Sony Europe's David Reeves has revealed that the 80GB PS3, as previously announced for the US market, is on its way to the UK this August. Good Man!

Specifics, then - the new model launches on August 27th for the entirely reasonable price of £299, or 399 Euros. Bargain hunters will be pleased to know that promo bundles at a range of prices will be available from September until the end of Xmas too. Which is nice...

And what of the current 40GB model? Quite simply its being phased out and, alas, it doesn't look like Sony will be knocking 'em out cheap before the 80GB model arrives either. As Reeves himself puts it:

"Please do not ask me if we're going to go down in price for the 40GB because I will give you the answer, the answer is no."

So there it is. The 80GB model is not quite as cheap as the Xbox 360 Elite, nor is it as capacious in the hard disk department and the PS3 doesn't have as large a catalogue of killer software - although they're definitely working on that. On the positive side the sound of the PS3's cooling fans at full throttle won't assualt your eardrums, wireless connectivity is already built in and Blu-ray is just the coolest. It's a tough choice for new consumers, but if you do decide to side with Sony make sure you don't buy until the new machine or, better, the bundle packs launch. Unless you spot a sly retailer trying to clear his 40GB stock at el-cheapo prices, that is...