Xbox 360 now the same price as Wii in Australia

Aussie Xbox 360s get price cut, Core system now same cost as a Wii; HDMI-enabled Pro systems to also make their way down under.

When Microsoft announced its decision to drop the price of the Xbox 360 in the US last week, Australian gamers only had one question on their minds: when would the same thing happen down under? The answer, it seems, is today. From August 15, the 20GB-enabled Xbox 360 Pro system will retail for A$579.95 ($486), down from A$649. And perhaps more significantly, the Xbox 360 Core system's price will drop from A$429 to A$399.95. At A$399.95, the Core system is now the same price as a Nintendo Wii in Australia.

Xbox regional director for Australia and New Zealand David McLean says reduced manufacturing costs were the key reason for dropping the Xbox 360's price. McLean says the price drop positions the 360's Pro system favourably against the A$1000 PlayStation 3 in Australia, while the A$399 price point for the Core allows the 360 to compete in the casual market the Wii has cornered.

"I think you'll see, on a games point of view, we're well ahead [of the PS3]. And now once again we're offering all of these experiences at a really affordable price. So I think we will do really well during the holiday period against PlayStation," McLean said. "Our strategy was always to focus on the core and serious gamers. We think we've done a great job there, and the numbers support that. What we now need to do is start thinking about broadening our strategy, and this price movement is a component of that strategy."

McLean said the Xbox 360 Core system would continue to be a key product offering, and denied rumours speculating that the Core would soon be discontinued. "There are no plans to discontinue the Core SKU. We've actually seen over the last few months that the Core has started to grow in terms of sales. We're pretty pleased with the momentum that's been building on the Core, and it's still important for us to provide that level of choice to the customer. We have no intention of discontinuing the Core at this point. Furthermore, this price adjustment and some of things we're planning to do with the product over the holidays will make it a more significant part of the business," he said.

McLean also confirmed that 360 Pro units with HDMI slots would soon be making their way to Australia, although he declined to give a specific time frame. "We'll start to see the same thing in Australia. We're just reviewing our inventory position and when that will start to flow into the market. No specific details to give you on it, but what's happening in other regions in the world will certainly happen in Australia," he said.

As for the Elite and Halo 3 Special Edition offers of the Xbox 360, McLean said both would definitely be making their way down under.

"For Australia, we will be coming out with some announcements around Elite. It certainly is coming to our market--we're just currently trying to define our pricing and volume strategy on it. And obviously with our decision to make our pricing announcements on Core and Pro now, we need to consider the knock-on effect for Elite. You're not going to be asked to wait very much longer; I think within the next week or so we can give you details on what we're planning to do with Elite," he said.

Click here for the full interview with David McLean.

216 Comments

  • playstation_wii

    Posted Aug 16, 2007 12:23 pm PT

    I think the wii will still beat the 360 though, since the controls are still more fun.

  • meesey01

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 11:27 pm PT

    Awesome, I'll probs start saving for a Pro system now...can't be stuffed waiting for an Elite anymore Unless it comes out while I'm saving...

  • plufim

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 7:37 pm PT

    Just a note about this "price drop", it's important to note the huge markup that ALL THREE companies put on their consoles for the australian market. It just seems microsoft is finally looking to not screw australia over... as much. The wii should be $350 here at the most, not $400 (but I don't expect a price drop, Nintento Australia are incompetant fools). As for the PS3, at $1000 it is the biggest markup for downunder gamers of the lot.

    Most importantly, you can now get a good xbox360 (not core) AND a wii for LESS then the cost of the PS3 in Australia. That is what 'd consider the most interesting aspect of the price differences.

  • SkRoTy

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 7:22 pm PT

    Oh can anyone say x360 PWNS PS3....... i have played all 3 "next gen" consoles and all i can say is MS has it on the mark... sony needs to lift up their game...... i was a sony fan now a converted MS fan...... PS3 FTL Xbox360 FTW!!! and Wii so they get a mention...

  • ctg867

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 5:07 pm PT

    Dude, don't waste your money on the Elite. It's overpriced, and HDMI is on all Pro units now. Yea, that means the $350 ones.

  • d-suhiti

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 2:01 pm PT

    Due to the 3 year warrenty, im going to go into the store and swap it for a new elite when it comes. I need the HDMI port now, and the 120GB HD doesnt seem to bad either. I like the colour too!!

    Great strategy here, just before Halo 3's release...

  • thug_angel123

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:37 pm PT

    let the fanboy killing begin.....

  • carrierj1

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:30 pm PT

    Great move, MS. Now maybe you can move up to selling a third of what the Wii sells. LOL!

  • Telekenesis123

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:16 pm PT

    Hhahaha, 360 the same price as a refubished gamecube called the Wii??! Good luck nintendo, you just showed how you screwed your customers this time.

  • SupremeNITEHAWK

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 11:33 am PT

    thats good that the 360 is more affordable....but it still can't compete with the Wii sales numbers...I mean the Wii has sold over 9.5 million in just 9 months, it took the x360 longer than that. The Wii is bound to become the king of the console market.

  • GundamRX79Live

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 10:52 am PT

    lol thats really funny sephiroth i mean yeah you don't get great rpgs just yet on the 360 but i don't care its got some of the best games it blows ps3's selection of games away and wii and ps3 online service can't compare to xbox live

  • fr33_loader

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 10:45 am PT

    2w-sephiroth
    Microsoft is just like Mc donals they are simply destroying the market lol. Honestly I dont think I would even play a 360 even if you gave me one. I shall wait for the good games to come out thank you.
    ------------------
    I dont know what games you like but x360 has the most games out there right now. Honestly, I dont like Wii very much either, but will gladly try it and play with it if you give me one. Unlike you, I'm not a fanboy.

    PS- Im already playing the good games.

  • Great_Ragnarok

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 10:05 am PT

    Oh man I'm so *?*?*?*?* happy I can finaly afford the x360. best thing about this is that I can now buy halo3 when its released. yusssss. btw I agree with u PatLTornado. I think the wii is a gimmick too. but I dont think we should be concerned about the sales of the wii or the PS3. there are better things to do with time like play halo3.

  • 2w-sephiroth

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 10:04 am PT

    Microsoft is just like Mc donals they are simply destroying the market lol. Honestly I dont think I would even play a 360 even if you gave me one. I shall wait for the good games to come out thank you.

  • PatLTornado

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:46 am PT

    Man, I'll never understand fanboys! They read an article about 360's price being the same as Wii Australia and then turn this topic into some fanboy proproganda rant about how almighty Wii is. THIS is not a Wii topic fanboys, get a life ,please! This reason the price tag is the same down under is because obviously the gaming market is smaller out there.

    I agree with Dark Nexus, the Wii is NOT a next gen console! It's a gimmick pure and simple. I'm inclined to believe that the U.S. price drop of 360 will most likely affect sales of Wii since the 360 has a larger more adequate library than bunch of lame party games yes history will reapeat itself and 360 will indeed catch up to Wii just as its predessesor caught up to Gamecube. And Dark Nexus, developers are lazy because of one reason: The development kits used today are to complicated to use and ever since PS2, 3rd party publishers are forced to rush out material and because the industry is way too mainstream, everysingle hollywood studio is inclined to make a game out of every single big budgeted film they release. We need to return to the NES days of having guidelines and rules for 3rd party publishers not too many of them though. When Sega returns to the console market, I believe this will happen to the 3rd aprty market.

  • kazuyasongoku

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:34 am PT

    Good news for all those that have been waiting. For everyone else, there's mastercard.

  • mrgokugf

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:31 am PT

    people actually buy the core? didn't they take it off the market? I'd feel a bit a povo if anyone actually saw me buying the cheap ass version of a console especially with that new elite version coming out, it would be like buying a ds phat or original gba and then some when you think about it

  • fr33_loader

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:15 am PT

    Am gettin tired of redundant "coming soon" PS3 fanboys anyways so this is gonna be interesting to read.

  • fr33_loader

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 9:11 am PT

    Now its Wii owners trying to justify their purchase. Haha, funny.

  • jrod9999

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 8:06 am PT

    Core should at least come with some kind of builtin flash memory...

  • Gangans

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 5:58 am PT

    The core consoles are the ones made from poor quality leftover parts. They are most prone to overheating and screwing up within the year.

  • LosDaddie

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 5:36 am PT

    Great move, Microsoft!!

  • bogan79

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 5:25 am PT

    Only morons buy the core system. And shame on all these microsoft guys flogging the core system.

  • sammysalsa

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 4:15 am PT

    @ jacob-goodlich

    are you serious? who cares gaming is about games and right now 360 has the games and there hella fun so what u payed A$1000 for a paper weight ? dont have to defend your purchase or attack other peoples decisions

  • skrat_01

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 3:26 am PT

    S*** I WANT A HDMI 360! Noooooooooes!

  • fdgdafgadg

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 3:10 am PT

    It's $50 cheaper than the Wii in NZ

  • D34DLY_V1P3R posted Aug 15, 2007 1:57 am PT (does not meet display criteria. sign in to show)

    D34DLY_V1P3R

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:57 am PT (hide)

    hey sharpie_92 i guess nobody told u yet but the wii is an overpriced, outdated piece of novelty which is only bought because you can swing your arms around when you play it... ...and now you can buy a REAL gaming console for the same price lol

  • raghraghragh

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:28 am PT

    Why can't they just release the core consoles with HDMI?I don't want to have to buy the Pro when i'd upgrade to the 120GB hard drive straight up anyway.

    That,the overheating,the fridge-like noise, and the enormous power supply (Sony could hide the ugly thing,why can't you?) are all holding me back from buying a 360.I want one,but i'm sick of Microsoft's continual hardware releases.I don't want to buy one and then Microsoft releasing a better version with all the features I want in a few months.

  • sharpie_92

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:27 am PT

    i am also sick of gamespot for misleading us all its really getting annoying

  • shinchy

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:24 am PT

    What about Europe!!!!!??????? Everyone gets a price drop apart from Us!

  • sharpie_92

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:20 am PT

    Who cares nobody buys the core system anyway!!! The difference with the 360 and the wii prices is that with the wii you get the full flegged console with everything you need and the 360 core you still have to buy a hard drive, media remote and wireless controllers. So the price of the xbox 360 is still $580 not $400.

    This will not affect the wii sales as nobody buys core consoles.
    Its good to here that the pro 360 price has been dropped $10 as the prices had already dropped to just under $600

  • sonic0491

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:07 am PT

    im getting one of the cores for $400 at xmas and halo 3
    my original pro broke 2times so i got a ps3, now ill have a 360 and ps3 xD

  • Foolz3h

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 1:07 am PT

    80 less dollars and MGS 4 and I'm getting a bloody 360!

  • weemadando

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 12:59 am PT

    I can't remember the last time I saw a 360 Pro for above 600. And that's for a standalone, let alone the bundles that everyone has been selling continuously.

  • Fusion_Master

    Posted Aug 15, 2007 12:37 am PT

    Sony just got pwned, and they deserve the worst for snobbing Australians. (I'm a Sony Fanboy but you wouldn't know it)

  • benboz

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 11:24 pm PT

    Nice! Lucky for those people out there to get a much cheaper Xbox 360. PS3 is way out of its league with the high price tag.

  • -CheeseEater-

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 11:20 pm PT

    Oh whoopdidoo...a Core System, who the heck buy's those things .

  • ketsuatama

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 10:53 pm PT

    David, I think the Wii has captured more than "a casual market" as you blithely comment in Australia as well as the rest of the world! You may be able to fool some gullible consumers but the core is a waste of time for serious gamers and still outrageously overpriced despite the strength of the Australian dollar against the US dollar over the past six months or so. How about releasing the inventory you no doubt bought with the strong $A at a commensurate price instead of screwing us yet again!

  • EndlessGame

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 10:03 pm PT

    While that does have an impact, the 360 being the same price as the Wii, in all honesty, the core is a waste of money. Without a HDD you can only save to those tiny memory slot things, which wouldn't hold many games at all, and downloaded content (videos or anything) would be completely out ot the question. If you buy the HDD separately that eliminates the price difference...so you should have just gone and got the premium for the wireless controller. Really, the 360 is still more expensive than the Wii. Still, the prices are insane in Australia, they're all really high! (I'm looking at the conversion, not just the Australian dollar units. )

  • ahyumifan

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 9:37 pm PT

    I'm owning both Wii and X360, however if i don't have any and i only can buy one, I will probably buy X360... It's too expansive to buy Wii just for Zelda and few good First party games while X360 does have plenty of good first and third party developer games.

  • DiscoJoy

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 9:29 pm PT

    No doubt, stanislavski86, JB will be charging a similar price for the discounted 360s. The prices in the article refer to retail prices.

    Looking forward to the price drop. Whether I upgrade to a "real console" (I presently own a Wii) is another thing, but the price point is quite attractive now. However, I may be tempted to hold off for the HDMI ones. There's always something else, isn't there?

  • stanislavski86

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 9:01 pm PT

    This news is misleading since Wii is $388 in JB Hi-Fi!!!! You can find Wii packs for 399 with games in it or extra controller so stop misleading GS. Make your reasearch properly before coming to conclusions.

  • plodski2004

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 8:05 pm PT

    Dark_Nexus3367 i agree but teh same has to go for Xbots who have t orun their mouth about sony anyway i think this is a simillar case to sony's "cut". MS just want to get rid of old stock so they cut the price to gain the people that have'nt chosen a console yet

  • Absent_Gambler

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 8:02 pm PT

    Hmm, really though, if you look hard enough (not that hard), you'll find pro systems being sold for as little as 537 or so. If you're really lucky you could even find a refurbished one for about 400, and there really is no point getting a core, 'cause very soon you're going to be wanting a HD to go with it. I've already got a wii, but suddenly realised how much I WANTED a 360, so I'm going to get one.

  • imprezawrx500

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 7:50 pm PT

    bout time we get a price drop, now it's time for sony to follow

  • soldier1993

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 7:26 pm PT

    the core is just ridiculous!! and so the people who buy it!!!

  • AusCube

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 6:08 pm PT

    Sorry about that

    it's.... 20 GB (HD) - {$169.95}

    $399.95 + $169.95 = {$569.90}


    120 GB (HD) - {$229.95}

    $399.95 + $229.95 = {$629.90}

  • michaelgallardo

    Posted Aug 14, 2007 6:06 pm PT

    Yeah the core is a bad idea to buy. But imagine how great of a PR move it is for Microsoft to get people into the store. You can buy our "fully next-gen" console for the same price as this "Gamecube with a fresh coat of paint". Overall the core is simply a way to get people in the store not necessarily something you would want to buy for value. I mean how great is it to say your console is the same price as the cheapest console out there?

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