Financial analysts are predicting that Sony Corp.'s next-generation game machine, the PlayStation 2, will hit Japanese retail shelves on Jan. 23.
The consoles will weigh in at a hefty price of 45,000 yen (U.S. $391), according to a Merrill Lynch report published this week.
The report predicts initial shipments of the PlayStation 2 will climb to 400,000 units, with a total of 1 million consoles becoming available during the first three months of 2000.