Microsoft Hints at Xbox 360 HD-DVD Add-On Price?
Posted Wed May 10, 2006 at 11:11 AM PDT by
Has Microsoft inadvertently revealed the price for its just-announced
HD-DVD add-on drive for the Xbox 360?
Online game and technology sites are abuzz with news that the company posted
the cost of the device on its official Xbox website for a brief time this morning,
before the information was quickly pulled. According to reports from readers
at various websites including
AVS
Forum and
The Digital
Bits, a $199 price for the add-on device appeared
as
a part of this E3 report at Xbox.com, before disappearing.
Should the posted information turn out to be true, the combined cost of the
$399 Xbox 360 and $199 HD-DVD add-on drive would place it in the same range
as Sony's upcoming Blu-Ray-driven PlayStation 3, which Sony announced
yesterday will arrive in two configurations, a $499 20 GB version and
a more pricey $599 60 GB model.
Microsoft
would
only confirm that the pricing and availability details on the accessory
will be announced at a later date, and would not confirm nor deny the $199 HD-DVD
add-on cost rumor.
However, the company did release a picture of HD-DVD drive's design yesterday
at E3 during a press conference. The add-on is about the size of a standard
external 3.5'' drive, comes housed in a styled off-white case with perforated
grey faceplate and appeared to be designed to stand vertically next to the Xbox
360 vertically.
At the conference, Microsoft spokesperson Peter Moore also promised that the
add-on would be a "bargain" compared to other high-def options, and
will be in stores by this holiday season.