But no data points suggest that PS4 Pro will perform better in sales than any of the existing consoles to date.
These consoles are actually now a very good exercise in microeconomics, at least from an observation point.
XBO, PS4, and 4Pro are all substitute goods, or rather a bundle of goods, and this becomes an exercise in price and demand, as well as consumer preference. We should all be rubbing our hands together to see the outcome of November.
Just a quick copy and paste from Wikipedia:
Using the above, A, B and C, would be the consoles (bundles of commodities), with a specific price point to encapsulate their commodities.
X, Y and Z, are commodities (features of the consoles) in which for our needs
A) MP game library
B) Exclusive library
C) Game Performance
D) Other features on the console, ie. Controller, UHD Player, Online Services, OS, built in PSU, quietness, reliability, look of the console, etc
In the past, for the last 3 years, PS4 has been preferred good over XBO at most price points in general.
Yet we are seeing somewhat of a reverse role happening in the last 3 months here, as even as Sony attempted to clear old stock for PS4 slim, it was unable to outsell XBO S. And PS4 to PS4 S is not very different at all. (Quieter, draws less power, slightly smaller)
And the price point is the same.
If XBO S continues to win October, Sony may have accidentally positioned the XBO in ways they did not expect, or rather their market data was wrong about graphical power being the ultimate driver for purchasing behaviour.
I recognize that November is a critical month in which the expectations are for 4Pro to sell the most.
But data points suggest caution in preferring this perspective.
a) 4Pro will not generate more pre-order sales than PS4 will, for the reasons indicated above (and it's not coming off a 8 year wait), and the price point, and it is a marginal incremental improvement over the existing base PS4 - only providing higher fidelity graphics, pre-order period is less, etc.
b) Both XBO and PS4 sold 1 million in pre order sales
c) Both XBO and PS4 have sold in the 1 million mark for Black Friday sales
d) There are few methods to reduce the price of 4Pro during black friday sales in 2016, most of which we expect will not be significant.
So you can see the bind Sony is in if XBO S wins October.
- Winning October (4 months in a row) Sales would indicate that XBO S is now the preferred good over PS4. Majority of consumers have finally identified value in the XBO.
- You can't discount 4Pro because it's launching in the month of November and because it's supposed to be the premium model.
- 4Pro is the superior good over PS4. As in, Price sensitivity is the only reason you would ever buy a PS4 over 4Pro. It contains the same commodities as PS4 does as well as better features.
- XBO S can lower its price/bundle to achieve a lofty amount of sales
- It is expected for MS and Sony to discount their base units for BF, in which I would anticipate XBO to sell more than PS4 unless Sony is able to cut a price point lower than MS
- MS has a large bank and can afford to discount as much as possible to gain user base, in threat of a new competitor (4Pro)
Anyway, these are my observations. Not saying they will come true, but I think the reality will play out somewhere along the lines of this.