Sony sez Nintendo Wii is an "impulse buy"

Here's one that's sure get at least half (or so) of you fired up. In speaking with the New York Times, Sony Computer Entertainment of America spokesperson Dave Karraker was boasting about how "100,000" PlayStation 3 units were being shipped stateside each week, and were continuing to "sell out" nationwide. Aside from the fact that a large majority of the country can find, secure, and purchase a PS3 now without worry over being shot up or forced to pay ridiculous prices, Mr. Karraker proceeded to dig himself a little deeper by insinuating that Sony's latest console is "much more powerful and should therefore be regarded as being in a different category." As if sparks weren't already about to fly, he then stated that Nintendo's Wii "could be considered an impulse buy more than anything else," simultaneously slamming any citizen who doesn't consider $250 a drop in the bucket and indirectly proclaiming that millions upon millions of Americans are still unable to resist their "impulses" by snapping up Wii units as quick as they arrive. Of course, he attributed the vast shortage of Wii consoles to Nintendo's stingy shipments, but the Big N's vice president of marketing, Perrin Kaplan, simply deemed that "absolutely inaccurate." So, inquiring minds are dying to know: was your Wii purchase well-planned, or are you still coping with buyer's remorse?

[riggs @ Feb 1st 2007 10:12PM]

its common to use "sez" even in newspapers, maybe you just dont read much.

[Deluxe @ Feb 1st 2007 8:48PM]

Haha, those wacky Sony guys. Now there's no need to get too upset with them - Engadget would only have three or four posts a week if it weren't for Sony!

[andrepg @ Feb 1st 2007 8:48PM]

buyers remorse. I feel like a pig with a shaking twitching disease.

[Tom-S @ Feb 1st 2007 8:48PM]

Well, my gf and I have been BIG Nintendo fans...we own all the American consoles, even some game and watch keys from my relatives...so, NO, it was NOT an impulse buy when we bought the Wii.

It was more like the next step in my "purchasing evolution" and we were more than satisfied to get it.

[jonnyK @ Feb 1st 2007 8:53PM]

Ditto, But I feel like some one with a nervous disorder when I play. It takes fans to buy something this silly since the glove. Never agian.

[Chris @ Feb 1st 2007 8:53PM]

They should be more concerned about how they're going to reinvigorate sales. I've been searching for months to find a Nintendo Wii to no avail, but almost all stores I've looked at have had multiple PS3s in stock. Although the Playstation 3 fever started off strong ("What!? Someone got shot!?"), it's over now. Wii fever (Wiiver?) is still crazy months after launch, and Sony's just sore losers.

[Mike T. @ Feb 1st 2007 10:16PM]

Dude, we have wii's in plentiful supply where I live and I'd be glad to help a brother out. Let me know if you're interested!

[jonnyK @ Feb 1st 2007 8:54PM]

ditto, But I feel Like I have a nervous disorder when i play.

[Andy @ Feb 1st 2007 8:56PM]

Yeah, because I spent 12 hours in line and 6 months of waiting to make an 'impulse' buy. Sony's remarks remind me of what I hear in CS:S servers.
Sony 'I pwn you wii noobs. people shoot to play me'
Wii. 'whatever'
After wii launch day
Sony' Noob camper'
Wii.'....'
Sony' Awp whore'
Wii'....'

[mikerm19 @ Feb 1st 2007 8:57PM]

I know I have $250 just laying around the house... I don't know about everyone else... oh wait, no, I can barely find a quarter.

[Matt @ Feb 1st 2007 9:08PM]

sell out eh?



my local best buy cant get rid of them.

[Matt @ Feb 1st 2007 9:14PM]

I bought a Wii, played with it for a few hours with my girlfriend, thought it was cool. By the following evening the 'coolness' of the Piimote had worn off, and Wii sports had gotten boring. Zelda was a snore. Anyway, I sold my Wii, games, and two additional controllers to my nephew for $200 and bought a 360. The games on the 360 are a little bit better, and while the controller isn't as "innovative", I still think it works better for 90% of all the games out there. Sure waving your arms around and making the sword move on screen is cool, but it still isn't like actually having a sword in your hands, just instead of pushing a button you're moving your arm or flicking your wrist.

[David @ Feb 1st 2007 9:22PM]

I am definitely having remorse having bought the Wii. If it weren't for being able to play Madden as Vince Young I would sell it. It was definitely an impulse buy for me and although once more games come I'm sure I will enjoy it more, at this time it isn't worth $250.

[Yoweigh @ Feb 1st 2007 9:23PM]

I camped out 19.5 hours to be closest to the sign at Target that said, "The Wii launches tomorrow! The line stars here."

[Matthew Tole @ Feb 1st 2007 10:21PM]

Not an impulse buy. Planned on buying one for a while. I couldn't see paying $500+ for the PS3. The xbox360 has decent games but the Wiimote definetly adds more to the gaming experience. Hopefully the game developers will take advantage of it..

[Yoweigh @ Feb 1st 2007 9:24PM]

BTW I just got Elebits and that game rocks.

[Joshua @ Feb 1st 2007 9:24PM]

PS3 is an impulse buy too.. I'm always walkin around the mall and I see something and I am like "Oh that looks cool, I'll drop over half a grand on that."

[Russell @ Feb 1st 2007 10:21PM]

I did that with my PS3. I was just at a BBY and they were there so I picked one up. Now it's just collecting dust while I play my Wii60.

[Ariel @ Feb 1st 2007 9:25PM]

I was in the mall early in the morning on the day the PS3 launched. There were over 1000 people outside every entrance to rush to the Sony Style in a mad sprint in hopes of getting a PS3. I was number 20 in line by the sony style store when I found out they only had 16 consoles. I left the line b/c I knew there was no hope. I planned on buying the PS3 just to resell it on ebay b/c people were paying upwards of $2,000 for it. I would've been happy even selling it for $1500. I saw groups of latecomers running towards the mob scene, and I yelled out, "Is anybody actually planning on keeping this!?" EVERYONE said no. I think the majority of the PS3 craze was more for people to find a way to double up on money than anything else. The fever stopped once those who really wanteed the PS3 for keeps paid over MSRP.

I bought a Wii, and through my connections I was lucky enough not to have to wait in line, and I got it the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Anyone who comes over to my house and plays it for thee first time is instantly hooked on how much fun it is. I was hooked all the way back when the wiimote video teasers were out where you saw the gameplay. Since I was a kid I always thought it'd be cool when video games would come out where you can play baseball by swinging your controller like a bat. Nintendo made a long time wish come true and I can assure you there's not Buyer's Remorse here.

[ironfist @ Feb 1st 2007 9:27PM]

I was also disappointed with the sword mechanics in Zelda, and Bad Steel for that matter. Yes, Wii Sports gets boring if you only play single player. Multiplayer is where it's at for Wii Sports.

It's funny that every time I go to a big box store I see at least 1 PS3, but oddly enough there are no Wiis. I saw 30+ PS3s last Saturday at a local Fry's but there were no Wiis! Perhaps the Sony mouthpiece meant that PS3s were flying onto the shelves.

[Matt @ Feb 8th 2007 12:09PM]

Um, that's only b/c stores know that wii's suck, and will only carry about 2 at a time. Obviously, 2 wii's will sell faster than 30 PS3's (even though they shouldn't)

[anonymous @ Feb 1st 2007 9:49PM]

I don't think ignorant is the word, more like stupid, but yeah it's irritating to me too.

I nearly LOL'd reading what that Sony spokesman said. It was also nearly infuriating to read that 300 bucks is just something all us Americans can just throw around without thinking about it.

[Cowboy Bob @ Feb 1st 2007 9:54PM]

Ok, what Sony doesn't realize is that if they just keep calling different console's names, it really wont affect their sales. The reason that the PS3 won't do as good as the 360 and Wii is because the price tag on the PS3 is too high, and the only people that will buy it are people that just go directly for tech specs. While it is true that the technology behind a game console can make or break sales, you also need a good selection of GAMES!!! Sony does not realize this which is why the PS3's sales will slow down like they think the Wii will and why the PSP hasnt been able to beat the DS yet.

If you look at the PS3 and Wii's launches, which can we say went more smooth? The Wii did indeed sell out, but people didn't resort to violence to try and get one?

And look at the amount of lauch titles for each system?

The Wii had 27 launch titles and the PS3 only had 15, with most of them having many glitches.

Plus, you can only get the total PS3 experience if you have a TV that can display 1080p and a 5.1 channel surround sound system. With the Wii, you only need a 480p television, and a 5.1 channel surround sound system.

So what i'm trying to say is, Sony, make good games, stop making fun of other consoles just because you know yours sucks, and most importantly, STOP GETTING TOTAL IDIOTS TO TALK TO THE PRESS FOR YOU!

P.S. also, please stop saying "OMG! THE 360 IS THE L33TEST CONSOLE EVER YOU N00B!"

When ever you start using internet-talk during a product comparison, you immediately lose any chance of people taking you seriously in life.

This has been a Cowboy Bob Report.

[Dan @ Feb 1st 2007 9:57PM]

Local Best Buy has 30 PS3's sitting on the shelf, and the employee working the department told me they had at least 20 more sitting in the warehouse, with no where to go because they had only sold a couple in the last week.

Not surprising, those impulse items such as Wii's and DS Lites were nowhere to be seen.

[Michael @ Feb 1st 2007 10:00PM]

Australia is also facing a Wii shortage. I've been trying to impulsively buy a Wii for weeks now!

[TheCanadianGeek @ Feb 1st 2007 10:02PM]

I guess they aren't worried about their sales in Canada. I mean if the retailers are raising the price $40 over MSRP, they must be selling so fast they can't keep them in stock. Oh wait...never mind.

[Ehud @ Feb 1st 2007 10:07PM]

That's brilliant business in the making. It's not enough that Sony's games division continues to lose hundreds of millions of dollars a year,(what was it, 500 million last QUARTER?) but instead of scheming up ways to alleviate this issue and sell the potential skeptical buyers, they lash out against a system that's clearly outselling theirs pretty much everywhere you go. And to top it off, does so by sounding exceptionally pretentious ($250 an impulse buy? Maybe if you're clearing $80k a year...) and cocky. Love it or hate it, Nintendo's gamble paid off, and Sony needs to concentrate on saving Blu-Ray, and by extension the PS3 rather than act like spoiled children.

[John Doe @ Feb 1st 2007 10:08PM]

Ummm as if being an impulse buy is a bad thing... *rolls eyes* Seriously Sony only wishes their console could be purchased on impulse without needing to sign away the deed to your fracking house to get one.

[John Doe @ Feb 1st 2007 10:08PM]

PS- I never said what type of house....an ice house still counts. :-P

[??? @ Feb 1st 2007 10:09PM]

I've been waiting since E3 2005 when they unveiled the thing, so those impulses have been controlled for a very very long time...

[chenry @ Feb 1st 2007 10:09PM]

Yeah, 'cos I sat outside in the cold in the middle of the night on an impulse. I'm whacky!

[FatTony @ Feb 1st 2007 10:11PM]

How can the Wii be an impulse buy when it takes days of planning, dutifully watching the Best Buy shipments, and then racing to the store when the truck gets there to get your hands on one? Whereas a PS3 can supposedly be had just by walking into your local brick and mortar establishment with your most recent paycheck in hand, ready to sign it over to EB Games?

[applesucksLeo @ Feb 1st 2007 10:14PM]

They also said the earth is flat :)

[Tom @ Feb 1st 2007 10:18PM]

"Zelda was a snore." ~ Matt

Yeah, if you don't like Zelda then you really don't have any business buying a Wii. No offense or anything, but that game alone sold me on the Wii. Your nephew is lucky: got a Wii and Zelda for $100 off the price... plus some other games and additional controllers?! Why would you take a loss like that? That's it! I don't think I believe your story and you're probably just a lying Sony fanboy. peace!

[Ryan @ Feb 1st 2007 10:20PM]

Wow... Sony, you dissappoint me. I totally agree with Andy on this one. I just really really hope Sony v. Nintendo doesn't happen like Mac v. M$ is going on right now. Sooo childish.
It also depends on your definition of 'impulse buy'. I mean.. technically.. we all buy something becuase we have an impulse to buy it. I think what he meant was a SHORT-TERM impulse buy... which would therefore still be totally and completely wrong. (I know that was redundant but it was for emphasis.. lol.)
I guess it didn't occur to Sony that people might actually be genuinely INTERESTED in the Wii. Take your thinking, Sony, and apply it to your own product. Then you'd see how dumb you made yourself look.




AWP WHORE! lol. :P

[Pat @ Feb 1st 2007 10:20PM]

Impulse buy. Total. Was at Costco, saw it on the shelf, said "why not". Sorry, I own both and the WII for me was a throw-away impusle buy.

[Sam @ Feb 1st 2007 10:24PM]

I spent a few weeks trying to get a Wii for my little brother (13 years old) in time for Christmas. Before I started looking myself, my dad spent a few weeks stopping in at a local store, every day after work, but got nothing but lies and empty promises from sales associates.

After a while, my friend and I decided to take it upon ourselves to look for a Wii for each of our respective brothers. We stopped at close to 20 different electronics stores between Orlando and Tampa, Florida looking for a Wii. We found everything from a supply of about 20 wiimotes, to a floor full of PS3s (this was a couple weeks before Christmas when they were actually hard to find), but no Wii.

I waited another week and finally found out that most big name stores got their Wiis in stock on Sunday mornings. So my friend and I, now home from college, decided to get up early and wait in line at the local electronic store. We were about 30th in line for an un-announced number of Wiis and were forced to stick it out just in case they had enough. Well, to make a long story short, we eventually got to the door to find out that we were only a few spots behind the last Wii ticket. Despite being offered PS3 tickets several times (they had a lot of extras), we hurried home to grab a laptop and launch a county-wide (county, no "r") expedition to get Wiis for each of our brothers.

Sadly enough, our multi-store, multi-hour trip yielded nothing but a copy of Twilight Princess and Call of Duty. We had one last shot, and it was a long one, but it was almost a guarantee that we would get our Wiis in time for Christmas.

My friend's father works as a pilot and as a reslut, get free airfare. If you're not sure where this is going, think about where a store would get lots of Wiis every day.... Nintendo World Store anyone? So yes, he, his dad, and his little brother flew to the Nintendo World Store in NYC and bought 2 Wiis (tickets there go by person not by family), one for his family and one for mine. All this happened just days before Christmas and was actually one of the coolest trips, despite the fact that I didn't get to go to NYC.

That's a hell of an adventure for an impulse buy...

[mattstl77 @ Feb 1st 2007 10:31PM]

Not a bad article from Engadget... at least they didn't somehow turn it into a bash towards Microsoft.

[jennyfromthepark @ Feb 1st 2007 10:31PM]

After my apartment was robbed and my 360 was stolen, me and a friend decided to split the Wii. It definitely WAS an impulse buy. We didn't quite have enough to get the 360 back, so we headed straight to Craigslist and found tons of Wii's for cheap. This was 2 weeks after going on sale, and everyone selling them was eager to trade for a different system or games. I didn't quite understand why until we actually started playing. We were all excited setting it up and trying it out, but it became very stale very fast. To keep things interesting we kept buying all the new games, although every single one became a big disappointing bore. I'm really not picky either, but I actually started to hate the motion part. Overall it's very inaccurate, no game implements it well, and being stuck within a 6 foot radius of the screen became somewhat annoying among other things. We even tried it out with groups of people, during parties and whatnot (lame, right?), and no one really cared to play again after a couple turns. I think we eventually got tired of convincing ourselves it was actually worth it. Seriously, Mii's are pointless, the online blows, and there was honestly never a time we didn't feel weird forcing ourselves to keep playing. Looking back, I can't help but feel robbed again. Most definitely gimmicky for me, and most definitely an impulse buy. $100 more and I could've had something much more appealing.

[Warren @ Feb 1st 2007 10:37PM]

It was a planne/impulse buy for me. I kept saying yeah your going to get it but much later in the year. Then I heard the rumor last saturday that walmart would have it in stock sunday. Woke up at 10am, walked the dog, drove the 1.5 miles to walmart, and picked up #9 wii out of about 12 they had total. Even get me another wii mote!

As for sony. I took a chance with them over a decade ago with the playstation. I was sick of nintendo's BS delays on the n64. I am no fanboy and I have been playing games way to long to not see the dead horse the PS3 was before it arrived. Sony can make fun of the wii and 360 all they want but the fact is that with little effort nintendo toppled sony to allow microsoft be to be number one follow by nintendo and sony is 3rd place. The spirit of death that is SEGA hovers over sony now. Muhwaawah

Taskman

Taskman

[John Robinson @ Feb 1st 2007 10:43PM]

Nice... first of all Sony endears themselves to us all by getting Lik Sang shuttered. Now they come along bashing a console that for less than 1/2 the price of their PS3, provides the most innovative gaming experience in years. I am waiting now to see if Sony dismisses the iPod as a fad and the internet as a simple distraction. Sadly, the words "Sony" & "Style" should no longer be used together as they seem to have lost theirs. Perhaps "sour" & "grapes" could be integrated into their next campaign

[Alexander Wunderlich @ Feb 2nd 2007 12:33PM]

Wow.

Perfect.

Just perfect.

[Ricardo @ Feb 1st 2007 10:45PM]

YEA right, Sony wishes alot more people had the impulse to buy their machine.

That guy is just speaking out of his [condescending] ass instead of keeping it shut when he's not winning the race, as nintendo did with the gamecube and even the 64.

Talk about sore loser.

[John @ Feb 1st 2007 10:47PM]

of course it's an impulse buy...you better be impulsive and buy it if you ever find one in a store... and then be happy you can spend the other $400 you saved not buying a PS3 on games.

[Garth Tuck @ Feb 1st 2007 11:00PM]

I took my unopened (unsold on ebay) POS3 oops PS3 back to Wal-Mart and aggressively/thoughtfully sought after a better less expensive "perkier" system the Wii. As a result of my success my family has had hours of fun. I have lost 7 pounds. My wife has tennis elbow and my kids wont stop begging me to play. I even got them to do their chores for the privilege. Now, if I could just find a few more Wii-motes...my work here would be done.

[Siva @ Feb 1st 2007 11:03PM]

As a non-gamer, PS3 has more appeal for me - Cheapest Bluray Player. I bought a 20GB PS3 from Amazon for $499 just for that. I don't plan on buying any games for it.

[M @ Feb 1st 2007 11:12PM]

Barking down on the Big N isn't gonna help you get a wii, Sonny.

[hexodeci @ Feb 1st 2007 11:13PM]

ps3 = serious gamers
wii = anyone who wants to have fun

pretty much both 360 and ps3 owners are gonna get a wii...

[Philip S @ Feb 1st 2007 11:16PM]

Who cares if it is an impulse buy. It's still a lost sale for Sony.

[klew @ Feb 1st 2007 11:19PM]

Obligatory geek joke: impulse speed required to buy PS3, warp speed needed to get to the store to buy a wii before they sell out