Playstation and Wii mania

I’ve been watching the mania that has accompanied the release of the Playstation 3 and the Wii. To that I say, “Bah, humbug.”

First of all, these are just gaming systems, they aren’t cures for cancer or anything. They are certainly not worth a 3 day wait in line outside the store. Heck, if I was buying one and had to wait more than 15 minutes in the checkout line I’d probably just set it down and walk out.

The Playstation 3 is massively overpriced. I saw people paying $1200 to $1500 for them on eBay. You can get a pretty good computer gaming system for that much cash and it’ll do more than play games. I think the $500 price point they set for their base model is also outrageous. The $250 for the Wii is better, but still a bit pricey. The Wii seems to be much more rare too with eBay prices still hovering near $400. The Playstation 3 is selling for retail and I’ve seen reports that they are actually sitting on store shelves unsold.

Why anyone would pay more than retail for these is beyond me. Exercising a little patience would save you a lot of money and wouldn’t hurt you one bit. These systems were release about a month ago and within 2 or 3 months of release I’m sure both will be in ample supply at the retail stores and possibly used on eBay. Paying ridiculous prices for them is just stupid. And waiting a few months might even change your mind completely about the system and you might take up fly fishing or amateur radio instead.

Let me know what you think and I’ll post more thoughts if they come to me.