The PS5, Xbox Series X, and NVIDIA/AMD graphics cards will seem like they'll remain expensive for a little while.
The Verge took a closer look at the pricing of current-gen consoles and GPUs, and there's no major movement--they're still massively marked up, with no major price drops on the horizon. All of the prices presented here are eBay prices, which are always subject to change.
For example, street pricing for the PS5 for this month remains within the $800-870 range for the digital and disc versions, respectively. Considering that the MSRP for each unit is at $399 and $499, that's an average markup of 1.88x for both units.
As for the Xbox Series X, the street price is slightly lower than the PS5 at roughly $856 for November. That's a 1.72x markup from its $499 MSRP.
Graphics cards from NVIDIA and AMD, on the other hand, remain the most expensive out of all current-gen gaming hardware. The RTX 3090 is still within the almost $3,000 price range from its $1,499 MSRP, while the RX 6900 XT sits at $1,577 from a starting price of $999.
The only bright side here is the street pricing for the less-heralded Xbox Series S. It is the cheapest current-gen gaming system you can find at a street price of $346. It's still marked up from the original $299 MSRP, but that makes it one of this generation's price-to-performance champions.
Sales Remain Through The Roof, Specifically For PS5
Street pricing can be outrageous, especially for Sony's current-gen console, but that doesn't mean people can't really buy it.
As per the original Verge report, over 2,300 PS5 units changed hands within a week last March. And in total, Sony revealed they've already sold 13.4 million units so far since launching the console over a year ago.
Microsoft hasn't revealed official sales figures for the Xbox Series X and Series S, unlike Sony. But it is safe to say that their sales for the month of March paled in comparison to the PS5, with a total of 717 consoles being shipped.
Lastly, graphics card sales for NVIDIA and AMD tell roughly the same story. The 3060 Ti was Team Green's best-seller, followed by the 3070 and the base 3060. Team Red's cards, on the other hand, didn't sell much.
AMD's best-seller was the RX 6600 XT, whose sales numbers paled compared to its market and performance rival, the 3060 Ti.
Can We Expect Big Price Drops Soon?
As of this writing, there are only a few days left until Black Friday. You'll probably only find the best prices by then since no other price drops are coming soon.
Xbox Series X and Series S Black Friday deals are coming, according to TechRadar. So if you want to snag Microsoft's current-gen system, you'll have to watch out for restocks at major retailers such as GameStop, BestBuy, Amazon, and even Microsoft themselves.
As for the PS5, you can also expect some Black Friday (and perhaps even Cyber Monday) deals for the Sony console at major retailers, as per GamesRadar. But once again, you'll have to be quick as new stocks likely still won't last long.
Lastly, for graphics cards: bad news all around for PC gamers as rising crypto prices are driving even more demand for high-end (and sometimes even entry-level) GPUs, according to Tom's Hardware.
In other words, there are barely any stocks at MSRP, and street pricing remains too ridiculous for you to buy in.
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by RJ Pierce
