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Verizon announces early store openings for DROID launch
We'd already heard through the grapevine that select Verizon Wireless stores would be cracking their doors open early to deal with the presumed flood of consumers "Humans" eager to snap up the first-ever Android 2.0 device, and now the carrier has come right out with the official details. We're told that "many" of its over 2,000 retail locations will open at either 7AM or 8AM local time to field orders for the DROID, though VZW mall stores will all open at their regular time. You should check with your local store to see exactly when they'll open, and while we can't guarantee it, we'd guess that having an Android-related tattoo on your person is a good way to get VIP treatment once you arrive on scene. Or, you know, you could just get your Best Buy pre-order in now and save $100 up front by dodging the mail-in rebate.
Analyst: Sony will miss PS3 launch targets
Evidence is beginning to mount that Sony will not be able to meet its target of 400,000 systems for the U.S. PS3 launch this Friday. First, Electronic Arts CFO Loren Jensen shared his belief that Sony's numbers were exaggerated. Then Gamestop announced they would not be able to fill all their PS3 pre-orders, at least not at launch. Now an analyst at Lazard Capital Market has added his voice to the fray, saying he expects only 150,000 - 200,000 PS3 systems to be available on launch day.While Sony hasn't officially announced any product flow problems (and hasn't yet responded to a request for comment from Joystiq), this public speculation from three respected sources, along with anecdotal evidence from numerous retail employees who have contacted Joystiq, is starting to make us wonder. So while nothing is confirmed yet, don't be surprised if your launch day hunt for a PS3, pre-order or no, is a little harder than you expected.
Toys "R" Us PS3/Wii pre-orders Sunday
Those unlucky souls who missed out on getting their next-gen system pre-orders at Gamestop will have another chance to throw money at a large, multinational corporation this weekend. Toys "R" Us will be taking pre-orders for the PS3 and Wii for $50 down starting on Sunday, Oct. 29.Stores contacted by Joystiq said they didn't know exactly how many pre-orders they would be taking, but a poster on the Gaming-Age forums estimates 12 to 25 Wiis and five to 14 PS3s per store (take these estimates with an unconfirmed grain of salt). The offer will be well-publicized in the Toys "R" Us "big book" (see pp. 64, 66) due in this weekend's newspapers, so be sure to get to the store early if you want to beat out little Billy's kindly old grandmother and others like her.
