Xbox 360 HD DVD drive hitting States for $200

Just like expected, Microsoft is busting out their Xbox 360 HD DVD add-on for a mere $199.99 in the US, while they're shipping the drive for €199.99 in Europe and £129.99 in the UK. The drive will also be bundled with Peter Jackson's King Kong and the Xbox 360 Universal Remote. The combined price of an Xbox 360 and HD DVD drive in each region adds up to basically the same price as a PlayStation 3, which doesn't give Microsoft much of an edge for console buyers who haven't bought a next-gen console just yet, but gives them quite the price advantage for current Xbox 360 owners. It looks like Japan FTW on this one, since they're getting their drive for roughly $170, and have a solid November 17th release date, while Microsoft is targeting mid-November for the US and Europe.

[KKop @ Sep 27th 2006 2:34PM]

Where's the love in your reporting for Europe (and the rest of the globe?)? I'm fairly sure there's a world outside the US and UK...

[funkbass23 @ Sep 27th 2006 2:34PM]

In fact, you're getting a better deal buying the lower end Playstation 3, which will now have HDMI. That will cost $500 including HDMI, Blu-Ray, and a 20gb hard drive. Don't compare the higher end models, compare on features.

So it's the same money as the higher end PS3, but then on that you also get a larger hard drive and wireless. If you want both a game system and a next gen player, PS3 is clearly the better value.

[Noshino @ Sep 27th 2006 2:38PM]

err...seems MS is trying its hardest to sell the 360 in japan, altho they ll never beat sony or nintendo in japan.

[bryan ribas @ Sep 27th 2006 2:48PM]

How is this going to connect to the xbox? USB?

[Mack Swift @ Sep 27th 2006 2:47PM]

Will this drive work with a PC? It is just a USB 2.0 external optical device.

[Eric @ Sep 27th 2006 2:48PM]

Sega 32x

[Yoshi Likes Boys @ Sep 27th 2006 2:55PM]

Somehow the $500 PS3 just got a whole lot more appealing.

[CharlieX @ Sep 27th 2006 3:03PM]

It's certainly a good deal for current 360 owners... At lets be honest, the PS3 isn't on store shelves yet and it's going to go for a *mint* on ebay through the holidays.

Right now it seems HD-DVD has a slight advantage in the format war (I still am hoping for Blu-Ray). So you're only out $200 if HD-DVD goes to pot. HDMI would be nice, certainly, but most people couldn't tell the difference between HDMI and component HD - honesetly.

I'll stick to HD cable and 480p until this whole mess subsides.

[Dp462090 @ Sep 27th 2006 3:05PM]

And people talk about how Sony's F***'d up; for anyone without a Xbox 360, the PS3 is looking even better.

[Kyle @ Sep 27th 2006 3:12PM]

I was thinking more like anyone with a 360, spending money on the PS3 looks wasteful.

[Jon Graft @ Sep 27th 2006 3:11PM]

Gee...now correct me if I;m wrong on this...

XBOX360 (core) + HD-DVD Player = $600
-or-
High End PS3 (doesn't need any atatchments to play HD) = $600

...also...

XBOX360 (core) + HD-DVD Player = $600
-or-
Low End PS3 (still doesn't need any atatchments to play HD) = $500

Now what are all you XBOTs gonna flame SONY for now, huh?

[LandMineHare @ Sep 27th 2006 3:31PM]

Good counting there slick.

[Matt @ Sep 27th 2006 3:39PM]

Uh... you're wrong

Xbox 360 (Core) + HD-DVD drive = $500

The Premium with the HD-DVD drive = $600

[Nathan Ziarek @ Sep 27th 2006 3:12PM]

While $200 is pretty cheap for the whole enchilada, I have to agree: If you want to get into both the gen DVD format and a next gen console, the PS3 is the better bet. If you are looking for just gaming, X360 will get you in cheaper. Instead of dominating the price/performance holiday sales, Microsoft just made this interesting.

Good thing I'm a DS guy. Cheap, fun games and bluray really shines on those dual screens :-)

[Markcus Dunn @ Sep 27th 2006 3:14PM]

It's a great deal for people who already own a 360 and you won't be able to walk into a store and buy a PS3 until sometime next year

[Jason @ Sep 27th 2006 3:27PM]

Sweet Ill get the remote that is now missing from the Premium. Combine this with the more than likely price drop and Ill be golden. Three new Halo games to go along with it. Still sounds like the better option to me. Oh and if BR takes off, they can ship one of those too. What happens when BR fails? Is sony gonna ship an add on HD-DVD player???

[Radon @ Sep 27th 2006 3:22PM]

You are wrong, the Core 360 is $300 not $400 so a 360(core) and the HD-DVD drive is $500 not $600.

Now I don't know about everyone else but I have a HDTV for gaming not movies, If I want to watch a movie I will see it in theaters so the PS3's Blu-ray drive is useless to me and that means I can use the $100 I saved getting a 360 on games.

[tenchi71 @ Sep 27th 2006 3:23PM]

@Jon Graft

You forgot to add:

XBOX360 (core) = $299
XBOX360 Premium = $399

What IF you don't want to invest into a format war for movies? Xbox gives you that choice, Playstation doesn't.

[andidyus @ Sep 27th 2006 3:30PM]

@radon

Okay so if your trying to say they will cost the same for low end, lets compare xbox 360 core + hd-dvd and low end PS3. Which one comes with a hard drive?

For the same price?

Which one is ready out of the box?

Which one doesnt need a duct-taped backpack addon to play the additional format?

The answer to that will be the same answer to which one will be sitting in my living room on launch day.

Oh, right, PS3. STFU XBOX fanboys you just got PWNED!

[ricefarmer @ Sep 27th 2006 3:31PM]

Funkbass,

I'm still at a loss to all this hoopla over HDMI. Great, it's a digital connection... now how many people will actually notice the difference vs. compononent? I'm betting not many. In fact, I can't even figure out why they totally ditched DVI. Whoop dee doo.. I get audio and Content Restriction with HDMI.

People who own HDTVs/high end players also own nice A/V recievers. We already run our sound through that, not some stupid HDMI cable to some crappy TV speakers. That leaves us with Content Restriction.. and like sheep, people like you are willing to just embrace it.

Even so, in this generation of video game systems and for the next few 5 years, no major studio will enforce content restriction on HD-DVD/Blu-Ray discs. The studios have even admitted to this. So what is the advantage of HDMI again? Maybe in the next generation of systems it will matter, but not this one.

[funkbass23 @ Sep 27th 2006 5:11PM]

It won't matter too much, unless there are those content restrictions. You're missing the point of my post, however. It was to just show that there were uneven comparisons between the price of the Xbox 360 with this attachment and the PS3.

My point was that the Core Xbox + Add on is for the same amount as the core PS3 by itself, only the core PS3 has the features of the Premium Xbox. So in order to really compare features to features, you'd have to compare the Premium Xbox 360 to the Core PS3, given that they both have 20gb hard drives, etc. Comparing the high end SKUs is also inaccurate because the higher end PS3 contains a larger hard drive, wireless, etc. Mentioning the HDMI was an aside.

By the way, you can just directly reply to my message now.

[Jeff @ Sep 27th 2006 9:31PM]

"how many people will actually notice the difference vs. compononent?"

HDMI looks much better when viewing HD content. SD content looks about the same, but that's a null point.

it's nearly the same difference as using VGA or DVI. if you cannot see the difference, great. save yourself a buck on cables. but there IS an easily discernible and measurable difference in picture quality.

HDMI is essentially DVI, i dont really know why they didn't just use DVI either, but whatever. (i think HDCP can be enforced though DVI as well... maybe not)

[Alan Strangis @ Sep 27th 2006 3:31PM]

$200 seems like a pretty reasonable price, but I'll wait until the HD/Blu battle results look more solidified. With HD DVD edging out in the lead at the moment - see DVD Wars...

http://www.thedvdwars.com/index.cfm

I'd lean towards this add-on (not having an HDMI compatible TV yet), but then again, I won my X360 from a radio contest, so it's almost a no-brainer from me.

[steven @ Sep 27th 2006 3:37PM]

I think most of you are forgetting that the whole idea is to be able to pick and chose what you want. Why would you want to be forced to buy a format that might lose the war? If you have enough money to not care, just buy both and stop complaining.

[CharlieX @ Sep 27th 2006 3:48PM]

just saw this blurb on macworld.... apparently you'll need to use the 360's VGA cable to get 1080p out of a HD-DVD.... othwerwise the constraint forces 1080i max out of the component cables. WTF? lame.

http://gadgets.macworld.com/games/the_lowdown_on_the_360s_high_d.php

[pciii @ Sep 27th 2006 4:11PM]

You only need the VGA cables for 1080P when watching movies. You will be able to get 1080P via component cables for games. This is because of restrictions set by the HD-DVD/BR. Technically even VGA is suppose to only display up to 1080i via the same rules but M$ somehow got passed that.

Either way it is lame. M$ really messed up with not including HDMI.

[Jeff @ Sep 27th 2006 3:48PM]

"Now I don't know about everyone else but I have a HDTV for gaming not movies, If I want to watch a movie I will see it in theaters"

Wow, so you have never, ever seen a movie made before you were of the age that you could buy a movie ticket, or that you just plain missed when it was in theaters? Talk about some narrow horizons...

"What IF you don't want to invest into a format war for movies? Xbox gives you that choice, Playstation doesn't."

Sure, there's a choice. Buy or don't buy.

Seriously. I mean let's be realistic here. You're going to buy either HD-DVD or BD eventually. Deny it all you want; a lot of people said VHS was good enough for them a few years ago too, and now you can't even buy VHS tapes at Wal-Mart anymore (well, maybe you can, but it's getting harder to find them). DVD will go that route in a few years time too, and you'll be buying BD or HD-DVD.

The only question is going to be whether you want to stay stuck in the technological stone ages, and assuming not, which format you want to go with. At which point it *is* a question of spending basically the same amount of money.

Now, you can argue that a 360 lets you buy in to gaming now and upgrade to HD-DVD later, which the PS3 doesn't. Fair enough. But what if you buy a 360 now, HD-DVD folds and you *have* to buy BD (or nothing) if you want high-def movies? So now, not only did you have to spend $300 on a 360, you *also* have to spend probably $400 on a BD player. And you've got two boxes and two sets of wires going out to your TV set (believe me, this gets out of hand after a while when you start adding unnecessary components to your system).

In that case, you've actually come out significantly *behind* going the Xbox 360 route, in several ways.

Now, BD could fold just as easily as HD-DVD, in which case the reverse would be true. But I'm just saying it's basically a wash. Neither side can really claim a cost advantage here.

In order for 360 backers to claim that, you would have to assume that you will *never* want any high-def disc format. Otherwise, you're looking at 50/50 odds that buying either system will be more cost effective, so it's not an argument you can make.

Personally, I think you're getting more for the money with the PS3 - you're getting more power (however much more you think it is, it's still more), you're getting HDMI output, you're getting a 20GB drive even in the lower-end model, and you're getting a single box and a single set of wires for both games and BD. For me, not trying to delude myself that I will never have any need or desire for HD movies (in fact, I have a need and desire *right now*), the PS3 is in fact a much better value than the Xbox 360+HD-DVD.

[Jeff @ Sep 27th 2006 3:50PM]

"In that case, you've actually come out significantly *behind* going the Xbox 360 route, in several ways."

I confused *myself* with this when I read it back - I meant you've come out behind *by* going the Xbox 360 route, vs. the PS3 route.

[JasonLynx @ Sep 27th 2006 3:52PM]

My 50 inch LCD project has DVI. Not HDMI.

[Andrew Paul Baisden @ Sep 27th 2006 3:54PM]

there are hdmi to dvi transiters

[CharlieX @ Sep 27th 2006 3:57PM]

yea, HDMI is basically DVI with added wires for sound and whatnot... so you can slap an adapter on it.

[Nintendud @ Sep 27th 2006 3:56PM]

If you want to play GAMES, get a Wii. It's $250.

If you want to play HD DVDs with gaming on the side, XBox 360.

If you want to play Blu-Ray discs with gaming on the side, PS3.

It's that simple. Also, no matter how many people go "LAWL XBOX SUX" or "LAWL PS3 FTW" or "LAWL XBOX IS DA BEST", it won't really change anyone's opinion unless playing movies with a gaming system is of utter importance.

[theflew @ Sep 27th 2006 3:56PM]

Actually if you live, in or near Columbus, OH Microcenter has the Xbox 360 core or premium $100 off for 2 weeks, so I imagine this is just a sign the price is going to drop $100.

Microcenter Xbox 360 Promotion Link:
http://cps7.britemoon.com/ccps/ui/images/498/content_load/106/enews.09.24.online.html

[pciii @ Sep 27th 2006 4:03PM]

@andidyus

your an idiot, "XBOX fanboys you just got PWNED!" Who will get PWNED once HD-DVD wins? Your sorry-arse!

M$ is taking the conservative approach to next gen consoles and Hi-Def DVDs. Whether you like the 360 or not, it gives you the option. Want HD-DVD then buy the drive, want wireless then buy the adapter. Sony is forcing Blue Ray down our throats. Personally I prefer HD-DVD (regardless of the 360).

The only things $ony has advantage is on HDMI, backwards compatiblity (emulation). M$ will eventually come out with HDMI and xbox compatibility is lacking. Now we only heard promises from Sony on backwards compatibilty, we need to see it in action.

The PS3 has a bigger hard drive but that doesn't play a big role in things. It would be nice to have a bigger drive for things to download (videos and demos) but honestly how long do you plan to watch the same video over and over again. For demos, you play it and if you like it then buy the game then delete it. If you don't like the demo then you'll delete it anyway. I would be happy with a larger HD but it isn't a huge deal.

Minus HDMI, I am very happy with M$ approach to the next gen console. Now M$ needs to ramp up the software available for the 360.

Here is my XBOX fanboy remark
The PS3 interface for their "Live" looks lame. it doesn't give the impression of everything at your finger-tips. Live does, IMHO.

BTW, have you played the PS3? Didn't think so, I have and wasn't that impressed. So STFU andidyus!

Oh and good luck renting or sharing games on the PS3 because you can't.

[Steven @ Sep 27th 2006 3:58PM]

bu dud Ps3 does pwn. yea the 360 wit the hdd makes it about the same as the ps3 but the 360 is still left with the obsolete dvd9 format. you can only put so much stuff on it and if they choose to use the HD addon for gaming they have to design the 360 and/or the hd to allow it which is bad for the games cause they gotta do more stuff plus not everyone will get one. its like segas 32x addon.

[Chris @ Sep 27th 2006 4:03PM]

11 to 1 sales this last month... ya hddvd is winning lol
up from last month that was 8 to 1 sales

And the fact is this rocks for current 360 owners... its a great price rather than a standalone system....

And for new 360 owners and people that want games they can get in nice and cheap with a core or a pro unit without any hddvd... since most wont want it anyway... and if down the road they decide they want hddvd they cna go out and pick up a hddvd addon its a simple as that

IT COMES DOWN TO CHOICE... something aparently sony has never heard of

[Chris @ Sep 27th 2006 4:06PM]

Dont forget the other 360 reasons

GTAIV exclusive content (hours of downloadable episodeic content)
Halo 3
Gears of War
Army of Two
Bioshock
Forza 2 (with 300 cars ON THE DISK)
PGR4
SC5
Hell even viva pinata

just to name a few of the exclusives

[shakezilla @ Sep 27th 2006 9:07PM]

Why would you want the HD add-on for the 360? It can't be used for games, only to play movies. If MS can make and sell an HD player for $199, surely there will stand-alone players around that price shortly.

The PS3 can utilize BlueRay for game data as well as movie playing, which is smart, but do games really need that much space?

As most have already said, I just want to play games on my game system. Shiny trinkets won't sway me.

[Edbak @ Sep 27th 2006 4:27PM]

still waiting to see what titles are out by then....

[Jason @ Sep 27th 2006 4:09PM]

Not to mention MS could just as easily add a BR drive if needed. Oh and for actually gaming, its not a bad choice either, 3 halo titles, exclusive Splinter Cell 5, and they don't strip online content from games a la sony and their latest anouncements.

[JasonLynx @ Sep 27th 2006 4:10PM]

Who says we have to buy a BD or HD DVD player in the future?

I want direct HD downloads!

[Chris @ Sep 28th 2006 10:02AM]

Crap i also forgot to say...

Tony Hawk and Virtua Tennis

No they arent exclusive, BUT ATLEAST THE 360 VERSION HAS MULTIPLAYER

[Raider @ Sep 27th 2006 4:36PM]

Alright.. I'll bring arguments for and against Sony.

If you are going to COMPARE the Xbox 360, you have to compare the Premium unit. The Premium unit is equal to the basic PS3, just without next-gen DVD format. So you can't compare a Core Xbox 360 to a basic PS3, unless you buy a separate 20GB hard drive and add it on (which makes it the Premium unit anyways). Which makes the Sony a better deal, because not only is it $99 cheaper, but it has HDMI. HDMI > VGA any day. But you get the same hard drive space.

Now here is the kicker.....
Say if you want to compare a comparable Xbox 360 to the Premium PS3...
this is what you get...
Xbox Premium (only 20GB hard drive) $399
HD DVD drive $199
WiFi adapter $99
That makes a COMPARABLE Xbox 360 $697. $98 more expensive than the Premium PlayStation 3. Plus you are getting a hard drive with 40GB less. This is not even counting the memory card reader either.

So that makes the PlayStation 3 a better deal FOR WHAT YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY.
+++++++++++++++++++++++
Now the big problem with the PlayStation 3.

IT IS BLU-RAY!!!
The data is written so shallowly on the disc. A simple scratch will trash it and render it useless. You can't repair it via DVD Doctor, because the data layer is almost basically at the surface.

http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/blu-ray-6.gif

[Porsche 911 @ Sep 27th 2006 4:59PM]

Durabis is a brand name for a clear polymer coating developed by the TDK Corporation. The need for a protective polymer arose due to the fact that Blu-Ray discs write much closer to the readable portion of a disc than do other disc formats, including HD DVD. One of its principal applications at first will be for scratch resistance in Blu-ray and other optical discs. It is claimed to be tough enough to resist screwdriver damage and make scratched optical discs (CDs and DVDs) a thing of the past.

In order to meet Blu-ray's specifications, TDK's coating had to be less than 0.1 mm thick, be hard enough to resist considerable damage and yet be transparent enough to be easily read. According to a filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the process essentially spin coats two layers onto discs. One is for protection against scratches and the other protects against stains and oils.

It should be noted that the Durabis coating is not required for Blu-ray or any other optical disc, and both Sony and Panasonic have their own independent hard coating technologies that are primarily in use on Blu-ray pre-recorded discs.

A TDK spokesman says the present protective layer represents "the first generation" of the coating and that the company has been refining the technology to better suit Blu-ray Discs. Although it might seem possible to adapt the polymer to other uses in LCD, CRT, and plasma screens, TDK plans to target the DVD market for now, because scratches are so common on DVDs that in the rental market, they may only last about 12 to 13 rentals on average.

[Sean DL @ Sep 27th 2006 4:53PM]

"Seriously. I mean let's be realistic here. You're going to buy either HD-DVD or BD eventually. Deny it all you want; a lot of people said VHS was good enough for them a few years ago too, and now you can't even buy VHS tapes at Wal-Mart anymore (well, maybe you can, but it's getting harder to find them). DVD will go that route in a few years time too, and you'll be buying BD or HD-DVD."


Err...uhh...No. This is nothing like the trasition from VHS to DVD(Which took more then five years, btw)

This transition is more like the CD transiting to SACD(That's Super Audio CDs) or DVD-A(DVD Audio).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Audio_CD

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVD-Audio

It's just not going to happen.

Two formats NOBODY really cares about, because CD are good enough. And both sides are pretty much giving away the audio formats with regular CDS these days....

Funny thing is Sony was behind SACD....

iTunes has a better chance of taking over for DVD then these formats do.

[Porsche 911 @ Sep 27th 2006 5:05PM]

iTunes is not better, it takes up a lot of HDD space and CDs do not... blu-ray more content in 1 cd, IF BD dies, however, the PS3 will not, if not the movies, the games will still be there and produced

[Raider @ Sep 27th 2006 9:41PM]

Nice copy and paste job.

But that doesn't necessarily mean that a simple scratch can't hinder the disc. Which scratching will always occur at some point. Even with that kind of protection it is nothing compared to that coating on a disc of a regular depth of a DVD.. Sure it will help, but it will still have damage. It is still a relatively thin layer.

[Sean DL @ Sep 27th 2006 5:19PM]

I don't think I said iTunes was better, I said that ti has a better chance of taking over from DVD then then HD DVD or Blu Ray does.

"IF BD dies, however, the PS3 will not, if not the movies, the games will still be there and produced"

Yeah just like the PSP, but that doesn't matter, I was disputing this:

"You're going to buy either HD-DVD or BD eventually."

I was behind the change, but after seeing this war unfold, I lost intrest in both, because they aren't actually offering anything that is different from what DVD can do, besides 1080P~!!!!!

Which my TV doesn't do, which is the same with about 95% of those who buy DVDs now. Your going to have to prove to them that buying Jurassic Park for the third time will be worth it in....

[Steve @ Sep 27th 2006 5:14PM]

If you want to compare do it right.

Xbox 360 $300
HD-DVD $200
HDD add on $100
VGA cables $40
Tax $45
Total = $685


PS3 $500
TAX = $30
Total = $530


**Add to $50 for those w/o HDMI cable**

[Jacob @ Sep 27th 2006 5:27PM]

vga cables cost 40 dollars, interesting. actually it's more like xbox 360 premium $400 and HD-DVD $200, so it's the price of a high end PS3. Not very favorable to the Xbox. But I would still get the Xbox because I'm not forced to buy a Blu ray drive as well. I think a dedicated player is a much better idea than using game systems.
(and DVD's are still good enough. I don't even have an HDTV, and a majority of Americans don't either.)