Rumors of a slimmed-down PlayStation 3 have gained fuel today through a series of Chinese photos that appear to show the console itself. The shots show a much thinner design that, despite its dimensions, nonetheless manages to fit two USB reports and, significantly, a 120GB hard drive. They also show product packaging and a a change away from Sony's heavily used Spiderman font in favor of one closer to the PS2.

Current PS3s have either an 80GB drive in their base form or a 160GB drive in a high-end model.

While Sony has repeatedly denied any plans to redesign the PS3 in the past, the seemingly authentic images appear just after a white Dual Shock 3 controller was confirmed as on sale at Walmart in the US and hints that Sony is likely to alter its configurations for the PS3 at next month's E3 show. Whether this will involve a white slim PS3 or a similarly-colored full-size model isn't known.

The electronics maker is under pressure to turn around its ailing PS3 business as the high price and lack of console exclusives has led to giving up market share to Microsoft and Nintendo, particularly in the US. [via Kotaku]