Borkachev on 25 January 2008
Calm down, people. This is one analyst's prediction, not an official announcement. We all know how accurate they usually are. The fact that this site didn't put "Rumor" in the headline is just poor reporting.
It's still equally likely that they're just reconfiguring the 80gb bundle, and I'd say the evidence for that is actually stronger (I've heard at least 2 Best Buy employees say that's what they were told by their superiors). This quote only makes it seem more likely:
Another corporate retail source (not Best Buy) has confirmed that something is afoot but can’t comment further until the 80GB models are all gone.
If Sony were discontinuing it permanently, wouldn't they be boasting about it so that people rush out and buy it before it's gone? That's what they've done in the past. Keeping it secret would only piss people off if they're scrapping it and we don't find out until it's too late. On the other hand, keeping a lid on it is what you would do if you were releasing a better bundle later, because you don't want people to stop buying while they wait for it. It's the same thing they do when a price drop is coming.
And I'm not saying this is right, but I for one haven't heard anything about 80gb sales being poor. The last thing I heard comparing the 2 models was the week of the European 40gb launch, when the 40gb reportedly flopped compared to the other model. Obviously that's since changed, but has the 80gb really gone down the sales tubes? Is there any new info?
