MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Horrible Sony Product Roll-out

steelypip · 11-01-2010, 10:40 AM

I think the explanation is pretty simple.

1. The PRS-x50 readers were a hurry-up product refresh because the clarity of the next generation screens on Kindle et al made the touch-screen overlay PRS-x00 models look even worse than they had before.

2. Because things were hurried, there's a lot of existing store stock of PRS-x00 readers (there wasn't time for the usual sell-down) and the new models are trickling into the supply stream as production ramps up. This would normally have happened between spring CES and August or so, but the product cycle has been so foreshortened that the PRS-x00 models are about to become undesirable obsolete stock and there's a large capital investment in them.

I don't know why the retailers are caving on this at all - it's their money to lose. Be that as it may, I got my PRS-950 for the asking at Best Buy last week. But I did have to ask, and the floor models were all PRS-x00 units.

Somebody is going to end up taking a bath on the older units, particularly the PRS-900. Don't be surprised that the retailers are reluctant to show off the new models - they probably don't have much store stock yet, they certainly don't have accessories for the PRS-950 yet, and they're stuck with a lot of shelf stock of models that nobody is going to want once they see the new ones.

11-01-2010, 10:40 AM	#9
steelypip Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: PRS-950SC	I think the explanation is pretty simple. 1. The PRS-x50 readers were a hurry-up product refresh because the clarity of the next generation screens on Kindle et al made the touch-screen overlay PRS-x00 models look even worse than they had before. 2. Because things were hurried, there's a lot of existing store stock of PRS-x00 readers (there wasn't time for the usual sell-down) and the new models are trickling into the supply stream as production ramps up. This would normally have happened between spring CES and August or so, but the product cycle has been so foreshortened that the PRS-x00 models are about to become undesirable obsolete stock and there's a large capital investment in them. I don't know why the retailers are caving on this at all - it's their money to lose. Be that as it may, I got my PRS-950 for the asking at Best Buy last week. But I did have to ask, and the floor models were all PRS-x00 units. Somebody is going to end up taking a bath on the older units, particularly the PRS-900. Don't be surprised that the retailers are reluctant to show off the new models - they probably don't have much store stock yet, they certainly don't have accessories for the PRS-950 yet, and they're stuck with a lot of shelf stock of models that nobody is going to want once they see the new ones.