Rumortoid: Another PS3 price drop to $299? [Update]

The last time we heard of a PlayStation 3 price drop it was a little more believable. Many felt that the system was overpriced, so a lower price was definitely welcome. The reduction(s) in price came, and Sony had a pretty decent holiday season for it. Now rumors are surfacing of another price drop. Another reduction in price would be every bit as welcome as the first, but this time around we'll be a bit more cautious with our hopes.

M&C says that the folks at SlickDeals.net are saying that we might see a $299 40GB model by January 29th. SlickDeals did successfully break news of the prior PS3 and Xbox 360 price drops, but we've heard nothing else along these lines yet.

Some may point to the recent announcement of a reduction in manufacturing costs as evidence, but we'll agree with M&C -- Sony wouldn't stand to gain much right now by dropping the price. You never know with Sony, though.

What do you think? Will we see a drop? Would this really benefit Sony in early 2008? 

[Update: The moon speak here at Bloomberg Japan is a statement from Sony's Kaz Hirai saying that there is no plans for a price drop. Didn't they say that last time?]