TOKYO, JAPAN - Sony said Thursday it will launch a beefed-up version of its PlayStation 3 in Japan this month at the same price as the current version but with double the storage capacity.

The company will start selling the PS3 with an 80-gigabyte hard disk drive in its domestic market on October 30 with a price tag of 39,980 yen (400 US dollars).

Apart from the bigger hard disk drive, the console will be the same as the current 40GB model, it said. The 80GB version is already available in Europe, North America and South Korea.

Sony also said it would launch its delayed 3D virtual universe for the PS3 by the end of the year.

"Home", which will let users try out games and communicate with other players in "game lounges", had originally been scheduled for launch in late 2007 but was delayed twice because the service needed further development.

The free service allows users to set up an apartment for life-like virtual characters, or avatars, who can invite friends over, share pictures and videos, and play online games.

Sony has much riding on the PS3 but faces fierce competition from Microsoft's XBox 360 and Nintendo's Wii. --AFP