This is a rather unique position we are in. The E3 is nearing, and yet we've got just about the biggest surge we've had the past couple of months. Okay, that might well be an exaggeration, but still. You gotta agree with me when I say it was a busy past week, yes? Rumors, confirmation of rumors, and surprising - yet at the same time not-so-surprising - NPD results for this month all proved to be the cherry on top for this game-filled, fun-filled week. Hmmm.. imagine all those cherries on top.... Dig in, then.

Lots of big news for this week's recap, so you'd better stay comfy. There's a hell lot of games coming to the Wii and DS in 2009, and we have news on the biggest that the two platforms are gonna get - whether they're the Pokemon remakes, Monster Hunter 3, and a bunch of retro WiiWare games, we've got ya covered. With a lot of games coming, it probably explains why the DS sold a million last April, so the new DS owners will have a lot to play and choose from. Quit wasting your time reading this babble, 'cause you're gonna read them again in the full article. Or not.

Analyst firm iSuppli is predicting that come 2013, handheld shipments would have ballooned to 63.5 million. It is also their belief that no new handheld technology will be released by either Sony or Nintendo until 2011 at the earliest.

If you were one of those who recently got their hands on Apple's new iPhone model, you might be surprised to find out that its actual manufacturing costs are a lot lower than you might think. Researching firm iSuppli released a comprehensive teardown analysis of the components and production costs for the iPhone 3G, summing up the total to a mere US$ 174.33. Find out more in our full article after the jump.

Sony's PlayStation 3 may pick up its pace this year instead of ambling along like it did for the most part of 2007. According to research firm iSuppli the PS3, which they considered as a "great bargain", may enjoy a surge of increased installed base by the end of this year. Do hit the full article for iSupply's predicted 2008 sales numbers for the three main consoles: PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii.

As many previous articles have reported, we all know by now that the Wii has achieved a level of success  in console gaming arena over the other leading console platforms, the Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360. Another group of analysts, iSuppli, agrees and provides proof that Nintendo's success managed to spread into the software gaming market as well.

iSuppli reported that Nintendo managed to gain US$ 1.2 billion in worldwide revenue for the Wii and DS in this year's third quarter. On the other hand, Sony's combined third-quarter revenue for the PS2, PS3 and the PSP games amounted to US$ 1 billion, and Microsoft managed to net US$ 317 million for their gaming software.

Somehow echoing the results of current gaming polls such as Japan's Media Create, iSuppli said that a "lack of compelling titles" hurt PlayStation 3's software sales. Meanwhile, Nintendo managed to win gamer's hearts (and pockets) with their chart-topping titles. However, Sony is moving to fix this problem by trying to win over third-party game developers.

If iSuppli is right, Nintendo's winning streak isn't over yet. The analyst group expects Wii software revenue to reach US$ 1.1 billion in next year's fourth quarter. "Nintendo is likely to maintain its lead in this area, as it expects by the end of 2007 to ship about 200 additional titles," said iSuppli's vice president of multimedia content and distribution, David Carnevale.

Apple's iPhone is a commercial success but if the magnitude of that success escapes you, here's a little hint: It has set a new record for AT&T sales by selling more phones than the Motorola RAZR did in a month.

In addition to this, the demand for the iPhone doesn't seem to be slowing down with iPhones going on eBay from US$ 705 to a whopping US$ 12,500.

Throughout all this, Apple has been making a killing. Industry researcher ISuppli Corp. declared that Apple is selling the iPhone for more than double its manufacturing costs. Thus they have profit margins of over 55 percent, excluding logistics and royalties.

That's just an insane amount of money moving into the company, and it shows. As a testament to that, Apple shares soared by US$ 5.91 to US$ 127.17 or 4.9 percent in NASDAQ Stock Market trading.

However, it should also be noted that AT&T shares dropped by US$ 35 cents, which is rather peculiar considering AT&T has sold out of the phone in almost all its 1,800 stores. It may have something to do with the EDGE network crashing for a short time, but this has not been confirmed by any of our financial analysts.

So it looks like the iPhone is off to a good start, it should be noted that Apple isn't expecting to be making a large profit now but expects it to come over a span of two years. Is this a sign of things to come? If you'd care to read more on this, click on our read link.

While gamers all over the world are crying for a price drop, our friends over at India buy their PS3 and Xbox 360 at US$ 980 and US$ 600 respectively. Even with such expensive consoles, analyst group iSuppli believes that the industry will reach US$ 125 million on 2010, from last year's US$ 13 million.

Milestone Interactive Software distributed the PS3 at almost a thousand bucks, but 1,200 units have been sold so far. Year end goal of 10,000 units sold will be hard according to the group, because of Xbox 360 and its "major price differential compared to its competitor."

Having to pay for duties doesn't help, which is almost 35% the product price in India. Microsoft's box also have the earlier release advantage, and localizing support that iSuppli calls "its commitment to customizing its titles for Indian tastes."

“The console gaming segment is not very sizeable in India. However, future growth expectations and consumerism are prompting companies to establish themselves in India," said analyst Ashish Thakre from the group. That means there shouldn't be any wars - we should be happy that the industry is booming in more countries.

Although it may not be apparent, Apple isn't reeling in major profits on any of the Apple TV units they sell. Literally. According to Business Week, research firm iSuppli purchased a unit for US$ 299 and took it apart piece by piece. What they found was that the seemingly pricey Apple TV tag wasn't a Benjamin apart from the total of its parts.

An Apple TV's parts, when broken down and arranged quite neatly, has been found to cost no more than US$ 237 all in all. That's just US$ 62 from the retail price tag (a 20% gross profit margin), although it doesn't include administrative, marketing and production costs.

That's a big leap from most of Apple's 50% gross profit margins for products not related to its consumer computer solutions. Analyst Andrew Rassweiler of iSuppli remarked, "This is certainly a departure for Apple, or at least it's approaching a departure."

"We made some very aggressive assumptions with this device, and by that I mean we assumed low prices on the components," added Rassweiler. When Apple's Steve Jobs said that the Apple TV is a hobby, he probably wasn't joking at all. It may have been more convincing, though, if there were tears.

Here's yet another reason why there could be a PS3 price cut in the near future: Blue-ray diodes are not only getting cheaper, but they're being produced in increasing quantity as well - so much that Taiwan-based game console makers are predicting no less than a US$ 100 production price cut of Sony's shiny black console, as Yen Tin Cheng and Adam Hwang of Digitimes reports.

With Sony Shiraishi Semiconductor's announcement of expanding its monthly production capacity of blue-violet laser diodes to 1.7 million (as well as beginning production of 240mW blue-violet laser diodes), it's not hard to connect the dots: increase in supply means decrease in price, which should affect the PS3's production price tag a hefty 0's worth.

It's also something to note that besides this potential drop, the Xbox 360 Elite's production cost has dropped down to 3.30, based on latest estimates by iSuppli, a research firm, which could mean that price drop we've been waiting for can't be all just wishful thinking.

And for your reading convenience, we've attached the production cost breakdown of both the Sony PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 Elite.

PS3 and Xbox 360 Elite Breakdown of production costs:

Item                            PS3 (60 GB version) Xbox 360 Elite
Motherboard, CPU,                  352                          204        
graphics processor,
chipset, etc.
Hard Disk Drive                        125                        19.45
Power supply                             54                         43
Bluetooth,                                19.60                       N/A
802.11 b/g
network modules
Other components                  150.50                     N/A
Chassis and related                61.75                      25.25
Assembly                                   40                         6.10
Total cost                                840.35                   323.30
Retail price                               599                         399

Will the PS3 ever get its price cut we've all been waiting for? Updates as they happen!