Microsoft will apparently start shipping Xbox One bundles next year that don’t have or require a Kinect sensor, according to the ever-vocal analyst Michael Pachter.
If the confident words of Pachter in the latest webisode of Bonus Round hold their value, then Microsoft may decide to forego a bundled Kinect in exchange for larger internal memory at a discounted price next year –
“Sure they’re going to unbundle. Not in 2014. They will not change the SKU that dramatically in the first full year. It’s a 2015 event. Just the way they introduced the 4GB Xbox after a couple years, they’ll bring one out and it’ll be something that’ll look a little dumbed down. I think they’ll actually pick the core model and put a 2TB hard drive in it, and then the dumbed down one will have a 500GB hard drive, and it’ll have no Kinect, and it’ll be $400.”
Whilst Pachter believes that removal of this hardware will benefit Xbox One sales in the long run, he also noted that it won’t come soon enough. The general consensus is that the Kinect stands as the main factor that contributes to the high Xbox One price in comparison to the PS4. Pachter stated that the refusal to act sooner is down to complacency, claiming that ”Microsoft have this arrogance about them” in which they believe they are superior and, as a result, everyone will choose an Xbox One regardless of the price.
In terms of Microsoft catching up to Sony within the next-gen sales arena, Pachter was confident that the Xbox would struggle to find a foothold when it comes to pricing –
“I think this is a price game. I think unbundling Kinect is the smartest way to get competitive right away. The problem is that if by spring ’15 they cut the price to $400, Sony goes $349. Sony right now is in a position to stay ahead of them, and this is what happened with the PS2. PS2 kept taking share by cutting price,”
What do you make of Pachter’s claims? Would a Kinect-less Xbox convince you to choose Microsoft? Leave a comment below with your thoughts!
