lɐuǝɯo⊥ǝɥԀ
03-08-2009, 10:17 PM
If, for whatever reason, you were recently thinking about buying an Xbox 360 Elite, you may want to do it sooner rather than later. According to information from unnamed sources, Fudzilla reports that Microsoft is considering reducing the availability of the Elite around the world, shifting it to more of a "limited edition" item in the U.S. and Europe.
According to Fudzilla's info, Microsoft would stop taking Elite orders from retailers beginning in the second quarter, allowing for current inventory to sell through completely. At that point, they'll make the Elite a limited edition item that will only be sold at select retailers, and likely only in the U.S. and Europe, with the hardware disappearing completely in the rest of the world. These new limited edition versions of the Elite would also take on more of the form of the Resident Evil 5 bundle, adding extra incentives to the package -- and probably selling for a higher price as well.
For retailers, they would actually prefer a draw down of the Elite, as the recession has reduced demand for the more expensive version of the 360 hardware, making it sit on shelves longer than the Arcade and Pro models. The sources also said that as part of this phase-out, Microsoft would begin offering a separate hard drive that's bigger than the 120GB drive the Elite comes with.
As a special bonus, there's actually two caveats that come with this rumor: First of all, naturally, it is a rumor, with all the unconfirmed information coming from anonymous sources. But even if it's all true, so far Microsoft is only said to be considering this option, as they're currently in the planning process and will only finalize it "if it makes the best economic sense." As Fudzilla speculates, much could depend on how well the RE5 bundle sells.
Source - 1UP
According to Fudzilla's info, Microsoft would stop taking Elite orders from retailers beginning in the second quarter, allowing for current inventory to sell through completely. At that point, they'll make the Elite a limited edition item that will only be sold at select retailers, and likely only in the U.S. and Europe, with the hardware disappearing completely in the rest of the world. These new limited edition versions of the Elite would also take on more of the form of the Resident Evil 5 bundle, adding extra incentives to the package -- and probably selling for a higher price as well.
For retailers, they would actually prefer a draw down of the Elite, as the recession has reduced demand for the more expensive version of the 360 hardware, making it sit on shelves longer than the Arcade and Pro models. The sources also said that as part of this phase-out, Microsoft would begin offering a separate hard drive that's bigger than the 120GB drive the Elite comes with.
As a special bonus, there's actually two caveats that come with this rumor: First of all, naturally, it is a rumor, with all the unconfirmed information coming from anonymous sources. But even if it's all true, so far Microsoft is only said to be considering this option, as they're currently in the planning process and will only finalize it "if it makes the best economic sense." As Fudzilla speculates, much could depend on how well the RE5 bundle sells.
Source - 1UP