Pricing
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Xbox consoles are now much more expensive in the EU and UK
Microsoft has increased the price of Xbox consoles in the European Union and the United Kingdom. The entry-level price for an Xbox now starts at 499.99€/£429.99 in these regions.
Unsurprisingly, It’s PlayStation, Not You, Benefiting From Tariff Refunds
Sony's PlayStation division is benefiting from refunds on US tariffs that previously led to price increases for its hardware. While the company reported a significant increase in operating income attributed to these refunds, there is no indication they will be passed on to consumers who paid the higher prices. Similar situations have occurred with Nintendo, and class-action lawsuits have been filed against both companies regarding these tariff refunds and pricing practices.
AMD is reportedly raising graphics card prices—it was just waiting for Nvidia to do it first
AMD is reportedly planning to increase the supply price of its GPU and VRAM bundles by at least 10%, following a similar move by Nvidia which is said to have raised prices by up to 30%. These increases are attributed to high demand for components driven by AI development and a global memory crisis. While these are partner prices, they are expected to be passed on to consumers starting next month.
Nvidia’s Coming Price Bump Won’t Spare the Mid-Range — Every Card Is on the Table
Nvidia is reportedly planning a significant price increase of up to 30% across its entire GPU lineup, including mid-range cards like the GeForce RTX 5070, due to a 20% rise in DRAM chip prices from supplier Samsung. This follows earlier price hikes on high-end cards and impacts the affordability of building new PCs, with concerns also raised by Valve and Microsoft about deepening RAM shortages.
Expensive phone cases: When and why it's worth paying more
This article discusses the wide price range of phone cases and questions whether higher prices always equate to better quality. It explores the factors that contribute to the cost of phone cases and when it might be justifiable to spend more.
GamesRadar+ readers voted on how much the Steam Frame should cost, and I'm worried Valve will see the results
A poll conducted by GamesRadar+ readers suggests that the upcoming Steam Frame VR headset should cost between $699-$799, with a significant portion believing it should be under $899. The author expresses concern that Valve might price the device higher, potentially hindering VR adoption due to its niche market and current economic conditions.
Trying to find a good deal on Saros has made me angrier about PlayStation killing discs – it's anti-consumer and will price gamers out of our hobby
The author expresses frustration over the increasing cost of games and the perceived anti-consumer trend of PlayStation ending physical disc production. This shift, coupled with the decline of physical game deals and the pre-owned market, is seen as pricing gamers out of the hobby and reducing consumer choice.
Opus 5 lands at the same price as Opus 4.8 — and the price is the point
Anthropic has released Opus 5, its latest AI model, maintaining the same pricing structure as its predecessor at $5 per million input tokens and $25 per million output tokens. While Opus 5 shows modest performance gains over Opus 4.8 and competes closely with models like Fable on coding tasks, it was deliberately trained with less emphasis on cybersecurity exploitation. The company faces increasing competition from open-weight models like Kimi K3 and the rise of model routing systems that optimize costs for users.
EA Sports FC 27 arrives September 25 — and the flagship edition runs €159.99
Electronic Arts has officially announced that EA Sports FC 27 will be released on September 25 for consoles and PC. The flagship Ultimate Plus Edition will cost €159.99 on consoles and €149.99 on PC, with the base game priced at €79.99 for consoles and €69.99 for PC. Pre-orders for all editions are now open, granting early access a week before the official launch.
'Far beyond anything we had predicted': Framework says its supplier's memory prices are 'more than…
Framework is facing significant price increases from its memory module supplier, exceeding predictions and impacting the cost of its modular laptops and desktops. The company can no longer absorb these costs and will be reconfiguring some pre-orders to use lower capacity modules to maintain original pricing for customers.
Evening Tech Bits
Framework has nearly doubled the memory pricing for its 32GB and 64GB Laptop 13 Pro models. This change impacts the PC hardware market, which is seeing a resurgence of older components.
RTX 5080 gaming laptop deals have finally started returning to their previous sale prices, and my top rig is leading the…
Deals on gaming laptops featuring the RTX 5080 graphics card are starting to reappear, with HP offering its Omen Max 16 model at a significantly reduced price of $2,299.99. This high-end laptop, praised for its performance and design, is now more accessible despite ongoing component shortages affecting newer models.
Morning Consolidation
Nintendo has stated that it is not obligated to pass tariff refunds onto its customers for the Nintendo Switch. The company argues that consumers received what they paid for at the time of purchase. The article also briefly mentions seven PlayStation games.
Acer's Predator Atlas 8 pricing puts the nail in the handheld coffin for me: it is now a luxury market
Acer's new Predator Atlas 8 handheld gaming PCs, featuring Intel's latest chips, are priced between £1,000 and £1,500 (approximately $1,300 to $2,000), indicating a shift towards a luxury market for such devices. This high pricing is consistent with other recent releases like the MSI Claw 8 EX AI+ and makes the previously accessible handheld gaming PC market increasingly niche.
Jokes aside, buying the $4,299 Ayaneo Next 2 would mean selling my car
The Ayaneo Next 2 flagship gaming handheld is launching with extremely high prices, ranging from $1,799.99 to $4,299. The article questions the value proposition of these premium handhelds, especially considering the rapid pace of hardware upgrades and the high cost of components. It suggests that such pricing might push the market towards cloud gaming solutions.
Nintendo says Switch fans got "exactly what they bargained and paid for" so they're "not entitled to a rebate" over tariff-inflated console prices
Nintendo is seeking to dismiss a class action lawsuit filed by consumers who claimed they were overcharged due to tariffs. The company argues that customers paid the advertised prices willingly and are not entitled to a rebate, stating they received exactly what they paid for. Nintendo also pointed to other market factors like memory and labor costs influencing price adjustments.
Think gaming handhelds are too expensive? Ayaneo says 'hold my beer,' lists $5,000+ monster
Ayaneo has listed its Next 2 gaming handheld with top-tier models priced over $5,000, featuring an AMD Ryzen AI Max+ 395 APU and up to 128 GB of RAM. Cheaper configurations with 64 GB or 32 GB of RAM start at $3,699 and $2,999 respectively, with shipping expected by the end of the month. These prices are significantly higher than other gaming handhelds on the market.
Leaked Lego Star Trek bridge looks brilliant, but fans are divided on price
A leaked Lego set recreating the original Star Trek Enterprise bridge is reportedly coming September 1st for $200. The set includes numerous minifigures and iconic accessories, but fans are divided on its price point compared to other Lego sets. This follows other recent Lego leaks, including a Donkey Kong Arcade set.
"Honestly, it's still getting worse" - Valve Steam Machine engineer says component prices are still rising, potentially paving the way for a price increase
Valve engineer Yazan Aldehayyat stated that consumer electronics component prices are still rising, potentially leading to price increases for products like the Steam Machine and Steam Deck. This trend is also impacting consoles, with Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo having already raised prices or planning to do so. Separately, Bethesda Game Studios leader Todd Howard thanked fans for their support following recent announcements about Fallout and The Elder Scrolls projects, emphasizing that the company listens to community feedback.
How Nintendo will beat PlayStation and Xbox to win the console wars - Reader's Feature
A reader argues that Nintendo is poised to win the console wars by avoiding the mistakes of PlayStation and Xbox, who are criticized for focusing too much on power and expensive hardware. The author believes Nintendo's focus on gameplay, creative freedom for developers, and more affordable pricing will attract a larger player base and developers, leading to their eventual dominance.
