Dreamcast Console Variants
The Sega Dreamcast during its short, roughly three year run from 1998 to 2001, ended up getting a fair number of variants. Most of these remained in Japan only however minor hardware revisions and regional differences will both be covered. Unlike the controllers and VMUs, however, the consoles remained fairly standard and didn't get many crazy clear colored variants.
Standard White Console
The color that the vast, vast majority of Dreamcast consoles came was the standard white. Available from the Japanese launch in November 1998 to the last Dreamcast consoles produced by Sega in 2001, originally a bright white color (some say whiteish grey), most Dreamcasts today are some shade of cream, yellow or even brown. This is due to the discoloration in the plastic caused by age and UV light. It is important to note that the plastic around the controller ports and the POWER and OPEN buttons is a grey color. As will be shown below, the NSTC consoles available in Japan and North America had orange-red swirls while the PAL (European) Dreamcasts came with a blue swirl. Sega had changed the color in Europe due to a German brand, Tivola having a similar red swirl, so in order to avoid legal issues, they made the swirl blue, a much more fitting color for Sega!
Above, a Japanese Sega Dreamcast displaying its orange-red swirl and exclusive clear plastic triangle in front of the power LED. In the table below, there are some prices for Japanese and North American Dreamcasts from various points in the console's life.
| Region | Date | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | Nov 27, 1998 | ¥29'800 |
| United States | Sep 9, 1999 | $199 |
| United States | Feb 4, 2001 | $99.95 |
| Canada | Sep 9, 1999 | C$299 |
Above, a European Sega Dreamcast displaying its distinct blue swirl and grey plastic triangle in front of the power LED.
The yellowing process will likely be covered on another page. As for how many consoles of this type were sold, that number is up for interpretation. Out of the 9 to 10 million Dreamcasts sold worldwide, I'd assume about 95-98% would be of the white variety. Below will be some of the European nations' prices for the Dreamcast, mostly from the October 14, 1999 launch.
| Region | Date | Price |
|---|---|---|
| France | Oct 14, 1999 | 1'690 ₣ |
| Germany | Oct 14, 1999 | 499 DM |
| Germany | Christmas 2001 | 200 DM |
| Switzerland | Oct 14, 1999 | 399 CHF |
| United Kingdom | Oct 14, 1999 | £199 |
| United Kingdom | Christmas 2001 | £69 |
| Spain | Oct 14, 1999 | 39'990 ₧ |
| Italy | Oct 14, 1999 | 499'000 ₤ |
| Portugal | Oct 14, 1999 | 49'900$00 |