Sony may have already confirmed that the next-gen PS4 console is on course for a 2013 Holiday release date in the US, but new reports this week are suggesting that the company are running into a few shipment problems. Problems that may ultimately result in Sony struggling to meet inevitable high demand once the launch date is finally upon us.
It’s fair to say that a lot of gamers have already decided to pick up Sony’s PS4 console on day one, despite not even seeing the hardware yet that powers everything. This reveal is likely to come at E3 2013 in June, but in the meantime Sony may have a frantic race on their hands to accelerate PS4 manufacturing ahead of any problems.
We usually hear from Taiwanese publication Digitimes in relation to the latest smartphone production news, but this time they have published a new article on the PS4. They have revealed that Sony apparently has a PS4 allotment target of 12-16 million units, to reach gamers by the end of the year.
The source has said that Sony are having troubles trying to achieve this aim, as one figure within the PS4 supply chain claims that Sony has yet to give them shipping information on the PS4, despite the fact that suppliers are reportedly due to receive PS4 hardware in June, with mass shipment then going ahead in August.
The main question with all of this in mind, is whether Sony’s alleged shipment problems will have an effect on Sony’s intended 2013 Holiday release. Let’s not forget that Sony has also been completely silent on whether their PS4 system will be releasing in Europe in 2013, or if they’ll make consumers wait until 2014 instead – following a similar pattern with the PS3 EU launch.
Many critics have said that Sony can’t afford to let Microsoft have another head start, so we wonder if the EU silence and these shipping problems are related to one another. It also goes without saying that Sony will need to have a very smooth PS4 launch if they really want to send out positive shockwaves – a delay past a 2013 Holiday launch could be deemed as a disaster.
Demand for the PS4 is going to be sky-high, so should Sony have no excuses to make sure they meet this demand as necessary? Give us your thoughts on these rumored shipment problems.
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