When will it be available? How much will it cost?
These are two of the main questions gamers expected Microsoft to answer about the Xbox One during the company’s E3 press conference this afternoon. Answer them, they did.
Xbox One will be available in 21 global markets this November (no specific launch date yet) for $499.99 in the U.S., £429 in the U.K. and €499 in Europe. $500 is on the expensive side of professional analyst projections, but the price is dead on what I predicted. Expecting it to launch any cheaper was nothing but wishful thinking. There’s just too much tech in the box–especially with mandatory Kinect–for the $300-400 price range many were hoping for.
Out of the box, Xbox One will come with a 500GB hard drive, a Blu-ray drive, built-in Wi-Fi, the enhanced Kinect sensor, a wireless controller and a 14-day Xbox Live Gold trial. For eager Xbox fans, Microsoft is also offering a limited edition Day One bundle. Pre-ordering one of these bundles at the same $499.99 price while supplies last will guarantee customers their Xbox Ones on day one, including premium black packaging, a wireless controller with a commemorative “Day One 2013” logo on it, and a code to unlock a “Day One” Achievement.
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