Sony has promised US gamers a flood of PlayStation 3 consoles this year in spite of what analysts described as the “ready availability” of the machine in Japanese and US stores.

Sony’s prediction that supplies of PlayStation 3 consoles would “catch up to demand” in May was declared “baffling” by analysts in Tokyo who pointed out that the machine was being discounted in stores across Japan and could be bought online in the US for about $100 less than its official retail price.