News on the PS3 slim has been scarce since E3, but today’s rumor is that Sony has signed manufacturing agreements with both Foxconn and Pegatron to build the slimmed down console in time for a July delivery. That seems reasonable and lines up with stuff we’ve heard.

The crazy part of the rumor is the suggestion that the slim will be the last PS3 model of this generation, and that a next-gen console based on Sony’s motion controller is hitting in spring 2010. That part we aren’t buying. The PS3 is only now in its prime and Sony already said that the motion controller was for the existing console.

One of Ars Technica’s sources says that the Xbox 360 lineup will see price shifts this fall. They also confirm that the PS3 Slim is still on the way. In September the Xbox 360 Pro (Priced at 60GB, $299) will be replaced by the Elite (Priced at 120GB for $399). On one hand, the Xbox is getting a price cut. On the other, the 360 doesn’t sound like it’s getting cheaper with a lower entry level price.

You’ll also be happy to know that ars has also restated their claim that a PS3 Slim will arrive this fall along with price drops “on the hardware that’s out now.”

Ars Technica has a “very well-informed mole” that says that the rumored flash-based PSP Go! will be announced at E3. Then, later it will be sold right alongside the current model. As for the PS3 Slim, it’s real. And slim. But we don’t expect an announcement next week. We aren’t sure when.

Just a regurgitation of rumors we’ve already heard? Ars seems confident about the info. Either their mole is right or dead wrong. Their source says that the new PSP will be lighter and smaller possibly even cheaper. The PS3 Slim is just Sony doing what they do. They always miniaturize their consoles.

Remember that slim PS3 we told you about the other day? Looks like Engadget and Ubergizmo both received cease and desist emails from some mysterious Chinese manufacturer.

Why would a Chinese manufacturer, who is not Sony, be sending these out? Are they trying to protect their knockoff? We have no idea. But our guess would be that the emails could be coming from say, the manufacturer of the box or something. Because otherwise, it’s just too silly to think that a knockoff company is trying to protect their inferior crap product.

Check out this grainy shot of a PS3 “slim,”. If this turns out to be the real deal, it has a wild redesign and would be one of the smallest Blu-ray devices out there. This is similar to the Slimline PS2, with the familiar curve of the PS3, and even a slot-loading disc drive and 120GB hard drive.

Sony has officially denied its existence saying “We currently don’t have any plans for a redesigned PS3 at this time,” but what else would they say? We’ll probably learn the truth at E3, but at least we have some pics to back it up.

Hot on the heels of that white US DualShock 3 this morning, there’s word that a revised PS3 is in the works. Rumor is that it’s the long-rumored slimmed-down redesign of the current console, not just a change in color or storage.

It makes sense as it would be cheaper to make and it might even include the rumored motion-sensing hardware. That would help sales.

We love video games around here. Whether we’re playing the Xbox 360, the PS3 or even an old Atari 2600. We thought we would take a look at the history of gaming consoles from 1972 to the present. You grew up with the vintage consoles, you play the new ones, so take a walk down memory lane and revisit all your favorites from the massive list below.

The folks over at T3 did a pretty nice job with a mock up of a Wii Phone last year at about this time and this year they’re creating another stir. They’ve posted images today of what they envision as a lighter, slimmer Sony Playstation 3 which is reportedly heading for shelves as soon as this fall.

Sony does have a history of slimming things down just like they did last year with the slimmer PSP but it seems like an unlikely move from a company that’s trying to cut costs and increase the market for their latest game console, but maybe with Blu-ray pulling ahead they feel they have it made? T3 also is speculating that this new slimmer model would have the rumored 160GB hard drive in it as well, and of course a slim Blu-ray player.

Black Friday seems to have had a positive benefit for sluggish sales of not just Sony’s PlayStation 3 but for Nintendo’s Wii system. Over 350,000 Wiis were sold last week, 50,000 more than what was sold the week before that. The Thanksgiving week represents the second-best sales plateau for Nintendo’s latest game console, beaten only by the launch week of the Wii in 2006.

Meanwhile the sales of Sony’s PlayStation 3 increased in November 298% over the sales in October. Part of that dramatic spike in PS3s finding their forever homes must be from Sony’s price drop of the $399 40GB unit. The price drop even had its effect in Japan where the Wii has been the dominant next gen gaming console for consumers: for the first time since the PS3′s launch more of the Sony consoles were sold to gamers than Wiis.

Once again, Nintendo appears to be the clear leader in game console sales for August beating out rivals Microsoft and Sony, according to the latest NPD numbers for United States sales in August.

The Kyoto-based company last month sold 403,600 Wii game consoles, along with 383,200 units of the Nintendo DS handheld game console. According to the Financial Times, the Nintendo Wii is now also the number one best selling “next-generation” game console in the world, pulling ahead of …