360 officially advertised at £199.99

Microsoft have released an advert which places the Xbox360 at a £199.99 ERP.

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360 officially advertised at £199.99
The Xbox 360 has now crept in under the £200 mark on its official advertising. The advert has snuck under the radar somewhat, but when SPOnG took its girlfriend to the cinema last night it saw the ad with its own two eyes. Although it's not specified, the price tag will relate to the Core Console.

Various retailers have been selling the no frills Core Console at £199.99 for a while now, but always as special deals. This is the first time Microsoft themselves have advertised the console at the lower price point. We feel duty-bound to point out that the ad states the figure as an estimated retail price, not recommended, but it's still a strong indicator of an aggressive marketing campaign from Microsoft.

We checked with our pals over in retail and they told us that no official announcement has been handed down from Microsoft about a price change. They speculated, however, that this might be because there aren't any Core Consoles currently available to order in the UK. By not making an official announcement Microsoft might be staving off a rush on an unavailable product.

"So what?" you ask. "We were only paying a tenner more than that to start with!" True. But it sure does bring the console that bit closer in price to the soon-to-launch Wii. And bringing it below £200 makes it seem like that much more affordable a gift for parents in the run-up to Christmas. And with that in mind, you're that bit more likely to have a 360 in your living room before the PS3 hits stores next March. Sure, you'll have a controller with messy wires and no built in memory, but you'll also have a powerful next-gen piece of hardware you can play Gears of War on.

SPOnG sees this as another indication of Microsoft taking a more aggressive stance before the next-gen console wars begin in earnest. Things be heating up. Oh yes.
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Comments

SCiARA 23 Nov 2006 16:50
1/4
While this is great news for casual gamers, the premium packages with the games that are out at the moment are very good value for money.

I kind of get the feeling though that MS need to tread carefully, people are going to think there is a reason why 360 starts at £199 and PS3 at £400odd. The conclusion they may come to will be far from the truth.
alexh2o 23 Nov 2006 17:52
2/4
i really think they need to offer an upgrade package... a hard drive, wireless controller, xbl headset and component cable, throw in one months live gold and 500 points, all in one box, for say £99.

that way people could get a core for xmas/buy one, then upgrade it to the premium pack when they want to. currently it cost about £135 to upgrade a core to a premium and you have to do it in loads of parts!
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dr_faulk 23 Nov 2006 18:49
3/4
Hooray! I bought an X360 today. Premium Pack + Gears of War + Table Tennis + Call of Duty 3 for €470 = £317. Essentially you're getting two games free. Game seem to be doing the best bundles.

And now for the Wii!
SCiARA 24 Nov 2006 08:52
4/4
alexhooren wrote:
i really think they need to offer an upgrade package... a hard drive, wireless controller, xbl headset and component cable, throw in one months live gold and 500 points, all in one box, for say £99.

that way people could get a core for xmas/buy one, then upgrade it to the premium pack when they want to. currently it cost about £135 to upgrade a core to a premium and you have to do it in loads of parts!


Bloody good idea that, but I’m sure MS stance will be if you haven’t got the money for the premium then your not going to have £100odd for an accessory bundle
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