no announcements have been made for North America about potential price drops, SKU shuffling or new models.

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60GB disappeared from out of the US, right? So... same thing happens in Europe, that's what its saying, so "no more" 60GB, after the packs have been sold out!

Thanks Onna.

I guess still everyone is unsure, we'll just have to wait for Sony to announce something that will clear it up fpr good.

EDIT: Actually that statement Onna posted does look pretty concrete. 

I'm sorry but do you have garbage in your eyes or something?? Sony has announced this themselves, see Kotaku message in my post up here.

I think the 40GB PS3 will do tremendously in EU and the 160GB one will magnificently fail in Japan; with no good games coming along at that time and Mario Galaxy and SSBB on Wii, I think it's futile.

It reallt depends on how people take the 40gb... I dont know.. if its sucessful sony may take europe again...