The price of an Xbox One is going down to $350, from its standard $400, as part of a deal that starts today, January 16, Microsoft announced. Although an end date is not specified, the discount is characterized as a “promotion,” implying that it is not a permanent price cut, but rather a temporary sale to continue the momentum from what Microsoft characterized as a “record-breaking holiday.”
According to a report from the NPD Group, Xbox One was the best-selling console in the critical retail months of November and December 2014, outpacing Microsoft’s previous console, the Xbox 360, by 50-percent at the same point in the earlier console’s life cycle. NPD’s Liam Callahan also noted that “bundles were a major driver of hardware sales this December compared to last with 71-percent of hardware unit sales stemming from bundles including software, which compares to 32-percent of hardware sales last December.” Xbox One bundles with Kinect have not been affected by the price drop, still retailing for $500.
Xbox’s fearless leader, Phil Spencer, addressed the community in a video as part of the same update, praising the console’s last year and expressing excitement over what 2015 has in store. Specifically, the long-requested screenshots feature will finally debut in early 2015, according to Spencer.
