Pachter Factor: PS4 Neo and VR, E3, and IPhones

Michael Pachter is a video game analyst who does a weekly round up on questions posed to him through SIFTID Games. Here is a recap on Episode 26.

Sony has an exciting year ahead with the launch of its new console ps4 Neo as well as its Virtual Reality Apparatus playstation VR.

hasn't set a solid date for when both of these products are to be launched. Pachter is almost certain that both the Neo and VR headset will be launched at the same time in some sort of a bundle deal. The price will reflect a $50 discount as the bundle will give you the VR headset for $50 cheaper. But Sony runs the risk of "confusing consumers" Pachter noted. If the ps4 is discontinued then the ps4 Neo will sell tremendously well. But Sony has yet to divulge what it plans to do with the playstation franchise. In Pachter's opinion if the ps4 system is kept for another year or two there will most likely be a $100 price differential between both the systems.

E3 will realistically never be discontinued. It draws media coverage from all major news companies as well as speciality media outlets. The conference has the most media coverage than any other conference. In addition to the great coverage the cost of advertisement is minuscule when compared to similar paid coverage on news outlets. The cost of a full length press conference for most companies is somewhere in the range of $50,000 and $100,000 at E3. Where a minute of advertisement on ABC News can cost up to $100,000 or more Pachter said. Couple that with the multiple news outlets companies have to pay to get their products out to wider consumer base the cost can reach up to $10 million.

Pachter noted it is a much more cost effective option to outright buy an iPhone and hold onto it for three to four years rather than upgrading every one or two years. The iPhone for life plan gives the user a new phone every year but cost is about $32 per month totaling at $384 per year. In addition, you have to trade in your phone that is worth a couple hundred dollars to get the latest iPhone. The cost comes out to around $500 Pachter said. To buy the phone costs $850 but with phone not changing drastically in hardware it is worth it to pay the one time larger fee to get the iPhone and update to new software as it comes out. It is very unrealistic to pay such high prices every year for a phone that doesn't change that dramatically Pachter stated. A new console generally comes out every four to five years. But companies upgrade the console as the parts become cheaper to produce. The XBOX 360 started out with a 60 gigabyte hard drive but by the last year of its production it was boasting a 200 gigabyte hard drive. As CPU and GPU units become cheaper companies are able to upgrade their consoles to keep them up to date and attractive for consumers.