Two reasons why a $ 400 Xbox X series may be possible: a pandemic and revenge

I’ve been seeing a lot of rumors about recent comments from industry analyst Michael Pachter concluding that an Xbox Series X priced at $ 400 is “very likely.”

At first glance, that seems somewhat absurd. At least that was my initial reaction. After all, it’s probably only six months to launch, and technically the current price for the current Xbox One X is still $ 400. With all the power included in the X Series, almost everyone else in the industry believes that the Console will have a minimum price of $ 500, if not up to $ 600, given the technology involved. And if there is a lower priced console, it could be the rumored Xbox Lockhart, the “S Series” with less horsepower. And the X Series price at $ 400 would bring Lockhart’s price down to … what, exactly?

So no, I don’t agree with Pachter that the prices for the Xbox X Series are “very likely” to be $ 400. And yet … the more I think about it, the more I can admit that it’s not impossible either, for two main reasons.

The first reason is the one Pachter cites.

“Microsoft is being pretty smart in waiting for Sony here. From what I’ve seen, Sony will have to charge $ 500 for its PS5, and Microsoft has a big balance: if they want to reduce the price by $ 100, just the price below and subsidize the first ten million, they will. “

The basic facts here are true. There have been reports that the cost of the PS5 has been increased due to various parts issues, and what could have been a $ 400 console may now have to cost $ 450 or $ 500, so Sony doesn’t have to lose too much. unit. . And Pachter is correct in saying that Microsoft is in a much better position to potentially lose on the Xbox to lower the price, given the absurdly massive size of the megacorp that sells it.

I wouldn’t underestimate “revenge” as the main motivating factor here, and I’m not actually kidding. I remember 2013 when Sony really humiliated Microsoft during the PS4 vs. Xbox One E3 reveal, taunting their positions on the game swap and then dropping the microphone when they revealed that the PS4 would be priced at $ 100 less than the Xbox One, $ 400 versus $ 500, despite that it later became clear that the PS4 even had a slight power advantage to boot.

Would Microsoft love to flip that narrative for the launch of this new generation? Absolutely. We already know that the X Series is at least somewhat more powerful than the PS5, so having that advantage and Managing to undermine Sony at $ 100 would be a significant blow. I also agree that Microsoft is waiting for Sony to have a price first, as they have shared almost all the details about the X Series. except the price, so it seems clear that they are waiting for Sony to blink. Although Sony, by contrast, may be waiting for Microsoft to leave, so we’re stuck playing this chicken game.

In short, don’t underestimate Microsoft’s desire to return to Sony for 2013, and start this new generation of consoles by trying to gain an early lead in console sales at an absurdly low price for an enormously powerful unit.

The second reason for a potential $ 400 Xbox Series X? The COVID-19 pandemic and the second Great Depression.

This is a less fun reason than a corporate console dogfight, but it reflects the current realities of life in the United States and around the world.

The COVID-19 pandemic has devastated the global economy and the United States. USA In particular, where Xbox is the most popular, it now has an unemployment rate close to that of the Great Depression with tens of millions of jobs lost in just the past few weeks.

Even if the closings are lifted and people start returning to work, the financial consequences of what has already happened will be far-reaching, and no, I don’t think the potential Xbox player base is terribly secure since this holiday season after so much economic devastation. .

As a result, this may not be the time to debut your $ 500 or potentially $ 600 super console at such a high price. It’s not that people don’t want One, but it’s just a massive investment for average people at a time when they’re still trying to recover from the past few months of trouble.

Meanwhile, Microsoft, as we have already said, is a megacorporation with a market capitalization of $ 1.4 billion. Hell, even its share price has practically recovered to exactly where it was after the March-April pandemic market crisis.

In short, they are in a much A better position to lose on Xbox Series X consoles by underestimating them as consumers are making the painful decision to shell out up to $ 600 for extreme luxury when trying to recover from an economic disaster. And Microsoft is probably smart enough to realize that.

Again, I wouldn’t go so far as to say that a $ 400 Xbox Series X is “probable” and yet the more I think about it, the more I think that both the latest console race and our current pandemic could create a situation where MS could chase that price. But we will see soon, although maybe not that soon if Microsoft and Sony continue doing this dance.

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