Hot on the heels of Microsoft's "mock" price cut where they slashed the price of the 20GB HDD Xbox 360s to $299, only to replace the $349 SKU with a 60GB HDD, Signal Hill analyst Todd Greenwald is demanding a true 360 price cut to stay competitive with the Playstation 3."We remain very sceptical [sic] of Microsoft's pricing strategy and competitive positioning versus the PlayStation 3", Greenwald recently told investors saying that "at USD 349, with a 60GB hard drive, we just don't think it is a compelling product compared with the PS3 at USD 399 with an 80GB hard drive (along with more processing horsepower, Blu-ray, Wifi, HDMI, and going forward, more exclusive content)." Greenwald further picked apart Microsoft's E3 strategy mentioning that "Sony's biggest announcement was a strong counter-punch to Microsoft's USD 50 price cut on the 360", adding that "beyond Gears of War 2, Microsoft doesn't seem to have the same library of exclusive, must-have titles."
While we don't agree with Greenwald when it comes to the Xbox 360 lacking "must-have titles" or being less of a gaming powerhouse, we tend to agree that Microsoft missed an opportunity with their console pricing. Clearancing out the 20GB HDD models is fine by us, but we truly think a price drop across all models would have helped team Microsoft stay competitive with Sony and Nintendo. Especially in Europe. What say you fellow fanboys? Will a 360 price drop be necessary going into the holidays or will the 360's games library and content partnerships be enough to win the 2008 console war?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
7-22-2008 @ 8:27AM
tan said...
'PS3 at USD 399 with an 80GB hard drive (along with more processing horsepower, Blu-ray, Wifi, HDMI'
yes many of that is the true case but all 360's have hdmi now.
so he is incorrect in stating that the ps3 has the advantage of hdmi over 360.
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7-22-2008 @ 8:27AM
ericdrum said...
"and going forward, more CRAPPY exclusive content". Fixed. My Wii has way more exclusive content than my 360 too.... and I own 3 Wii games and over 40 360 games.
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7-22-2008 @ 5:17PM
gamedude420 said...
actually he is correct.
the ps3 does have an advantage it has hdmi 1.3a
xbox 360 uses 1.2
7-22-2008 @ 5:31PM
tan said...
he doesn't say that though!!!
-_-
7-22-2008 @ 8:34AM
RedSonRising said...
"Microsoft doesn't seem to have the same library of exclusive, must-have titles."
id like to know what titles theyre talking about.. xbox 360 has an enormous stable full of good games and several standout blockbusters.. ps3 has a few good exclusives but i think xbox more games that i want to play (gears anyone? halo?)
a price drop would be nice but i dont think its a dealbreaker.. if the arcade included a hdd for the same 299 that be a 'price cut' in my eyes but not to analysts.. analysts who probably dont own a system and havent played a game on a next gen console..
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7-22-2008 @ 10:19AM
Snowman said...
I think he meant going forward, so I don't think he was counting the titles that are already out. Still its always pointless to get too caught up in what analyst say.
As someone who know has both systems I've been quite happy with the games available for both.
7-22-2008 @ 11:00AM
RedSonRising said...
@Snowman said...
I think he meant going forward
ps3 has a decent future lineup but im still not impressed.. i want games, dlc, updates, patches et all and i want it all today.. promising a 10 year run for the ps3 is nice, but i cant wait for year 4 or 5 for a game i want to play..
perfect example: m$ just showed a new dashboard at e3.. they didnt tease us forever like sony's Home program, they just give us more in a timely fashion..
right now m$ is delivering product while sony talks about how good their product is gonna be.. by the time the ps3 has a solid stable of truly next gen titles itll be 5 or 6 years old and ps3fanboys will have missed out on nearly half of this console generation's lifetime..
7-22-2008 @ 8:35AM
andyg8180 said...
I have no clue what E3 that guy was watching, but Sony didnt pull out any "must-have" blockbusters...
And what was Sony's "biggest announcement" again? I didnt understand that part... The 40 gig got re-sku'd with an 80 gig HDD... No backwards like the original 80... So its not a price-cut, its an introduction of a new product..
Where do they find these old guys with old balls to write these articles???
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7-22-2008 @ 9:39AM
joey said...
You can bet that SONY is going to market that big "80gb" and that big "ONLY $ 399"?
Comparing to XBOX "60gb" and $ 349?
Oh, and the damned WII @ $ 249.
Now the Xbox is between a rock and a hard place.
7-22-2008 @ 9:53AM
andyg8180 said...
@Joey... this is true, but XBL is much more successful and theres so much on marketplace btwn Netflix, the games, and RockBand DLC to keep microsoft making big moves
I think 349 is a great price... i think 299 is an even better price lol... But for gaming, i would choose my 360 over my ps3... For watching DVD's and blu, obv i would choose the PS3... But now with Netflix, i will be spending a lot of face time with my 360 since there are so many TV shows to watch...
The wii is the "pet rock" of our era... I cant wait till the trend dies and never comes back...
7-22-2008 @ 8:38AM
frank said...
Considering that it's $349USD for the 60GB Xbox360 then another $90USD for wireless and another $399USD for a bluray player the cost of an equivalent system to the PS3 comes in at $838USD!
Yeah...MS needs to wake up and slash some prices.
That said, I love my 360 and the games I can play on it. I really enjoy LIVE. Plus I dont have to use that hideous PS controller. And thats what really matters to me.
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7-22-2008 @ 8:45AM
Swamp Donkey said...
Come on, this is how it always works. They won't cut the price on the 60gb units until all of the 20gb are sold out at $299. When they are, the 60's will drop to $299 within weeks.
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7-22-2008 @ 9:20AM
john said...
Swamp, its unlikely Microsoft will drop the 60GB sku to $299 after being on the market & priced at $349 for just a few months. Can you imagine how fumed those buyers would be? Now, I agree with the analyst..Microsoft needs a real price cut. I think the Elite sku is dead...it does not measure up to the just announced 80GB PS3 at $399. So heres a radical idea for Microsoft/XBox. Drop the Elite Model and make the Pro model available in black. Finally, drop $20 off during the holiday (that shouldn't upset those who bought 60GB sku at full price)...
$259 - Arcade
$329 - XBox 360 (White or Black)
If Microsoft decides to keep the Elite sku around...it desperately needs to be priced at/below $399.
7-22-2008 @ 8:46AM
xFenixKnightx said...
Okay, heres my take on what they should do this Holiday.
Arcade $239.99 *cheaper than Wii!!!
wired headset, Hd cables, 512mb mem card, 1 free month of LIVE, Scene it or some *New good XBLA games
60gb Premium $299.99
w/2 bundled games, HDMI cables, 3 free months LIVE, wired headset
120gb Elite $399.99, HDMI cables, 3 free months LIVE, *Wifi adapter, *wireless headset, Halo3/Gears of War included
BAM, Sony just got PWNED!!! Damnit I need to call MS and get a job there NAO!!!
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7-22-2008 @ 10:11AM
Raheem said...
You need to learn about business and how to turn a profit :P NAO!
7-22-2008 @ 8:49AM
Mythor said...
The 360 also has Fable 2, Halo Wars and probably other things.
The PS3 has... Motorstorm and Resistance?
There's some nice exclusives on both sides of the fence, but many of the really good games are multiplatform now. I don't really see that as bad for the 360.
The 360 has had a price advantage over the PS3 for a long time, yet people still see the PS3 as the better buy. I don't think it's price alone that is motivating the PS3 purchasers.
(Also, "[sic]" implies an error. Sceptical is not an error, merely an alternative spelling.)
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7-22-2008 @ 9:10AM
Boff said...
I was just about to ask that. 'Sceptical' is spelled 'sceptical'.
Alternative spelling? I thought that was the only spelling?
I've just said the word 'sceptical' too many times in my head and now it just sounds weird! :oP
7-22-2008 @ 12:45PM
Jay said...
the common spelling is skeptical.
7-22-2008 @ 12:53PM
Mythor said...
I realise that's the common spelling, Jay. That doesn't mean it's the only *correct* spelling.
It's equivalent to putting a [sic] after "colour", if that helps you understand why it's wrong.
7-22-2008 @ 8:49AM
Wise Guy said...
What are these "must have" exclusives? So Sony shows a bunch of their own exclusive shooters and we're supposed to go out and buy one. 360 seems to have a MUCH more diverse library. Seems to me that Sony is trying to play catch up in the US by coming out with more shooters (who would want to shooters with a PS controller??).... I wouldn't bank on Sony having much of a strategy or identity at this point. They've lost touch with their audience.
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