Good grief. One of these days a console manufacturer will get its forecasting right and make enough machines to satisfy demand when a new product launches. Until that day ever arrives – and we doubt it will – they’ll continue in the belief that a little scarcity makes a new console all the more desirable for hapless chumps like us. Gah – they’re probably right too!

Anyway, such is already the case with the PS3 Slim in the US, where online retailing giant Amazon.com has had to resort to rationing Sony’s slick new model. They’re talking up the “great demand”, warning customers of likely “shortages across the U.S” and have imposed a strict limit of one new console per household. Meanwhile the PS3 Slim has soared straight to the top of Amazon’s bestsellers list for videogames. Not bad for a console that hasn’t actually launched yet.

We’ve heard no such stories of impending shortages on this side of the pond - at least not so far. However, given the hotcake-esque way that the old 80GB PlayStation 3 is currently flying off the shelves, well, let’s just say you might be better off pre-ordering to avoid tears and disappointment on the morning of September 1st. Heck knows what Xmas is going to be like...