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UK retailer price cuts: Wii U Premium for £180, Xbox One £410
Amazon UK and Argos both dropped the Wii U Premium to £180 this week, and if that's a familiar-sounding figure it's because it matches the launch price of the Wii. Both retailers have the 32GB Wii U model, complete with Nintendo Land, priced £120 less than the £300 Nintendo itself is asking for, and what most retailers sold the Wii U Premium for at launch. Nintendo UK has several Premium SKUs at £250, including the better value New Super Mario U bundle, and Amazon and Argos more or less price match those bundles. There's been no official word, but perhaps these cuts indicate that Nintendo UK wants to phase out the Nintendo Land bundle, just as Nintendo of America did last year. In contrast, Zavvi taking £20 off the Xbox One is a fresher development for Microsoft's console. Europe's Day One editions of the Xbox One came with free copies of FIFA 14 or Forza 5, so it's arguable £410 better reflects Zavvi's game-less bundle. In any case, other retailers aren't following suit at this stage, so we're not sure what to make of it yet. The Xbox One enjoyed a strong start at retail, racking up 3 million worldwide sales before the close of 2013. The Wii U reached 3 million shipped in a similar time frame, but that early success dried up in 2013, and Nintendo slashed the console's fiscal year forecasts recently from 9 million to 2.8 million - if that figure proves accurate, Nintendo will have shipped 6.2 million units by March 2014.
Carphone Warehouse discounts budget tablet to £49, which is probably all it's worth
Brits in the market for a cheap 7-inch tablet have been spoiled of late, what with the launch of Tesco's £119 Hudl and Argos' £100 MyTablet. "But, hang on," Carphone Warehouse's thought, "we sell a budget tablet, too." And so, seeking some attention itself, the UK retailer has discounted its Avoca tablet from £99 to £49 (around $80) -- until November 4th when the offer expires, anyway. That investment will get you a 7-inch display at 800 x 480 resolution, a 1GHz Rockchip CPU, half a gig of RAM, 8GB internal storage (a microSD slot for up to 32GB cards is present), a 0.3-megapixel front-facing camera, a WiFi radio, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and, of course, a healthy dose of bezel. Carphone Warehouse may have succeeded in undercutting its UK competition, if only temporarily, but we can't help but think you'll probably get what you pay for in this instance.
UK retailer Argos tries to undercut the Hudl with £100 Android tablet
UK supermarkets carrying their own branded tablets is apparently a thing now, and Argos has joined Tesco with its launch of the 7-inch MyTablet. Though the £100 price trumps the £119 Hudl, the tab is decidedly more budget, featuring a 7-inch, 1,024 x 600 screen, dual-core 1.6-Ghz CPU, 2-megapixel camera and Android 4.2.2. Hudl, meanwhile, rocks a quad-core 1.5Ghz CPU and 1,440 x 900 screen. Also, unlike Tesco's in-house styled offering, MyTablet appears to be a rebadge, though we can't put our finger on the manufacturer. Argos told the BBC that it'll be affordable to its tween target market at that price, explaining that "kids find it hard to share." We won't argue with that logic, but we reckon parents should be more willing to spend the extra £19, given the difference in specs.
PSA: Nook Simple Touch and Simple Touch with Glowlight now on sale in the UK
Barnes & Noble's arrival in the UK has been so well-telegraphed, you might be surprised to learn that today's the day the units actually launch. You'll be able to pick up a Nook Simple Touch or awkwardly-titled Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight from retailers such as John Lewis, Sainsbury's and on the company's new Nook.co.uk site. Access to Barnes & Noble's 2.5 million title e-book library will set you back £79 for the base model and £109 for the glow-in-the-dark version.
Barnes & Noble continues British invasion, forges pacts with Argos, Blackwell's and Foyles
Barnes & Noble has continued its quest to stock the shelves of United Kingdom bookstores with Nooks, by adding Argos, Blackwell's and Foyles to the list of where you can get one. Those retailers will join John Lewis in carrying the Nook Simple Touch and its Glow Light-toting cousin, giving UK'ers nearly a thousand bricks and mortar sites to get one -- including bookstores at 55 colleges and universities. Those locations will join Barnes & Nobles recently launched online website in selling the e-readers -- but if you like to Touch before buying, the PR is after the break.
ASUS to sell pink and gold Zenbooks in the UK, where good taste is alive and well
You know what ASUS' Zenbooks needed, right? Like, even more than a cushier keyboard or Ivy Bridge refresh? The Malibu Beach House treatment, obviously. For those of you in dreary 'ol Blighty waiting for an Ultrabook with tropical coloring (but no sequins), take note: ASUS is going to start selling its candy-colored, oh-so classy Zenbooks in the UK. Specifically, that includes the 13-inch UX31 in hot pink, and the 11.6-inch UX21 in Rose Gold. Both will be available by the end of April, with the UX31 available through PC World and Curry's, and the UX21 through Littlewoods and Argos. Find the PR below, and pay no mind to the lady editor behind the curtain doing a facepalm.
Bush BD01 becomes UK's first sub-100 Blu-ray player
We're not even going to front -- prior to this article, we hadn't heard of Bush (the consumer electronics manufacturer) nor the BD01. According to reports from the UK, though, the Bush BD01 has become the nation's first widely available sub-£100 Blu-ray player. At least at Argos, the deck -- which typically sells for £146.80 -- has just dropped to £97.86, and while the specifications aren't anything to write home about, it'll certainly handle the BD basics. You won't find BD-Live support and it won't help those in NTSC territories (PAL only), but it will upscale vanilla DVDs via HDMI and it won't totally demolish your savings. Better get a move on though, as we're told that stock is "very limited."[Via ITProPortal]
What ho, Brits! Fifty Boxing Day deals to savor
Didn't think we'd forget about our lovable Brit readers, did you? No way, Jose! Numerous UK outlets have kicked off their post-holiday sales, and there are some worthwhile bargains to be had for those with gift money to burn.We've scoured the 'net for the best deals we could find on everything from new games (Disaster, Sonic Unleashed, Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City) to older games (Zack & Wiki, No More Heroes) to not-games (Wii Wheels, Nunchuks, Wii Points). Make the jump for the best fifty (and links to each!).
Microsoft not punishing Halo 3 selling Argos
Recently, UK retailer Argos was thrusted into the internet spotlight due to their total lack of bookkeeping skills which resulted in the open sale of Halo 3 a week before the game's launch. This kind of error usually comes with huge consequences from the supplier (Microsoft) who usually threatens to withdraw support from any company who breaks product street dates. But good news for Argos, because Microsoft is in a forgiving mood.Talking to GamesIndustry.biz, Microsoft acknowledged their disappointment with retailer Argos, but was happy to see that they were quick to respond to the early Halo 3 sale and took steps to prevent things like this from happening in the future. As a result, Microsoft came to the conclusion that they don't believe there "was any malice [intent] on the part of Argos at all" and that "it was just an honest mistake". So, that's it, they're off the hook and hopefully learned their lesson. But if we were Microsoft we'd totally make them do all of our chores for the next month as punishment. Then we'd see who breaks street dates ... then we'd see.
FujiFilm's FinePix F45fd: an F40fd in Argos clothing
Attention Argos shoppers, their "only available at Argos" exclusive on the FujiFilm FinePix F45fd is not all that exclusive. Spec for spec, the F45fd is none other than the F40fd rolled up special for the on-line UK and Republic of Ireland retailer. Your 200 Quid ($407) takes home an 8.3 megapixel CCD, 3x optical zoom, 2.5-inch LCD, 300 shot battery, ISO 2000 sensitivity, and storage on xD or SD cards. Not bad but no reason to get uppity with your mates about an "exclusive." [Via LetsGoDigital, thanks David]
