Flash PS3 (12 GB) to Make Surprise Launch in North America Aug. 18

From DailyTech: Clearly not a fan of the "if it isn't broken, don't fix it" ideology, Sony Corp. (TYO:6758) has taken the PlayStation 3 console through over 400 different permutations with various price points, hard drive sizes, internal hardware functionality, and even console sizes. The latest version -- the PS3 Superslim -- aired last October.

While Sony is gearing up for the launch of the PlayStation 4 during the Q4 holiday season, the Japanese giant has gone back to the drawing board for one last remix of the tried-and-true PS3, introducing a variant with no traditional hard disc drive, but 12 GB of NAND flash storage.

At its launch in 2006 Sony offered 20 and 60 GB variants of the console, which have since been bumped to 250 GB and 500 GB. Sony's rival Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) launched a 4 GB flash variant of its Xbox 360 console in Aug. 2010, which allowed it to hit the attractive price point of $199 USD (Sony's 250 GB PS3 is currently priced at $259). The cheaper variant, in part, helped Microsoft emerge as the top seller on a monthly basis last year.

Nintendo Comp., Ltd.'s (TYO:7974) Wii (512 MB) and Wii U (8 GB standard/32 GB premium) consoles also feature flash memory.

Originally the 12 GB PS3 was intended to be only for the Europe and Hong Kong (PAL) markets. Sony Computer Entertainment's American marketing VP, John Koller told Engadget last year:

"The smaller Flash drive isn't coming to North America, and a lot of that reason is the digital consumer. We really want to make sure, out of the box, that there is an option for them to be able to download that content. That is really critical for us, very very important."

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