Microsoft has again dropped the price of its Xbox One console to $350, as the previous promotional discount during the holidays proved very successful.
According to the company, the Xbox One ended 2014 with an unprecedented holiday season, as it saw great sales and became the best-selling gaming console in the U.S. in both November and December. One of the major factors that boosted Xbox One sales around the holidays was the $50 discount Microsoft offered, and the company is now repeating the promotion. In other words, the Xbox One is now again available at $350, instead of its regular $400 price point.
"Building off a record-setting holiday, we are excited to announce a new promotion in which fans in the U.S. can buy an Xbox One at a special price of $349, starting tomorrow, January 16, from their preferred retailer," Mike Nichols, Corporate Vice President of Marketing for Xbox, said in a Jan. 15 post on the Xbox official blog. "We are thankful for all the excitement for Xbox One this holiday and proud to offer more fans the amazing games lineup, Xbox Live gaming community, and continual innovation that Xbox One have come to enjoy."
As a reminder, the Xbox One has had two holiday seasons on the market, but the first one was not as successful. On the other hand, considering that the console cost $150 more when it first hit commercial availability, it makes sense that this holiday season saw more sales.
The Xbox One with the Kinect motion control gadget cost up to $500, but Microsoft ultimately decided to sell the console separately as well, as not all customers wanted Kinect. That brought the price down to $400, and the $50 discount makes it even more affordable at $350.
Even with the improved sales the Xbox One saw recently, however, Sony's PlayStation 4 (PS4) still had better lifetime sales overall. Nevertheless, Microsoft is on the right track and exciting discounts always boost the success of a device.
Microsoft made no mention of when this new promotion will expire, but there is a possibility that this Xbox One price cut is permanent and the $350 price tag is here to stay.
