So basically MS is charging 459,- for the console wich came out 7 years ago for 399,- at launch, with voice-remote and 2 year free online..
And people here is actually concidering taking advantage of this deal?
Sometimes you guys blow my mind.
I don't consider it a great deal, but it isn't a horrible deal as some are lamenting.
e.g. If you want Gold features and want Kinect, and considering the $459 price tag ($99 + $360 ($15x24mo)) you can minus $150 off for getting a Kinect and minus $80 for 2 years of Live ($40 cards are quite common, but not always available which I am balancing against you sometimes see $36 ones). That means you are paying $229 for a 4GB Slim Xbox 360 + whatever other junk MS is going to package in with the service end. And it comes with a 2 year warranty which has some value. Some all the extras over buying straight up comes to about $30.
Of course you could argue that you can get a 4GB Slim with Kinect for $299 which, along with the $80 in live fees, comes to $80 difference for a savvy Live Card shopper or $40 for those buying straight retail. The later scenario applies to gamers most likely to take advantage of this.
For these people $30-$40 more for (a) a 2 year warranty (b) $99 up front (c) some extra Gold service perks isn't a horrible deal. Maybe money isn't an issue to them but maybe they would rather spread out the console cost as part of their Live service bundle so with the $99 console they also pick up 2 games ($120) and an extra controller ($40). So instead of walking out of the store short $619 (Xbox 4GB, Kinect, 1 controller, 2 games, 2 years Live) they walk out short $259 for the same jazz and a $15/mo fee.
Walking out $350 lighter in the pocket is not joke for many consumers.
Once you consider the desire to pick up a couple games, controller, etc the long term cost of $30-$40 "premium" for the luxury of spreading out their costs is not a bad deal--especially if the consumer, which is most American's, buy on credit.
Now this deal is NOT for me. I pay off my credit card monthly and have a "fun budget". I am not going to spend the extra money to get something earlier. At least not for a 7 year old console.
On the other hand if the new Xbox was a premium console and the "Live Platinum" service was some value I could see paying $199 up front, getting a game or two, an extra controller, and being OK with a $15-$20 month Live Platinum fee / Service Contract *if* the experience was compelling. I would prefer a $399 console and $5/mo Live (or better FREE) but we may not see those options. With the success of people buying $200-$400 phones AND huge service contracts I think many consumers are fine with it. I am not unless it is a console worth paying such for. Something is going to change in the industry, either more Wii-like evolutions or new business models for the hardware and games.
EDIT: Ok, I just read this last page after I posted... some of your are unreal. I know you are brand devoted but cry me a river. I am not a fan of this, but I also don't pretend like it is some calamity. Immoral? Seriously? And yes MS sees a value at a $99 price point, but not a strict $99 one off. What they see is the value in exposing people to Kinect AND Live at $99+$360 over 2 years which is NEARLY the retail cost of the product--basically you are paying MS a small fee instead of Visa/Mastercard but get the perk of a better warranty and services. Of course MS is also allow you to go the traditional route and BYPASS all of this and buy the stuff, on sale even, if you want. Oh, you want a $99 console?
What kind of fantasy land do you people live in? The Wii is essentially an overclocked GCN from 2001 with a waggle wand and the cheapest I see on
Amazon is $174 and at
Walmart $150. The PS3 is $
250 at Walmart and
$250 from Amazon. If MS's competitors cannot get their consoles to $99 how is MS to get the 360 to $99 when they also are throwing in a $149 retail peripheral?
As for Live, if it was on par or even less so as some of you above just said it would not command $5 a month (or $3 if you are savvy). I am not saying you have to like Live (the dashboard is slow) or find personal value in it but the myopic comments are from myopic minds who only see things from their side of the console fence. I learned a long time ago that even though I have my own strong preferences and ideas those do not align with the market and I need to think outside of my own self to fairly engage such topics. I think buying crap on credit is moronic but that doesn't mean the world looks at it like that. I dislike paying for Live, especially with the lack of dedicated servers, and I dislike the locked in Xbox ecosystem. But they are not bullet points across the board to perpetuate my own tastes and preferences as there is a big picture beyond myself. Some of you don't seem to get that and really cannot be taken seriously by attributing comments like "immoral" and whatnot. Where were these comments when Sony was offering $100 off if you get a credit card???? Some of you are UNREAL.
