Xbox 360 price drop to $299 confirmed, Pro phased out

[Richard]

EDIT
Hence I somehow back up Richard's point even to the averagely informed costumer the PS3 may look as a better deal (it actually is and I don't feel like betraying my beloved 360 telling so). Thus I think Ms will take a beating before they are able restore a more significant gap between entry price points.
EDIT
I don't imply that Richard is an averagely informed costumer either

Heh, actually that's what I am wrt these consoles. I'm a bemused spectator while I save up for my new über-PC.

At the same price points the PS3 slim does have more bullet points on the back of the box. The question becomes, is that all that matter? Despite living in PS3-land (AKA Europe) I know a _lot_ more people with XBOXes which would make me gravitate more toward's that. My view is that the XBOX also has more FPS games/Western RPGs which I prefer. Brand > Games > Cost is what most people seem to be following.

It's very possible the XBOX now has enough recognition and a sufficient game library to compete at the same price with less bullet points on the box. It's definitely ballsy on MS to raise the Arcade price & give up the cables; but they can always lower the price if their strategy doesn't work out.

 

[AzBat]

Just an FYI. Just received the weekly Gamestop newsletter. Big blurbs for both price cuts...

Tommy McClain

 

[infinity4]

MS just needs to make black accessories. Who doesn't want them and why arent they making them!

 

[Richard]

Btw, I took a stroll through all major retail chains here (Game, GameStop, Fnac, Worten) and they all have the Elite at 259 euros, with the Pro at 249 roll.

 

[AzBat]

MS just needs to make black accessories. Who doesn't want them and why arent they making them!

Yeah, it would be nice to be able to buy black wireless headsets, memory cards, quick chargers, cameras & chatpads. They at least sell black controllers & rechargeable battery packs. Now that they have dropped the white Pro. Maybe the plan on selling more black accessories?

Tommy McClain

 

[Silent_Buddha]

MS just needs to make black accessories. Who doesn't want them and why arent they making them!

Bah, I much prefer the white X360. Probably due to goth backlash having known so many vapid "goths" with their everything must be black attitude.

Either that or I'm a closet Don Johnson, Miami Vice fan...

Regards,
SB

 

[tuna]

Bah... this is all stupid, and I think both MS and Sony need to really start paying attention to Nintendo.

Sure, Nintendo had a 'unique' controller scheme that can be copied or improved upon removing that 'benefit', but Nintendo had another HUGE card in their deck other than the controller scheme and that's their IP and their history.

Mothers and Fathers know of Zelda and Mario and the 'family friendly' aspect of Nintendo.

Nintendo turned what everybody thought was a negative (it's a kiddie console) into a positive this generation through controller and leveraging that idea with their IP.

Nintendo can launch a console well before the 'anticipated' launch dates for the next Xbox and PS, provide a console that is easily visually superior to the 360 and PS3 and do so with their unique controller scheme and leverage their IP once again.

It's 2009, and the Wii launched with lagging hardware. But if MS and Sony think they can last until 2012-2013 until launching a new system, they're going to get a rude awakening because Nintendo's IP is almost priceless. And they can launch a new system that might not be able to compete with the systems launched in 2013, but will be obviously superior to everything on the market now, with their IP and ruin those other console's chances.

I think people who look at the Wii's success as merely an interface issue and think that Natal will be even better, are totally disregarding the value of Nintendo's history, goodwill, and IP.

Sony and MS could NEVER have done what Nintendo did because they don't have the goodwill, the history, the reputation, or the IP of Nintendo to be 'family friendly'.

Competing in that market without goodwill, history, reputation, and IP, is a losing proposition for both Sony & MS.

Even though I agree with you, Nintendo's biggest hits in recent years (Nintendogs, Brain Training, Wii Sports and Fit) have been new IP. Games like Zelda and Mario (excluding Mario Kart) have not sold as good.

 

[assen]

Nobody seems to have reported this, but the Elite is 249 EUR now in Europe:


http://translate.google.it/translat...a-a-24999-euro.php&sl=it&tl=en&hl=it&ie=UTF-8

A quick check at amazon.de confirms that.

Now that 150 EUR Arcade we were talking about...

 

[rekator]

In france it's the same Elite 250€.
And a rumor of a FM3 pack with a 250 GO 360 for 279€…

 

[Rotmm]

Nobody seems to have reported this, but the Elite is 249 EUR now in Europe:


http://translate.google.it/translat...a-a-24999-euro.php&sl=it&tl=en&hl=it&ie=UTF-8

A quick check at amazon.de confirms that.

Now that 150 EUR Arcade we were talking about...

I must admit, I much prefer the Microsoft route to European pricing than that of Sony.

If you take that €249 and use an average Eurozone VAT (Sales Tax) rate of 19%, along with the £199 and VAT of 15% you get:

€209.24 = $300.47
£173.04 = $283.07

With the PS3 it's different of course. Same Sales Tax Rates and it is:

€251.27 = $360.75
£216.52 = $354.14

 

[deepbrown]

I must admit, I much prefer the Microsoft route to European pricing than that of Sony.

If you take that €249 and use an average Eurozone VAT (Sales Tax) rate of 19%, along with the £199 and VAT of 15% you get:

€209.24 = $300.47
£173.04 = $283.07

With the PS3 it's different of course. Same Sales Tax Rates and it is:

€251.27 = $360.75
£216.52 = $354.14

Yes...the PS3 is more expensive, but it's actually had a price cut. The Xbox 360 has seen a price increase on the Arcade...and the appearance of the Elite as the new Pro, see the price of buying an Xbox 360 with a HDD more expensive than it was before also.

 

[Rotmm]

Yes...the PS3 is more expensive, but it's actually had a price cut. The Xbox 360 has seen a price increase on the Arcade...and the appearance of the Elite as the new Pro, see the price of buying an Xbox 360 with a HDD more expensive than it was before also.

It's not that the PS3 is more expensive, it's that Sony are continuing with their policy of taking advantage of their most loyal market. The PSPGo is just another extension of this:

€209.25 = $300.16
£199.13 = $323.69

That said, after more than a year of the 360 Arcade UK price (excluding VAT) being lower than the US price (excluding Sales Tax), it seems for that particular SKU, there is a little price gouging going on.

€150.50 = $215.94
£138.26 = $224.80

Granted, it's nowhere near the level of Sony, but it's still a sad reversal of the trend of MS treating EU and especially UK customers preferentially.

 

[Arwin]

It's not that the PS3 is more expensive, it's that Sony are continuing with their policy of taking advantage of their most loyal market.

Depends on how you look at it. A 100 euro pricecut is better than a 100 dollar pricecut. They're just being consistent It's one way of hedging your bets against currency fluctuations. Microsoft is of course doing the same - the 360 is 50 euro cheaper here to be competitive, but in the US they're just price matching the PS3 because they are more confident. I personally think it's silly to complain about these things to be honest, but that's just me.

 

[Rotmm]

I personally think it's silly to complain about these things to be honest, but that's just me.

I know what you're saying, but I find it abhorrent that Sony (and Nintendo to be fair) continue to treat the European market as something akin to 3rd class, while at the same time charging a premium to us.

I know it's only business, but it "feels" to me a particularly shoddy business model.

 

[Arwin]

I know what you're saying, but I find it abhorrent that Sony (and Nintendo to be fair) continue to treat the European market as something akin to 3rd class, while at the same time charging a premium to us.

I know it's only business, but it "feels" to me a particularly shoddy business model.

Well I don't know about that. As long as Europe has a tonne of languages to support, complicated and strongly varying levels of consumer law both at the European and Nation levels, and so on, Europe is going to be more expensive. And despite what everyone says, they still do a lot more work in that area than the competition in terms of language support in first party titles and so on.

 

[Crossbar]

I know what you're saying, but I find it abhorrent that Sony (and Nintendo to be fair) continue to treat the European market as something akin to 3rd class, while at the same time charging a premium to us.

I know it's only business, but it "feels" to me a particularly shoddy business model.

Sorry I don´t get your way of reasoning.
It´s OK that MS subsidies the 360 more in the European market to gain market shares, but it´s not OK that Sony subsidies the PS3 more in the US market to gain market shares?

Am I understanding you right?

It´s pretty common tactic used by all the players, anyone remember the launch price of the 360 in Japan?

 

[Rotmm]

Am I understanding you right?

Clearly not.

It's OK that MS strives for something approaching price parity across the regions. They haven't yet dropped the price in Japan (though it's bound to happen soon) but the Elite and Pro are close to the $399/$299 price that was in place a week ago.

Sony are looking at price parity between Japan and the US, but Europeans are being expected to pay substantiually more.

I hope that clears up the misunderstanding.

It´s pretty common tactic used by all the players, anyone remember the launch price of the 360 in Japan?

Honestly, no. But if it was a short-term lower price to try and get a foothold in the market, then I'd say that's acceptable.

When it becomes the standard business practise to charge far more to certain consumers, I have more of a problem with it.

 

[deepbrown]

It's not that the PS3 is more expensive, it's that Sony are continuing with their policy of taking advantage of their most loyal market. The PSPGo is just another extension of this:

€209.25 = $300.16
£199.13 = $323.69

That said, after more than a year of the 360 Arcade UK price (excluding VAT) being lower than the US price (excluding Sales Tax), it seems for that particular SKU, there is a little price gouging going on.

€150.50 = $215.94
£138.26 = $224.80

Granted, it's nowhere near the level of Sony, but it's still a sad reversal of the trend of MS treating EU and especially UK customers preferentially.

I'd say it's cheaper in the UK, since retailers more readily make their own deals (in the UK at least) you can get it for 2 games and a blu-ray here. I do see what you mean though. Still, one console had a price cut, the other had a price restructure.

 

[Rotmm]

I'd say it's cheaper in the UK, since retailers more readily make their own deals (in the UK at least) you can get it for 2 games and a blu-ray here. I do see what you mean though. Still, one console had a price cut, the other had a price restructure.

Yea, plenty of deals in the UK. I was in Currys yesterday and I saw an Elite, 2 games and an extra wireless gamepad for £199.

However, I think you'd be more correct in saying that 2 consoles had a price cut, a new console has been released at a competitive price and one console has seen an increase.

Though whether that increase will actually be seen by UK consumers is still up for discussion. The RRP has gone up already, but most places are still selling it at the older pricing. Maybe it'll be like the Wii, where the RRP increased but gamesellers pretty much held the price (or increased it with "value bundles")

 

[Crossbar]

Clearly not.

It's OK that MS strives for something approaching price parity across the regions. They haven't yet dropped the price in Japan (though it's bound to happen soon) but the Elite and Pro are close to the $399/$299 price that was in place a week ago.

Sony are looking at price parity between Japan and the US, but Europeans are being expected to pay substantiually more.

I hope that clears up the misunderstanding.



Honestly, no. But if it was a short-term lower price to try and get a foothold in the market, then I'd say that's acceptable.

When it becomes the standard business practise to charge far more to certain consumers, I have more of a problem with it.

Here´s a reminder of the 360 launch in Japan, don´t think they ever raised the price.

Xbox 360 which comes fully loaded with the 20GB HDD, wireless controller, Xbox 360 Media Remote controller and headset for 37,900 yen (£189) - which works out £90 less that the British launch price.

If you think "MS strives for something approaching price parity across the regions", I am sorry to say it, but then you are a bit disillusional. They skew the price within some margins to achieve their hw sales goals as all the contenders. Europe is a more expensive market to sell to I didn´t think anyone would argue about that, heterogenous marketing, higher wages for store personnel etc.

If you still think "MS strives for something approaching price parity across the regions" compare the pricing of gold memberships for a reality check.