Ironman273 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Microsoft talks about $300 Elite, HDMI cables, hard drivesIt's official: the Xbox 360 Elite will now be a $300 system. We chat with Microsoft's Aaron Greenberg about the lack of HDMI cables, whether Arcade buyers want a hard drive, and why the company expects leaks. By Ben Kuchera | Last updated August 27, 2009 3:00 AM CT It's hard to find many surprises in gaming hardware announcements these days, and Microsoft has just confirmed something we've known for a very long time: starting this Friday, August 28, the Xbox 360 Elite with the 120GB hard drive will be sold for $299.99, and the Pro hardware with the 60GB hard drive will go for $249.99, while supplies last. Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft's Director of Product Management for Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE, gave us a call to share the news. "We're going to shock you if you've been either traveling for a long time, or you don't read your own site," he said, laughing, before confirming the price drop. And make no mistake, Microsoft considers this a price drop, not simply a hardware upgrade. "It's absolutely a price drop, we're taking the black Elite with the 120GB hard drive and dropping the price $100, to $299.99," he told Ars. "We absolutely believe it's a price drop, and the same time we're simplifying the SKU line up down to 2 SKUs: the Elite and the Arcade." That means no more Pros will be available at retail, so if you're interested in the $250 price for the system, act quickly. "We've tried to ramp down the supply as much as we can, so it depends on retail and what particular state you're in," Greenberg explained when we asked how many units would be available. "By the heavy holiday season we will have sold through most of them, if not all of them. If you want one, now is a great time to buy one, while they're still available." Little love for HDMI We asked about the lack of HDMI cables in the Elite package, and his answer was interesting. "When we originally launched the Elite, we added the Elite as a third SKU, a premium SKU; we sort of threw the kitchen sink in there." He points out that when the Elite launched, HDMI cables were being sold for $50 or more. Now? You can pick one up for a few bucks. "The perceived value has changed," he claims. Besides, gamers simply weren't getting anything out of its inclusion. "According to our research, most of the customers who bought the Elite weren't using the HDMI. We've removed it, and pased it on as part of our price savings," Greenberg told Ars. He also points out the power of the $200 Arcade model in the current market. "First, most of our volume has come from the higher price point SKUs; the Arcade does not make up the majority of our sales. That said, the Arcade is a big part of our growth year over year... If the consumer comes in with $200 in their pocket we're the only system they can afford." The surprising fact? The majority of customers who buy the Arcade don't add a hard drive at a later date. Greenberg points out all the content you don't need storage for: streaming via Netflix (and later, the Zune video store), the upcoming Twitter update and Last.fm. He also notea that the storage included inside the Arcade hardware has been upped to 500MB, standard. Even without the hard drive "you'll have great online experiences," he said. Leaks aren't a big deal This isn't a reaction to the PS3 price drop; Greenberg claims the two price cuts being announced within a week of each other is mostly coincidence. "We actually planned this months in advance; we plan the strategy for the life cycle years in advance," he explained. Greenberg also points out that it's important to work with retail to have signage printed, circulars ready to go, and displays ready to... well, display. "The downside to that type of coordination is you have a lot of people touching assets in advance and you are more susceptible to leaks," he said. The leaks don't bother Microsoft. "It doesn't surprise us. We expect it, to be honest. This isn't our first rodeo. We know what to expect." He asserts that Sony doesn't work as closely with retail before its announcements, and claims Microsoft sees a stronger lift with its tighter planning with the retail chains. "We think it's the right strategy." The field had been leveled It's hard to believe that when you spend $300 for either the PS3 or Xbox 360 Elite you don't get high-definition cables in either package. Is anyone going to be happy opening these boxes to find composite cables? Sure, you can buy an HDMI cable for $5 if you're willing to look, but shouldn't there be some sort of HD cabling solution included? If either Sony or Microsoft changes its mind and includes HD cables in the box, they'll have added a nice talking point for very little money. Microsoft also doesn't seem to have any incentive to drop the price on storage. You can now get 120GB for $300, and if you go by the company's data, Arcade owners seem to be content with the built-in storage. Still, without including a hard drive, you take away the ability for developers to optimize loading times by including it, although the install option added to the New Xbox Experience is a decent compromise. Source: Ars Technica Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NienorGT Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Now? You can pick one up for a few bucks.And that's the reason why you remove them? Because they are just cheap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coresx Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 The surprising fact? The majority of customers who buy the Arcade don't add a hard drive at a later date. I wonder if it's because they are over priced to the extreme. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Teej Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 The HDD price is all very well for new owners, but for people like me who still have a 20GB HDD, having to pay the same price as a 360 Arcade just to get a 120GB HDD is ridiculous. They really should drop the price to ?50. They can't possibly be that expensive to make. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 not a good reason to not include HDMI, by that logic they don't need to include any A/V cables, because most are even cheaper than HDMI! I bought an Arcade a few months ago to use with an existing HDD. i think that's why their research is off, most Arcades are probably replacements, i'd bet the majority of new users go for the higher up models. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spenser.d Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 ^^^I'm willing to bet that Microsoft is experienced enough that their research isn't off. Again, you have to think about the market as a whole, not just about us. Many people are going to be fine with the Arcade. And he's right, if someone walks into a store with $200, which is more likely these days in a recession, they can pick up an Arcade and have plenty of fun. -Spenser Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veritas310 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 (edited) I'm guessing that the data that Microsoft is going by where they reference, is a little outdated: Besides, gamers simply weren't getting anything out of its inclusion. "According to our research, most of the customers who bought the Elite weren't using the HDMI. We've removed it, and pased it on as part of our price savings," Greenberg told Ars. More gamers today are using HDTV's, whether it be LCD/Plasma/LED, than a year or two ago. Thus signaling a rise in the use of the HDMI connection. Hopefully they realize this for future 360 buyers. I already have an Elite from when they included it and I'm glad they did, I wouldn't use the components again, why compromise 1 cable that contains audio/video for five bulky component cables, doesn't make sense. Who will be the first to give in, MS or Sony, or neither? Edited August 27, 2009 by veritas310 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironman273 Posted August 27, 2009 Author Share Posted August 27, 2009 More gamers today are using HDTV's, whether it be LCD/Plasma/LED, than a year or two ago. Thus signaling a rise in the use of the HDMI connection. Hopefully they realize this for future 360 buyers. I already have an Elite from when they included it and I'm glad they did, I wouldn't use the components again, why compromise 1 cable that contains audio/video for five bulky component cables, doesn't make sense. Who will be the first to give in, MS or Sony, or neither? I think spencer is right, though. Even though someone has an LCD doesn't mean they are using HDMI. My parents just hooked up their RCAs to the LCD they got (It's been corrected :D). It's normal to assume everyone is like you but the reality is the general public is extremely ignorant with some of the details described here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veritas310 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I hear where you're coming from and I think, from the people I know, they're starting to wise up and take advantage of full-1080p with the HDMI. It's safe to say all of our parents will probably stay with component cables until they're shown otherwise :). The price drop is nice though, I remember contemplating buying a PS3 about a year or two back and actually thought about how much it would cost, $399 for the system then $50 for an HDMI cable, seemed pretty steep, no thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profets Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 "It's absolutely a price drop, we're taking the black Elite with the 120GB hard drive and dropping the price $100, to $299.99," i really disagree with this. obviously theyre going to want to call it a price drop, but its just a hard drive upgrade i still think they should have kept the pro, drop it to 199 and replace arcade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veritas310 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 i really disagree with this. obviously theyre going to want to call it a price drop, but its just a hard drive upgradei still think they should have kept the pro, drop it to 199 and replace arcade. I guess fiscally that doesn't make sense for MS, which I can understand. If they have an overwhelming market for gamers who don't care about the lack of a hard-drive and enjoy the Arcade, why drop the Pro console to that price-point? It just doesn't make sense from a business perspective for MS. For some of us gamers it seems like it may be a no-brainer but they're the ones with the numbers in front of them and obviously they've got good ones for the Arcade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
profets Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I guess fiscally that doesn't make sense for MS, which I can understand. If they have an overwhelming market for gamers who don't care about the lack of a hard-drive and enjoy the Arcade, why drop the Pro console to that price-point? It just doesn't make sense from a business perspective for MS. For some of us gamers it seems like it may be a no-brainer but they're the ones with the numbers in front of them and obviously they've got good ones for the Arcade. I guess thats true, it would also create a sku thats 1/3 cheaper and the only real difference is hard drive size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unrealistic Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I'm sure their statistics are pretty accurate, as they are probably recording all the data from Xbox Live with Serial Numbers (hdds and consoles). They can see any info they want honestly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gotenks98 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 Those stats cant be right. They are only doing this for the money its going to bite them in the butt in the end just wait and see. The thing is most folks who buy hdmi cables dont know you can buy them online for cheap. They assume the fast talking salesman at bestbuy/gamestop knows what they are talking about when they sell them those $100 monster hdmi cables when a $5 cable works just as well if not better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neoadorable Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 well spenser i can't verify my claims of course, just from personal experience and the experience of those around me. everyone i know with a 360 is either HDMI or VGA, by this juncture most are on HDMI. As was said above, it's just the most sensible connection, and almost every modern TV sold in the last three years has it anyway. I understand MS trying to explain their decision, it's the decision i don't understand. But then again, it's one they can change very easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madd-hatter Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 And that's the reason why you remove them? Because they are just cheap? I, personally, would actually prefer to order my own HDMI cables vs get some rando, short, 1.2 cable that I won't actually want. But, we are on forums and most of us know how to online shop, find deals, and compare specs. It's a ****ty deal for your average consumer, but that is what you get for being an average consumer... You get average. We, on the other hand, will get bad ass stuff. So... No biggie. It's not like those people that walk into BestBuy and talk to some ignorant college kid for 20 minutes, about which TV to buy in their overpriced store, and then walk out with a PoS, are going to notice the difference. It's what they get, it's what they deserve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neo003 Posted August 27, 2009 Share Posted August 27, 2009 I belive the interviewer was dumbfounded by MS, cause forgot to ask the question the gamer want to know rather then asking stupid question that by now even a 5 year old knows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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