Kinect Price Drop: Down to $109.99

Larry Hryb, better known to Xbox fans as Major Nelson, announced recently that Microsoft‘s beloved Kinect will show a $40 price drop from its launch price down to $109.99. He also announced other unspecified price drops for Latin America and the Asian Pacific region, and also confirmed that Australia and New Zealand will see a similar price drop on October 4th.

What motivated Microsoft to drop the price is uncertain, as despite a mixed response from the gaming community the Kinect is selling very well; it just topped 18 million copies sold last January. Perhaps they want a more appealing price tag for the holiday season, though it’s a bit early for that, or perhaps they’d just like to bolster sales of their motion-sensing “everything-better-with-it” product. No one knows for sure, but no one’s complaining either; $40 off is nothing to scoff at, and an equivalent rise in sales for the Kinect would’t be surprising.

That being said, I’m not sure if the price was a big barrier for consumers, some of us just don’t like motion controls and aren’t convinced by the concept. I, for one, never liked them, and I think that good games often suffer for half-hearted attempts to shoe horn in Kinect compatability. I know you don’t necessarily have to use it if you don’t want, but you must remember that this is the same machine that gave us this… monstrosity. 

All in all, I’m sure that the price drop will work in Microsoft’s favor in the end, no matter how uncertain their motives for it may be. What do you think? Did you want to get a Kinect, but deemed it too expensive, or are you indifferent to Microsoft’s lower price on their machine? Let us know in the comments below!