Microsoft officially announces 20GB premium price cut & new 60GB SKU

But do Australian’s get the New SKU’s soon, or do we play the waiting game – Yet again ! ?

by XboxOZ360

©2008 Grant Smythe

What ever the outcome, you’d better grab those 20GB SKU’s now, or they will all be gone toot-sweet.

Not too long ago, in the US, Microsoft issued an Official Press Release stating that they will be cutting the price of the 20GB Xbox 360 Premium SKU in the US/Can to $US299. We all knew this was happening, and were simply awaiting “Official Confirmation” of this. So here it is.

What was even nicer within the Press Release was the announcement of the rumoured 60GB SKU which will also be shipping come August in Nth America (US & Canada). It seems us Australian’s will miss out for now, and may well not see the 60GB SKU in stores probably until – say November or even December. But current 20GB SKU’s will drop in price as it’s been reported over the last week in our local press.

The NEW 60GB SKU will be available in retail stores in the U.S. and Canada starting in early August, the upgraded Xbox 360 will include a 60GB hard drive for storing the growing wealth of digital entertainment available for the console, and naturally includes the ability to store greater amounts of music, movies, television shows, and game content. In addition, Microsoft today dropped the price of its 20GB Xbox 360 console in the U.S. and Canada to just $299 (U.S.) (ERP) while supplies last, a savings of $US50. (Here are our local $AUD “reduced” prices Arcade is $349RRP, Pro is $499RRP and Elite is $649RRP)

Of course this means that the “current” 20GB SKU will be sold as a “Clearance Item” in most stores prior to the new 60GB SKU taking its place so that there still remains just 3 basic SKU’s for the Xbox 360. Naturally once all units have been sold they will go back to having three SKUs as “standard” and the 60GB SKU will simply take the place of all existing 20GB SKU’s. So for those of you who have been wanting a cheaper Xbox 360, now is the time to grab one, as no doubt, the price for the 60GB SKU will not be the same as the reduced 20GB SKU, unless a miracle happens of course, and MS stay at the current price-point once reduced.

Which personally I certainly hope they do, as a rise back up in price, even with a larger HDD would NOT go down well with punters, especially here in Australia.

Below you will find the Press Release that just came out of the States hours ago.

©2008 Grant Smythe

Xbox 360 Console Now Offers Triple the Storage

Published July 13, 2008

Redmond, Washington—Microsoft is giving consumers more gigabytes for their buck. The company today announced an Xbox 360® console with triple the storage space of the original console, but for the same price of $349 (U.S.) estimated retail price.

Available in retail stores in the U.S. and Canada starting in early August, the upgraded Xbox 360 will include a 60GB hard drive for storing the growing wealth of digital entertainment available for the console, including music, movies, television shows, and game content. In addition, Microsoft today dropped the price of its 20GB Xbox 360 console in the U.S. and Canada to just $299 (U.S.) (ERP) while supplies last, a savings of $50.

“We know consumers need more and more space to store the amazing digital content Xbox 360 offers, and we’re giving it to them at no extra charge,” said Albert Penello, Xbox director of product management at Microsoft. “No one device offers the depth and breadth of entertainment that Xbox 360 can deliver, and now you’ll have three times the storage to manage all that great content.”

Xbox 360 is just one of three Xbox 360 gaming and entertainment systems Microsoft offers. Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Arcade, which comes with a 256MB memory unit and five Xbox LIVE Arcade games, is a value for the whole family for $279 (U.S.) (ERP), and the premium Xbox 360 Elite console is available with a 120GB hard drive for $449 (U.S.) (ERP).

Out of the box, the Xbox 360 console is ready to provide an incredible gaming and entertainment experience:

• Xbox 360 console: The console is equipped with a cool white finish and three powerful core processors capable of producing the best in high definition (HD) entertainment (up to 1080p for gaming), 16:9 cinematic aspect ratio, anti-aliasing for smooth textures, full surround sound, and high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) output.

•60GB Hard Drive: The 60GB detachable hard drive allows you to save your games and store television shows, movies, music, pictures, trailers, levels, demos, and other content available from Xbox LIVE Marketplace, the premier one-stop digital download center for entertainment.

• Upscaling DVD Player: With an HDMI cable (sold separately), watch your favorite DVDs in near high-definition using the upscaling capabilities of Xbox 360.

• Xbox 360 Wireless Controller: This award-winning, high-performance wireless controller features the Xbox Guide Button for quick, in-game access to friends and music. It has a range of up to 30 feet and a battery life of up to 30 hours on two AA batteries.

• Xbox 360 Headset: The headset lets friends and family around the world chat while playing games, watching movies, or sending voice messages on Xbox LIVE.

• Xbox LIVE Silver Membership: For no additional cost, Xbox 360 owners can chat with friends online, collect Achievements to improve their Gamerscores, send and receive voice and text messages, and access Xbox LIVE Marketplace content such as game demos, and purchase or rent HD movies and TV shows, as well as the best in downloadable games from Xbox LIVE Arcade. (Broadband Internet access required.)

•One-month subscription to Xbox LIVE Gold: An Xbox LIVE Gold Membership provides a complete online entertainment experience. Those who subscribe to this premium service can engage in competitive online multiplayer matches, tailor their matchmaking via feedback and accomplishments, and chat with an entire group of friends at a time.

Filed under: Console gaming, Hardware News, Support Australian Stores, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 News Tagged: | "Reduced 20gig SKU's", "Xbox 360 60GB SKU", 60 gig Xbox360", new 60Gig Xbox 360", New Xbox 360 60gig console", Reduced australian xbox 360 prices"