Kinect Pricing To Come At Gamescom
"Price point is not the critical topic"...
Published: 11:50, 17/06/2010 by Gastos84.
36Rumours have it that Kinect is going to cost around $150. That’s a staggering amount of money, especially when you consider that Sony recently announced Move was going to cost $49.99.
Speaking with GI.biz at E3, Entertainment & Devices manager at Microsoft Germany – Oliver Kaltner – said that the official price for Kinect will be revealed at this year’s Gamescom, which takes place in August.
Kaltner believes, at this point in time, that price is not an “important” factor and that it actually “distracts” from the possibilities of the hardware.
We have first and foremost a product to offer that doesn’t have any entry barriers – which means that the access to fun, family entertainment and social entertainment is a direct access. I would never be able to communicate all these aspects if we mentioned a price point.
…at a certain point you end up being confident that it offers good value for money and is relevant in the market.
Kaltner also believes that Microsoft are the “significant force at E3″ this year and added that they have more to show, unveil and reveal at Gamescom as Microsoft put more weight behind the Cologne event.
Source: Gi.biz
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17/06/2010 at 11:51
Member since: May 2009
“Kaltner believes, at this point in time, that price is not an “important” factor and that it actually “distracts” from the possibilities of the hardware.”
Which means it will be expensive.
17/06/2010 at 11:55
Member since: Oct 2008
Yeah, and they’re desperately trying to get the price down to something they think we will pay for a mass-market add-on before they have to commit to one. I was surprised the ‘mass-market’ paid what it did for the Wii Balance Board though.
17/06/2010 at 12:12
Member since: Mar 2009
I was surprised by that as well, the consumer market seems to happily shell over pretty much any money for the Wii and peripherals. If Microsoft and Sony can tap that magic they’ll be raking it in.
17/06/2010 at 11:57
Member since: Mar 2010
Exactly what I was thinking. Clearly the price is going to be so high that anyone looking on will decide against getting it pretty much immediately.
To be honest, I’m thinking this is yet more proof that they’ve kinda failed in their aim. They’ve been showing people kinect for ages now, and yet they still recognise the fact that they haven’t created enough excitement for people to want it regardless of price.
17/06/2010 at 11:51
Member since: Jan 2010
Just price it already..
17/06/2010 at 11:54
Member since: Jul 2009
“I would never be able to communicate all these aspects if we mentioned a price point.”
What an awesome way of saying “it’s going to be expensive. We think it’s justified but I don’t want to admit to saying ‘yes’, it’s expensive. Ok? Now let me get back to my bratwurst sandwich”.
17/06/2010 at 11:57
Member since: May 2009
Yes $150 is expensive compared to Move’s $49.99 but with Natal you only need one for party game whereas with Move, the costs soon add up if you want to do more than two player games.
17/06/2010 at 12:03
Member since: Oct 2008
True, but it’s the same the Xbox Arcade. It’s not actually cheaper if you want all the components. But the start price is so low that people are going to buy it regardless ..
17/06/2010 at 19:14
Member since: Dec 2008
Well spoken. It’s that initial price that does it for everyone.
17/06/2010 at 12:01
Member since: Nov 2009
Kaltner also believes that Microsoft are the “significant force at E3″
.
.
.
Yeah, everyone who watched the press conference knows just how significant Microsoft was…
17/06/2010 at 12:10
Member since: Aug 2009
Price is a higher factor for me
17/06/2010 at 12:11
Member since: Mar 2009
Kinect is expensive, although the “you only need to buy it once” argument holds some sway. I think it all depends on how people buy Move. You can spread the cost of Move out if you want to, although I guess you’d need to spend $99.98 as a lot of the games (including the bundled sports game I think) require two controllers. If you don’t have a PSEye, and need to get the bundle of PSEye, Move and game and then decide that you need a second Move it comes out at the same price as Kinect.
Personally I think we’ll probably see a bit of retailer bundling, which might get the cost of PSEye and two Move’s down, or maybe we’ll see retailers bundling a single Move and a sub-controller for $10 off.
Anyway the point is people may perceive Move as cheaper as you can spread it out, or may perceive Kinect as cheaper as it’s a one off cost. We won’t know till both are out there.
17/06/2010 at 12:15
Member since: May 2009
It seems strange that they aren’t doing an ‘All hardware’ bundle.
17/06/2010 at 12:25
Member since: Mar 2009
I know, you think they’d bundle two Moves a sub and a PSEye, but then again that might break the image that it’s cheaper than Kinect. They’d have to sell it for at least the price of Kinect, and you’d only have one player gaming.
17/06/2010 at 12:29
Member since: May 2009
Breaking the image of it being cheaper shouldn’t matter if they want it in households. They could even knock a few quid off if they want to keep that image.
17/06/2010 at 12:24
Member since: Feb 2009
Basically the same ‘cost argument’ for the consoles originally. Xbox 360 was cheaper but required more for add-ons (HDDVD, HDD and WiFi etc.) whereas the PS3 always had the ‘full package’ included.
Of course this isn’t the case anymore but you get my point.
17/06/2010 at 12:25
Member since: Mar 2009
It is, except it’s oddly reversed now where Move makes you shell out for extras whereas Kinect is a one off. Strange how times are changing.
17/06/2010 at 13:31
Member since: Forever
I think both the Xbox 360 and the Wii proved that the ‘sales over time’ model works wonders.
17/06/2010 at 16:13
Member since: Dec 2008
Yes but you could use the same model to say the PS3 is cheaper against the 360 if you add the whole wireless adapter, HDDVD add-on and such. That model may not work now due to the death of HDDVD and price cuts but at one stage the PS3 was indeed better value and cheaper, and looks who’s got the most sales out of the 360 and PS3.
17/06/2010 at 12:55
Member since: Jun 2009
Quite clever bu MS, means they have a chance to try and get the cost as low as faesibly possible. Maybe Sony should have done the same :)
17/06/2010 at 13:33
Member since: Jan 2010
Sony first-party titles are going to be £20-25 so there is some saving made there.
17/06/2010 at 13:33
Member since: Forever
“Price is not an “important” factor.”
It’s a huge factor. Priced at sub $100 and it will strongly compete with Move however anything over £140 will really be too much. Yes, buying enough Move controllers to play with four people will cost more, but if the Xbox and Wii proved anything, it’s that the staggered cost model is very appeasing to consumers.