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Xbox 360 sees price cut in the US

7 September 2008 18:08 by Andre "DVDBack23" Yoskowitz | 22 comments

Xbox 360 sees price cut in the US On Thursday Microsoft confirmed the month old rumor that it was dropping the price, across the board, of its Xbox 360 console in the US.

Following a steep price cut in Japan two weeks ago, Microsoft has officially dropped the price of the Elite, Core and Arcade models. The 120GB HDD Elite model will sell for $399 USD, the Core model will sell for $299 USD and the Arcade model will hit the very important under-$200 barrier at $199 USD. Analysts have long said that for consoles to reach mass market adoption they must sell for under $200 USD and Microsoft has become the first console maker of the new generation to do so.

"We are thrilled to be the first next-generation console on the market to reach $199, a price that invites everyone to enjoy Xbox 360,"
said Don Mattrick, senior vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft in a statement.

"Xbox 360 delivers amazing performance at an extraordinary value with the leading online service and best lineup of games, downloadable movies and TV shows available from a console. The majority of consumers make the decision to buy consoles once the price falls to this mark, making this an important milestone for consumers and the industry."


Analysts have noted that the move will most likely help Microsoft regain some footing it has lost to Sony which is not expected to drop the price of its rival PlayStation 3 console.

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    ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 7 September 2008 19:01 Send private message to this user   
    Was this not posted about a week ago?

    With all the issues the 360 has I want the premium at the 199 mark the arcade is a joke you can't even get good DLC for it...
    sam1dog (Member) 7 September 2008 19:03 Send private message to this user   
    Xbox 360 at $199 then the wii should be at $149.
    redux79 (Member) 7 September 2008 19:05 Send private message to this user   
    The price drop is a definite bonus; all I need now are some screen shots or info to identify the jasper 360.

    Some think the power consumption will be lower than the falcons 175w. Still the most reliable way seems to be a manufactures date from late august or early september. Hopefully some definitive proof will show up, until then I'm still waiting.
    ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 7 September 2008 19:09 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by sam1dog:
    Xbox 360 at $199 then the wii should be at $149.

    the WII is at least stable and dose not fail at being a media rig,of coarse its not a media rig but still :P.
    susieqbbb (Member) 8 September 2008 1:33 Send private message to this user   
    Ok yes i do think nintendo should drop the price.

    But even if the 360 is at 199.99 you still need to purchase a hard drive at 99.99 or 179.99 in order to take advantage of the consoles online features i am sorry to say a video doesn't run well on a memory card.

    So you still get the console at the 400.00 price range.

    So the price cut is garbage!!!
    EricCarr (Junior Member) 8 September 2008 2:35 Send private message to this user   
    Come on people. You are paying $199.00 for the Red Ring Of Death!
    mspurloc (Member) 8 September 2008 3:32 Send private message to this user   
    No.
    Bad Microsoft!

    Get the Elite down to $300 MSRP and sell only two models.
    That will lead to actual market penetration.

    For God's sake, Microsoft, the console is now three-plus years old in design. Who's going to to drop $400 on a console that'll be obsolete by Christmas of next year?

    (Shakes head, mumbles, shuffles away.)
    Tecbot (Newbie) 8 September 2008 3:56 Send private message to this user   
    they need the elite at the price of the arcade and with wifi built in...the 360 just isnt a good investment at this price considering the amount of features it is missing.

    Maybe in a year or two ill get one when they smarten up.
    sKrEwZ (Member) 8 September 2008 10:39 Send private message to this user   
    I'm not really much of an Xbox fan, but it's nice to see a NextGen Console drop (barely) below the $200.00 mark. We'll just wait and see how it affects their sales.
    iluvendo (AfterDawn Addict) 8 September 2008 10:44 Send private message to this user   
    I smell price war !!

    If it wasnt for bad luck, Id have no luck!
    "The flimsier the product,the higher the price"
    Ferengi 82nd rule of aquisition
    SProdigy (Member) 8 September 2008 10:46 Send private message to this user   
    As for sales, the platform is dead, unless the HDD enabled system comes in at $199, and that is the only remaining SKU. I agree this system should have WiFi and HDMI as well.

    No one in their right mind is going to pay $300-$400 for a console in year 3+ of it's life cycle. All it takes is an unveiling of the next Xbox and the 360 is all but dead (see Xbox "1" for more details.) Besides, most people that wanted a 360 have already gotten it, outside of Japan that is.

    There are no more "killer" apps that are going to push out more console sales in North America or Europe. I do believe that Halo 3, Madden and GTA IV have done their part to push sales to the limit. I'm not saying that software will take a hit, just that the system itself has plateaued.

    On the other hand, the Wii is still selling like hot cakes and a price cut by Nintendo would be a nail in the coffin for the 360, sales-wise. Sony is still bumbling around and trying to pick up the crumbs left from these two. If Blu-Ray drops in price, the PS3 takes another major cut and PS Home isn't delayed again, they may get some momentum, otherwise this is still Nintendo's market for the time being.
    sKrEwZ (Member) 8 September 2008 10:53 Send private message to this user   
    I agree it's Nintendo's market for the time being. Between the strong sales for the Wii as well as the DS they're pretty comfortable in first. I don't see this price cut as having a drastic effect on M$ sales. Will it help? Sure. Is it going to propel them close to Nintendo. Doubtful.
    lxfactor (Senior Member) 8 September 2008 10:54 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by ZippyDSM:
    Was this not posted about a week ago?
    no price drop in UK was posted a week ago.. this is US =D
    ChiknLitl (Member) 8 September 2008 12:41 Send private message to this user   
    I think the 299 arcade model hits the sweet spot. 60 GB HDD, HDMI, plenty of great games in the catalog. I agree that it needs Wi-Fi as the other systems have. IMO, why would the Wii drop the price if it's still selling like hotcakes? They can't keep them on the shelves.
    lxhotboy (Member) 9 September 2008 13:59 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by EricCarr:
    Come on people. You are paying $199.00 for the Red Ring Of Death!
    Actually you are not paying for the RROD if you have one of the newer consoles. Maybe you went through a bad experience with the RROD yourself so i understand. It really doesnot look good espeically if Microsoft was aware of the situation as this article may imply.
    http://videogames.yahoo.com/feature/did-...ilures-/1245120
    But lets be real here. How many people who complain about the RROD,(which has a warranty), own or have bought a automobile that is a FORD, GM, Chevrolet, Dodge, Chrysler, Mercedes, etc... I gaurantee you paid more for that vehicle than $199. If you dont own a Toyota, Honda, or some other proven reliable vehicle then you bought a VMOD (vehicle made of death) but people still go out and buy them anyway. So the issue really isnot that big of a deal with me b/c Microsoft has a warranty just like Dodge does for is lousy powertrain (engine and transmissions). Get over it people. My cousin had the RROD out of an early console he bought. Microsoft replaced it free and he has had no problems since. Is this really any different than any problem with all these crappy cars sold today. Oh and by the way, just for the record. All those car manufacturers know their reliability reputation has been proven to be below average but they continue to sell those cars and people continue to buy them. Landrover is the most problem seen vehicle you can buy today and so is mercedes. Think about it.
    ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 9 September 2008 14:06 Send private message to this user   
    Quote:
    Originally posted by EricCarr:
    Come on people. You are paying $199.00 for the Red Ring Of Death!
    Actually you are not paying for the RROD if you have one of the newer consoles. Maybe you went through a bad experience with the RROD yourself so i understand. It really doesnot look good espeically if Microsoft was aware of the situation as this article may imply.
    http://videogames.yahoo.com/feature/did-...ilures-/1245120
    But lets be real here. How many people who complain about the RROD,(which has a warranty), own or have bought a automobile that is a FORD, GM, Chevrolet, Dodge, Chrysler, Mercedes, etc... I gaurantee you paid more for that vehicle than $199. If you dont own a Toyota, Honda, or some other proven reliable vehicle then you bought a VMOD (vehicle made of death) but people still go out and buy them anyway. So the issue really isnot that big of a deal with me b/c Microsoft has a warranty just like Dodge does for is lousy powertrain (engine and transmissions). Get over it people. My cousin had the RROD out of an early console he bought. Microsoft replaced it free and he has had no problems since. Is this really any different than any problem with all these crappy cars sold today. Oh and by the way, just for the record. All those car manufacturers know their reliability reputation has been proven to be below average but they continue to sell those cars and people continue to buy them. Landrover is the most problem seen vehicle you can buy today and so is mercedes. Think about it.
    Newer units have half the fail rate of the old....
    mspurloc (Member) 9 September 2008 14:58 Send private message to this user   
    Yes, the Xbox hasn't been outside the industry failure rate in over a year. It's vastly improved.

    As for those trumpeting its demise, I don't think so. It can be updated as needed, making it better than Sony's model, and as far as "no more killer apps" goes...

    Halo Blue is Coming.
    Oner (Moderator) 9 September 2008 16:18 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by ZippyDSM:
    Newer units have half the fail rate of the old
    I don't know about that , especially with early manufacturing failure rates at up to 68%...though in all honesty I don't think anyone but MS will ever know. As for the price cut, MS needed to do something but we will see if it does anything to help as when they did the same for the 360 in Europe it changed absolutely nothing.

    This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 9 September 2008 16:22

    ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 9 September 2008 16:21 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by Oner:
    Originally posted by ZippyDSM:
    Newer units have half the fail rate of the old
    I don't know about that , especially with early manufacturing failure rates at up to 68%...though in all honesty I don't think anyone but MS will ever know.
    ya but I am talking about the 30% of the released to market units :P

    so the new units have a fail rate of 10-15% IMO.

    For all the console/game fanboys out their.
    http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles...Console-Rundown
    Oh god I can't stop laughing!!!
    ---
    And for the format nazi's I bring you HHD DVVD BVD's!!
    Oner (Moderator) 9 September 2008 16:23 Send private message to this user   
    Could be. I just still find it hard to beleive since MS admitted every 360 has the ability to fail.

    ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 9 September 2008 16:25 Send private message to this user   
    Originally posted by Oner:
    Could be. I just still find it hard to beleive since MS admitted every 360 has the ability to fail.
    They have to say something and be truthful about it.

    Its good to see them not lie but sheesh get it fixed already....

    For all the console/game fanboys out their.
    http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles...Console-Rundown
    Oh god I can't stop laughing!!!
    ---
    And for the format nazi's I bring you HHD DVVD BVD's!!
    Oner (Moderator) 9 September 2008 19:36 Send private message to this user   
    I agree as competition in any industry is good for the customer in the end.

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