UPDATE (5/09/12): Microsoft has gone live with their subscription Xbox bundle, exclusively through its Microsoft storefronts. The bundle was as previously described: $100 for a 4GB 360 + Kinect, with a $15/month Xbox Live contract. (via MCV)
Original Story (5/03/12): The Verge is reporting that Microsoft is preparing a $100 Xbox 360 Kinect bundle, with a launch as early as next week. Allegedly, the bundle would contain a 4GB model of the console, an Xbox Live Gold subscription and the motion control peripheral, and would offset its ridiculously low asking price with a 2-year, $15/month contract. The contract includes a warranty “and possibly some additional streaming content from cable providers or sports package providers”, but would levy a fee for any premature cancellations.
We’re rating this rumor on the low end of plausible, with the two-year cost of the system coming in at $459 (compared to the $419 you’d spend on the current 4GB Kinect bundle and 2 years of Gold service). But this wouldn’t be the first time a long-term contract deal turned out more expensive than a standard retail purchase. Microsoft has declined to comment on the rumor.
(via IGN)
I’d rather have a large HDD than the abysmal Kinect device.