Source: See below.

　　What we heard: Last week, leaked retail flyers pointed to the Wii's price dropping to $200 the weekend of September 27. Today, further evidence of such a price drop has surfaced on Engadget. The tech blog has posted a screenshot purportedly of an internal Best Buy memo with the title "Wii Price Drop Coming."

　　"The Sept. 27 ad features the Wii on the back cover for $199.99. This is not a misprint; the new price will be effective on Sunday, Sept. 27," reads the memo. (Emphasis added.) If accurate, the timing of the price drop would emulate Nintendo's proclivity for launching products in North America on a Sunday, as it did with the DS in 2004 and the Wii in 2006.

　　"For now…please keep this quiet!" vainly implores the memo, before warning that, "Although this price drop has been mentioned in blogs, most people still do not know about this, so please don't discuss with customers until Nintendo makes their official announcement on Friday Sept. 25." (Emphasis in the original.)

　　The official story: "We don't have any information on this."-- Nintendo rep.

　　Bogus or not bogus?: Not bogus. With the Xbox 360 Elite currently the same price as the Wii (after rebate) and Wii sales sliding several months in a row, Nintendo needs to do something. Throw in the fact the Wii hardware was profitable on day one--and doesn't have high-definition graphics--and Nintendo would be ill-advised not to cut its price.

　　[UPDATE] Surprise! The $200 Wii price is now official.