Like its bitter rival Microsoft, Sony Computer Entertainment makes known its intentions to introduce another console SKU into the market, whilst retiring another.  At its E3 press conference, SCEA confirms a new 80GB PlayStation 3 "Core Pack" scheduled for launch this September.  Priced at $399 USD, it's actually $100 USD cheaper than the current 80GB models which now come bundled with Metal Gear Solid 4.

SCEA's senior marketing VP Peter Dille notes that the upcoming 80GB PS3 will replace the currently available 40GB model, introduced last October.  With nearly all the previous PS3 configurations being phased out, SCE will at some point make the upcoming 80GB model its sole PS3 console for North America.  However, no price cut appears to be on the horizon for the 40GB PS3.

Outside of the larger built-in hard drive storage, the 80GB PS3 is pretty much the same console as the outgoing 40GB edition.  Unfortunately, that it will continue to lack backwards compatibility with PS2 games thanks to its lack of the PS2-based "Graphics Synthesizer" GPU, in addition to skimping out on the built-in card reader seen in the earlier PS3 models.