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PlayStation Vita release leaked

Blockbuster roster reveals all

Sony's next handheld gaming platform, the PlayStation Vita, could be on shelves as early as October, after release dates were spotted on a Blockbuster flier.

As it stands, Sony has officially confirmed the Vita for sometime vaguely in late 2011 through a phased global release. We kind of expected the first Vitas to appear in November, kicking off with homeland Japan and working west soon after in time for Christmas.

It seems Sony is pushing to scare the competition in time for Halloween, though. An IGN reader snapped up this shot of a Blockbuster poster which shows the Vita's release date as 28 October.

Blockbuster PS Vita release date exposed

Could Vita's expected arrival be a contributing factor to Nintendo suddenly cutting 3DS prices by a third?

PlayStation Vita is set to sell for £230 for the Wi-Fi only version and £280 for the full 3G model. ®

3DS

While I concur that Sony are price-gouging Europe, as usual, might I remind you that the 3DS, a console that apparently cost £60 to build, came out at £220 in the UK, £10 less than a wi-fi Vita. And the Vita has a tiny bit more beef/kit, wouldn't you say?

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Forget the ram

If those prices are accurate, they can go take a running jump off a short pier!

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Firmware restrictions

Both the PSP and PS3 imposed restrictions through firmware which were gradually loosened as updates appeared through console's lifecycle. The PSP unlocked higher clock speeds. The PS3 freed up system memory. I expect as the firmware develops and is optimized and new features are added, firmware devs have a fairer idea how much memory they need and can return some to games.

It's also not uncommon for specs to change between announcement and release. The PS3 supposedly had two HDMI outs to begin with and then it became one. Maybe at the time 1080p wasn't viable over a single cable but then with 1.3 it was so the spec changed. Maybe if they're cutting memory it's with the realisation that they don't need as much as they originally thought.

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Maybe they'll just use firmware to block 256MB of the RAM off

Stranger things have happened...

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Ah *Vita*....

.....without an "s".

You had me worried for a moment there.......

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