Tech Star Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 September sales papers confirm $100 Elite price drop in response to Sony VGChartz has received multiple confirmations today that the latest sales papers for the week of 1st September to 7th at Walmart, Gamestop and Meijer show the Xbox360 Elite priced at $299 and replacing the current Pro SKU which Microsoft is phasing out. This had been rumored last week with some leaked shots on Kotaku and hints from various analysts but we have been cautious in reporting the story as fact until we've had some direct confirmation for ourselves. In a move obviously designed to offset Sony's recent PS3 redesign and price drop, the $299 price point will take effect on the same day as the new PS3 launches - September 1st. The Arcade SKU will remain at $199. We'll have more info when it arrives and an analysis of how we think this will affect the market. Expect an official Microsoft announcement soon. Update - Engadget has managed to get a leaked photo of the Walmart ad as you can see below: News Source: VGChartz Oooohhh....sounds like it can get VERY interesting this holiday season! :D I can't wait for NPD to come out with sales for each console and see who wins. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phantom Helix Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 i really have to stop buying things when they first come up dammit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ji@nBing Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 I still don't think this is going to be enough to compete with the PS3 drop. TONS of people have just been waiting for the PS3 to drop to a reasonable price. Then again, the 360 has a new Halo game coming out this fall... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mystic MVC Posted August 22, 2009 MVC Share Posted August 22, 2009 I still don't think this is going to be enough to compete with the PS3 drop. TONS of people have just been waiting for the PS3 to drop to a reasonable price. Then again, the 360 has a new Halo game coming out this fall... People will buy a revision no matter what, Sony/Nintendo have proved that so it is no doubt that Sony will catch up a bit. MS is in a very interesting position here. They definitely need to watch Slim purchases during October/November to see how the initial aftermath of how many people are still buying PS3's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ji@nBing Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 People will buy a revision no matter what, Sony/Nintendo have proved that so it is no doubt that Sony will catch up a bit. MS is in a very interesting position here. They definitely need to watch Slim purchases during October/November to see how the initial aftermath of how many people are still buying PS3's. Yes, people buy revisions and even if there was no price drop, we would still see a spike in PS3 sales. But the fact that there is a $100 price drop and for the 1st time since it's release it's what many would consider "affordable" is really going to make that a large spike. Don't discount the amount of people that were PS2 fans that found the PS3 too expensive and have just been waiting for it to drop. Believe me, there are a lot of people in that boat. I really believe MS is going to have to do more than just drop the Elite to the Pro price, while removing features. That seems like a pretty weak counter move to me. I guess we'll all find out next month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boz Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 I really believe MS is going to have to do more than just drop the Elite to the Pro price, while removing features. That seems like a pretty weak counter move to me. I guess we'll all find out next month. True, despite the features Xbox 360 has today, PS3 at the same price seems a much better deal today. The fact is that PS3 can do most of the home entertainment features as Elite PLUS the Blu-ray plus the HD audio and bitstreaming and so on. I don't see a lot of "gamers" rushing to PS3. They'll still be picking the Xbox 360 but for those who are looking for home entertainment device PS3 seems like a much better value now. Previously the $100-$200 difference (Arcade/Pro vs PS3) couldn't really justify Blu-ray for many but now when they are priced the same and if I were to choose between the two now for casual gaming plus HD device, I'd go for PS3. Maybe Microsoft has better info but IMO I highly doubt that Microsoft sold that many Elites. Their biggest growth advantage happened with Arcade/Pro which offered significant value/price advantage over PS3. Now you either have Arcade for $199 or Elite for $299 and no middle ground. I think it's a mistake to phase Pro out. If they did Pro to replace Arcade at $199 and Elite at $299 now that would be something. Microsoft needed to drop Elite to at least $249 to give it an advantage again. It's going to be interesting to see if people flock to PS3 or continue buying Xbox 360. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustGeorge Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 (edited) They should immediately stop selling the arcade bundle, reduce the Pro to $199 and sell the Elite for $279. Getting some larger HDDs out, reducing the rediculous price of the wireless adapter and getting Hulu for XBL would prolly help a great deal as well. I'm enjoying the heck out of my 360 and as far as actual gaming goes, its still got an advantage over the PS3, but in light of the price drop I'll be getting a PS3 at some point in the near future. I do want to observe the Slims in the wild for while to make sure Sony didn't revisit old bad habits by using sub-par components in the new model. Edited August 22, 2009 by VRam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WelshBluebird Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 I didn't realise the sony price drop had made the PS3 cheaper than the elite. In the UK, even taking into account the price drop from sony, the 360 elite is still cheaper than the PS3 (elite is ?220, PS3 with pricedrop is ?250). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boz Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 They should immediately stop selling the arcade bundle, reduce the Pro to $199 and sell the Elite for $279. Getting some larger HDDs out, reducing the rediculous price of the wireless adapter and getting Hulu for XBL would prolly help a great deal as well. Totally.. a smarter move would've been Arcade out, Pro to become $199 and they could've even left Elite at $299 with big ass drive. But having Arcade for $199 and Elite alone for $299 seems like a poor business decision especially when Sony finally has a very enticing competing product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ji@nBing Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 True, despite the features Xbox 360 has today, PS3 at the same price seems a much better deal today. The fact is that PS3 can do most of the home entertainment features as Elite PLUS the Blu-ray plus the HD audio and bitstreaming and so on. I don't see a lot of "gamers" rushing to PS3. They'll still be picking the Xbox 360 but for those who are looking for home entertainment device PS3 seems like a much better value now. Previously the $100-$200 difference (Arcade/Pro vs PS3) couldn't really justify Blu-ray for many but now when they are priced the same and if I were to choose between the two now for casual gaming plus HD device, I'd go for PS3. Maybe Microsoft has better info but IMO I highly doubt that Microsoft sold that many Elites. Their biggest growth advantage happened with Arcade/Pro which offered significant value/price advantage over PS3. Now you either have Arcade for $199 or Elite for $299 and no middle ground. I think it's a mistake to phase Pro out. If they did Pro to replace Arcade at $199 and Elite at $299 now that would be something. Microsoft needed to drop Elite to at least $249 to give it an advantage again. It's going to be interesting to see if people flock to PS3 or continue buying Xbox 360. Exactly. Don't forget PS3 has built in wifi ($100 add on for the 360) and optical audio (with the new Elite, you'll have to buy the $50 official HDMI connector if you want that) and free online. When the PS3 was $100 more, these things weren't that big of a deal, but at the same price, the PS3 is really looking like a good value compared to the 360. That's not to say the 360 isn't awesome. I happen to think it's a way better gaming console. But if you look at features and value, the PS3 completely destroys the 360 now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boz Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 That's not to say the 360 isn't awesome. I happen to think it's a way better gaming console. But if you look at features and value, the PS3 completely destroys the 360 now. Though bundling the Wifi to me wasn't a good idea with PS3 simply because with current WiFi G you can't really stream HD to your PS3 so you'll end up either using the cable or buying a WiFi dongle which in either case kind of defeats the purpose. On the other hand Microsoft does it the right way as an accessory but they charge the accessory through the roof which is something to be criticized. The advantage with Microsoft's approach is that you can get a cheap WiFi N wireless bridge and connect it to the Xbox 360 and that made sense when there was a $100 difference but now not so much. But I totally agree, when there was a $100 difference between Pro and PS3 you really put everything on paper and could've said those things on PS3 didn't really matter that much, but now when they are on equal playing grounds PS3 is definitely a better value for an overall home entertainment device. They have a movie store, they have TV shows, they have HD support for streaming plus good codecs, have Blu-ray, great apps like PS3 Media Server and PlayOn works too, and it's not like multiplatform games don't work on PS3. So all in all at the same price I totally see PS3 now as a better value for consumer in comparison to Elite. Xbox 360 still remains a great gaming machine but the point is now moot for those who want an entertainment device as a whole not just a gaming machine. Are we looking at 2010 as the year of PS3? Finally? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pupdawg21 Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 well $50 a year for live vs the free online of the PS3 ..... the $50 a year is far superior so I don't think that's quite a valid debate there until Sony improves their online presence more. The $100 for the wireless is a biggie MS needs to either drop the price a bit on that or maybe we'll get a surprise and the new elite @ $299 will have it built in? doubtful. While I don't use wireless with my 360, having the wireless with the PS3 is a huge plus. Purely from a face cover value proposition the PS3 is definitely a better buy (wireless + blu ray), but in actual usage I still prefer the Xbox360. Even in the simple things online such as downloading demos experience is much better on the 360. On the 360 you download the demo and you play. On the PS3 you download the demo, you install the demo, you wait some more, then you play. These little issues like this what kinda kills the online experience on the PS3 for me. As for killing the pro, I think this is a good idea, they are making and continue to make their value proposition with the Arcade model trying to get some Wii users to come over and on the high end they have the elite competing against all PS3 comers. A Pro at the same price as the Wii, I just don't think would do well. When for $50 more the PS3 has twice the amount of storage + blu ray. Also, it's more expensive to source (2) different capacity hard drives than it is to have only (1) choice for hard drives in your shipping product sku. MS did pretty good with the Pro @ $299 so with the elite @ $299 they should do just as good or better. So with all that said who wants to buy my original Xbox360 so I can get me a PS3 Slim ( for Infamous and Little Big Planet) and an Elite ? hehe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t0mbi Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 im glad the 360 doesn't come with built in WiFi. It would be more expensive for a feature that sucks! Isn't WiFi slower than wired ..correct me if im wrong here. im glad Microsoft gave me a choice there...same with HDDs and the ol' HD-DVD player..if i dont want them, i dont have to pay a **** load more cash for features im never going to use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boz Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 im glad the 360 doesn't come with built in WiFi. It would be more expensive for a feature that sucks! Isn't WiFi slower than wired ..correct me if im wrong here. im glad Microsoft gave me a choice there...same with HDDs and the ol' HD-DVD player..if i dont want them, i dont have to pay a **** load more cash for features im never going to use As I noted WiFi-G wireless adapter inside the PS3 is now inferior because the machine is tauted as HD solution. And if you want to stream HD that wireless simply won't do. Accessorizing is ALWAYS a better way because it gives you a choice and you don't have to buy stuff to get the basic value out of your purchase and can spread out accessories as you need them. Yes, you'll pay more over the long run but the point is that you have the ability to buy better stuff down the road as the technology evolves with embedded approach this isnt' the case and when we know that technology advances so fast having stuff as accessories is the way to go, BUT.. This only makes sense if your basic system that can do a lot of stuff your competition does is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper. This isn't the case anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 The elite is a joke... No built in wi-fi and lack of component/hdmi cables. They should just drop the elite and focus on the arcade and the pro. The xbox will have to stay at a lower price than the PS3 to stay in the lead. Also... black 360's just look wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ji@nBing Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 Personally I don't use wifi on the 360 as I just use a wired bridge from my PC, BUT a lot of people do. It wouldn't be that much of an issue to not have it included if the official adapter wasn't priced so high. I mean, you can get an adapter for the PC that uses the EXACT same tech for $10-15, so why are they charging $100 for it??!?! If they want to charge a premium on it, $30 would be fine. $100 is just insane!! My buddy just moved to a new 3 story house. His router and PC are on the 3rd floor and is 360 is on the 1st, so running a cable is not an option. He ended up buying a whole new router to use with his 360 as it was cheaper than buying the official adapter. The fact that it's cheaper to buy a new ROUTER than the official adapter is just batshit crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profets Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 so Elite is dropping to 299 and replacing the pro. what were the current differences between pro and elite? colour, and HDD size? going toward Q4 a much bigger move would have been dropping pro to 199 and cutting out arcade altogether Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t0mbi Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 The elite is a joke... No built in wi-fi and lack of component/hdmi cables.They should just drop the elite and focus on the arcade and the pro. The xbox will have to stay at a lower price than the PS3 to stay in the lead. Also... black 360's just look wrong. they use too.. and the PS3 has never included anything other than composite cables so Elite is dropping to 299 and replacing the pro. what were the current differences between pro and elite? colour, and HDD size?going toward Q4 a much bigger move would have been dropping pro to 199 and cutting out arcade altogether yep, colour..120gb HDD rather than 60gb HD...and comes with a matching headset Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profets Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 they use too..and the PS3 has never included anything other than composite cables yep, colour..120gb HDD rather than 60gb HD...and comes with a matching headset dropping hdmi cable, and increasing the storage.. its really not much of a change at all for the 299 price point Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t0mbi Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 well from now on, your paying 100 dollars less for a different colour and HDD twice the size..minus one 3 dollar cable. $100 less for a HDD twice the size?? seems like an alright deal to me :p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profets Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 lol.. or for the same price i'm getting same thing but 120GB instead of 60GB. they really should do something with hdd at 199 price point. comparing 299 xbox to 299 ps3 doesnt look too good for the xbox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Mystic MVC Posted August 22, 2009 MVC Share Posted August 22, 2009 Well I finally have a friend who is considering buying the wireless adapter for $50 on Ebay. Even so I guess I have to laugh when I see people bringing the wireless into this argument like it is a deal breaker. Yes it is nice to have, but not everybody needs it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MistaT40 Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 The thing also to compare is that now the PS3 can really say, you get a blu-ray player for the same price as a 360. While they've pointed that out before by justifying the higher costs, they can now say same price, but you get more (really). I'm a big time Playstation fan, having owned PS1, PS2 and PSP - so yeah, I'm going to be biased by saying, I think the PS3 is just better overall (which is why I got it when it first came out). The only think that was attractive about the 360 is Live - but even then it's still tough for me to say I would be willing to cough up a subscription,especially when the PSN has made such improvements to their online experience. I will admit though, I think Sony was a bit arrogant in assuming the Playstation will do well just because of its brand and they lost a lot of exclusivity because of that - which is a big disappointment to me. MS made the right moves on Sony's fumbles but hopefully things change now. Just don't release any new generation consoles yet - let us enjoy these generation first LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pupdawg21 Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 The elite is a joke... No built in wi-fi and lack of component/hdmi cables.They should just drop the elite and focus on the arcade and the pro. The xbox will have to stay at a lower price than the PS3 to stay in the lead. Also... black 360's just look wrong. I don't know if you know this or not but the PS3 has NEVER came with component/hdmi cables so the fact that the 360's going forward won't I don't think is a huge deal breaker. The no built-in wi-fi is still unfortunate but even if it did have it I wouldn't use it because there are wired ports right next to where my 360 and PS3 can plugin. I would plug my Wii in but thats not an option on there :(. A lot of other people might be in the same boat. I think they still need to lower the price of their add-on though or just include it. PS3 NOW finally has a real better value proposition on paper and in price. Same price ... more features. + Free Online (Albeit inferior to Xbox Live) + Blu-Ray + Supposedly better graphic capability 'potential' + Built-in Wireless The +'s are really now finally stacking up in Sony's favor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 they use too..and the PS3 has never included anything other than composite cables I don't know if you know this or not but the PS3 has NEVER came with component/hdmi cables so the fact that the 360's going forward won't I don't think is a huge deal breaker. I own both consoles so i know exactly what comes with each of them. I am well aware that the PS3 never came with HD cables, that was never in question, but the fact that Microsoft are calling this the "Elite" version of their console is ridiculous seen that the only significant difference is HDD size. I have a gut feeling though that Microsoft are planning on getting rid of all the old elite stock for an amazing arcade/pro deal this christmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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