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Retard Pack > Premium Pack

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border

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Not saying this proposition is universally true for everyone, but consider:

Actual cost of Premium Pack is $432, since $32 in accessory purchases is required just to bring the controller up to the same state of reliability as a wired one. And the other stuff they throw in:

Headset - who don't already have one of these? It is a very weird inclusion since most people insane enough to spend $400 on a system probably are Live enthusiasts already. Almost seems like it would have been smarter to put them in the Retard Pack so that developers could confidently make games with voice recognition capabilities and almost everybody on Live could have one. There's little use for it and I would be lucky to sell this for $5 on eBay after a glut of them hit the aftermarket post-launch.

Remote control - Intentionally gimped by Microsoft. Will be sold on eBay at a steep discount shortly after launch, most likely by enthusiasts who purchase the non-gimped version and people who think the wireless controller makes it redundant.

HD-AV cables - I have no HD TV, and can't I just use the Advanced-AV cables from the original Xbox if I want Optical Audio? And won't the current HD-AV pack work with 360? If component is a big deal for you, chances are you already have the cable.

Seems like the Premium Bundle is only worth it if you are deadly serious about getting a wireless controller and don't already have any Xbox video cables.

Cost of Retard Pack + Hard Drive is $400 versus $432 for Premium Pack. The thirty-two bucks you save can be pocketed, or used to purchase gimped remote for cheap on eBay, or it will completely cover the cost of the fully-functional remote. Or you're only $8 away from a second wired controller.

On top of that, your system face will not have all that tacky "Pimp My Ride" chrome on the faceplate and drive tray (which, as I understand can't be removed by exchanging the faceplate). If you hate the chrome as some around here do, then the value of not having it has gotta be worth some small sacrifices. You can always upgrade to wireless over the life of the system, but chances are you won't be able to get rid of the chrome.
 
border said:
Not saying this proposition is universally true for everyone, but consider:

Actual cost of Premium Pack is $432, since $32 in accessory purchases is required just to bring the controller up to the same state of reliability as a wired one. And the other stuff they throw in:

Headset - who don't already have one of these? It is a very weird inclusion since most people insane enough to spend $400 on a system probably are Live enthusiasts already. Almost seems like it would have been smarter to put them in the Retard Pack so that developers could confidently make games with voice recognition capabilities and almost everybody on Live could have one. There's little use for it and I would be lucky to sell this for $5 on eBay after a glut of them hit the aftermarket post-launch.

Remote control - Intentionally gimped by Microsoft. Will be sold on eBay at a steep discount shortly after launch, most likely by enthusiasts who purchase the non-gimped version and people who think the wireless controller makes it redundant.

HD-AV cables - I have no HD TV, and can't I just use the Advanced-AV cables from the original Xbox if I want Optical Audio? And won't the current HD-AV pack work with 360? If component is a big deal for you, chances are you already have the cable.

Seems like the Premium Bundle is only worth it if you are deadly serious about getting a wireless controller and don't already have any Xbox video cables.

Cost of Retard Pack + Hard Drive is $400 versus $432 for Premium Pack. The thirty-two bucks you save can be pocketed, or used to purchase gimped remote for cheap on eBay, or it will completely cover the cost of the fully-functional remote. Or you're only $8 away from a second wired controller.

On top of that, your system face will not have all that tacky "Pimp My Ride" chrome on the faceplate and drive tray (which, as I understand can't be replaced by exchanging the faceplate). If you hate the chrome as some around here do, then the value of not having it has gotta be worth some small sacrifices. You can always upgrade to wireless over the life of the system, but chances are you won't be able to get rid of the chrome.
Click to expand...



:lol :lol :lol :lol :lol @ retard pack. I like that chrome though
 
You can use your own AA rechargable batteries....

This thread isn't complete with the retard pack box though.
 
border said:
Not saying this proposition is universally true for everyone, but consider:

Actual cost of Premium Pack is $432, since $32 in accessory purchases is required just to bring the controller up to the same state of reliability as a wired one.
Click to expand...

What does this mean exactly?
 
I'm curious about all this wirless controller hate. I play a lot of games and I can't tell the difference between my wavebird/logitech wireless dual shock and a standard wired controller.
 
who cares? buy the pack you want and shut the fuck up already. I don't understand the uproar. Are people under the impression that if the Core pack didn't exist, the Premium pack would cost $299 instead of $399?
 
If I can save games onto my PC harddrive via wireless network, then I may end up getting the "retard pack". The only real reason I used my Xbox hdd was for ripping songs for custom soundtracks, but that's also going to be possible now w/o a hdd (I have a psp and MediaCenter PC).

$400 is a bit too steep, and I won't exactly die if I don't have a wireless controller within the first few months.
 
if you could actually use your PC hard drive to save games, the retard pack would seal the deal for me

but i doubt its that easy
 
Uncle Dukey said:
What does this mean exactly?
Click to expand...
It means that if you're serious about wireless, I don't think you'd be caught without the recharging cord ($20) and the battery pack ($12). The controller will take standardized rechargable AA batteries, but that does not leave you at the same level of reliability since if they go dead you cannot continue playing.
 
Retard Pack..

Reminds me of that kid back in gradeschool who always brought that fucking weird-ass lunch. Weird juice, too.


Retard Pack....
 
xbox360pack29if2rp.jpg
 
HD-AV cables - I have no HD TV, and can't I just use the Advanced-AV cables from the original Xbox if I want Optical Audio? And won't the current HD-AV pack work with 360? If component is a big deal for you, chances are you already have the cable.
Click to expand...

I know composite hide the jaggies/shimmers on your PS2 games, but really, that's not an option for a gamer. And AFAIK, Xbox360 isn't compatible with Xbox1 cables.
 
Ninja Scooter said:
who cares? buy the pack you want and shut the fuck up already. I don't understand the uproar. Are people under the impression that if the Core pack didn't exist, the Premium pack would cost $299 instead of $399?
Click to expand...

The $299 is being reported ALOT by the media outlets. It gives Microsoft some nice "buzz" as being affordable, whereas if they went with only the $349/$399 price point, they wouldn't get that. I think that's a pretty major part of why they went with it. PR.
 
sonycowboy said:
The $299 is being reported ALOT by the media outlets. It gives Microsoft some nice "buzz" as being affordable, whereas if they went with only the $349/$399 price point, they wouldn't get that. I think that's a pretty major part of why they went with it. PR.
Click to expand...


Duh. :P

I'm interested to see how many core packs will be available after Christmas. I'm thinking MS may want to limit the number of core packs released. They make more money off the Premium pack.
 
Yeah, the retard pack might be OK if I could use my peripherals from the original Xbox. It's really just another $100 for a hard drive. All that other stuff they toss in the box, I wouldn't even need it if they'd just made it so that original Xbox accessories work with the 360.

There's really no reason you should have to buy a new Xbox Live headset, new component cables, hell, even new controllers. At E3, many 360 games were being demo'ed with regular Type-S pads and they controlled fine. The 360 controller is really not that different.

No reason except to line the pockets of MS.
 
sonycowboy said:
The $299 is being reported ALOT by the media outlets. It gives Microsoft some nice "buzz" as being affordable, whereas if they went with only the $349/$399 price point, they wouldn't get that. I think that's a pretty major part of why they went with it. PR.
Click to expand...

Not if this whole "Retard Pack" thing catches on. kekeke
 
border said:
It means that if you're serious about wireless, I don't think you'd be caught without the recharging cord ($20) and the battery pack ($12). The controller will take standardized rechargable AA batteries, but that does not leave you at the same level of reliability since if they go dead you cannot continue playing.
Click to expand...

Seriously? Are people only allowed to have 1 pair of rechargeable AA batteries in their homes? When one pair needs charging, you do the unheard... replace it with the pair that's charged. Rinse repeat, no need for a $32 joke accessory.


Also,
HD-AV cables - I have no HD TV, and can't I just use the Advanced-AV cables from the original Xbox if I want Optical Audio? And won't the current HD-AV pack work with 360? If component is a big deal for you, chances are you already have the cable.
Click to expand...

Since when are XBOX cables compatible with the 360? LINK?
 
Well what's the going rate on a recharger and 4-8 AA batteries? Is it known whether the controller takes 2 or 4 batteries at a time?
 
I've never seen so much handwringing over the cost of a product. Kutaragi had it right - a lot of you just need to work a few extra hours :P
 
What border was trying to say with the wireless controller thing is that you need to buy the docking station for recharging for 19.99 and the 11.99 battery pack , that way you don't need to waste batteries.

For some reason I'd be willing to bet that MS is changing the cord input design so that you can't use the Xbox 1 stuff with Xbox 360, forcing any early adopters to buy the premium pack.


I look at it more like this has a counter arguement to your existing list-

The Generic package deal comes with a system, an composite/RCA jack cord , a power cord and a wired controller , nothing else. So you've spent 300 bucks, now you'll atleast want to get a harddrive especialy if you got rid of the original xbox to get the 360 so now you're at 400 bucks. and well I suppose I'll assume that you have a tv that's more then then 5 years old so it lacks a basic nessecity for gaming - component inputs so you DON'T need the HD cords and if you lack something has basic in today's age has a component capable TV then chances are you don't have a reciever either so you dont' need optical inputs or stuff like that. I'll also assume that if you're buying the Joe sixpack basic deal you don't want a wireless controller at all. So to say pick up the system at launch and get a second wired controller and the HD along with 2 games will set you back 560 USD.

The premium package gives you the system , a hard drive, a wired controller and a bunch of semi useless accessories but it's 400 bucks. So all that stuff you get beyond the hard drive is basically free and if you have an HD tv which I believe is a nessecity for PS3/Xbox 360 then you need those free component cables and chances are the optical input for 5.1 sound. So you need some of this stuff and it's basically being given away to you, AND you get a wireless controller which will need batteries of some kind but worse case scenario you can plug it in and use it has a wired controller if its battery dies, so it's atleast has functional has the freebie included with the average pack. As for the usefullness of the limited edition remote control ? Well idono about you guys but I prefer using a remote to watch movies and stuff over a game pad, granted I have a dvd player allready so it's still kind of a toss up on how usefull it is to me specifically.

The cost difference in the end though would be negligable, and extra 54 dollars compared to the normal bundle deal, spent on a second wireless pad 2 batteries and 1 charger. As far as I'm concerned this premium bundle is the only way to go because really you need at the very least a component capable TV to get anywhere near the amount of image quality the 360 is intended to spit out. It doesn't have to be an HDTV, just something with component inputs. So if you have such a TV , chances are you spent 500 dollars or so buying it or more so spending 600 bucks to get a new system with a couple games and a second controller shouldnt' really be a big issue.
 
Pachinko said:
For some reason I'd be willing to bet that MS is changing the cord input design so that you can't use the Xbox 1 stuff with Xbox 360, forcing any early adopters to buy the premium pack.
Click to expand...

Er, they changed it to USB because the controller will work on PCs too. Which can't be said for the wireless controller of the premium pack (sans $20 cord)! Another point for the retard pack!

What is funny is that they said the reason there are only 2 USB ports is because they expect everyone will use wireless controllers anyway (and that they'd be included). Whoops.
 
Mrbob said:
They make more money off the Premium pack.
Click to expand...
Except they don't. Their revenue will be higher in the quarter the 360 is released, but they will not, in any way, profit more off the Premium pack. The best profit comes from a consumer purchasing a Core pack and slowly stocking up on accessories. Extra wireless controller (or three), a couple memory cards, headset for Live, etc. MS knows Premium pack buyers will buy very few, if any, accessories at launch or anytime thereafter.

Hence why I believe there will be more Core systems shipped at launch than Premium packs.
 
newsguy said:
Since when are XBOX cables compatible with the 360? LINK?
Click to expand...

I think it is. The 360 has the same socket in the back as Xbox does. Which propably means I can use my RGB scart for the 360 too.
 
I must've missed this earlier, but the wireless controller doesn't come with a rechargable battery? And to charge it, you'll need to buy a separate cable?
 
Heian-kyo said:
Except they don't. Their revenue will be higher in the quarter the 360 is released, but they will not, in any way, profit more off the Premium pack. The best profit comes from a consumer purchasing a Core pack and slowly stocking up on accessories. Extra wireless controller (or three), a couple memory cards, headset for Live, etc. MS knows Premium pack buyers will buy very few, if any, accessories at launch or anytime thereafter.

Hence why I believe there will be more Core systems shipped at launch than Premium packs.
Click to expand...


Nice point. I think the core pack will sell more whatever the angle we look at this all.
 
jiggle said:
I must've missed this earlier, but the wireless controller doesn't come with a rechargable battery? And to charge it, you'll need to buy a separate cable?
Click to expand...

Correct.

GI actually called Microsoft out on this:
GI: By not including the USB charging cable with the Xbox 360 some consumers may feel like youÂ’re nickel and diming them. If youÂ’re giving consumers options, why donÂ’t gamers have the option to buy a 360 thatÂ’s wireless with a rechargeable battery and cable, and not the media remote that they donÂ’t necessarily need?

Koch: I would say that it’s not nickel and diming. Actually, we’ve put a lot of different high quality accessories in there for a great value. It’s interesting, because the whole idea of the play and charge accessory I thought was pretty brilliant in terms of just that there’s a consumer demand for that. So on the one hand they can replace batteries, “Well people will want rechargeable batteries so let’s make a SKU there. Oh wow, here’s a really clever idea. If you don’t want any downtime you can just plug it in and recharge while you’re going. Isn’t that a great product?” When you get into “Okay, so what can we put in the box?” You can’t put everything in there so you have to make some choices, right?

The media controller, itÂ’s kind of like the beauty is in the eye of the beholder. A lot of people like the remote control. We think that thereÂ’s wide use for that. DVD playback will be available out of the box with this. So you just end up having to make some choices and we think all of the accessories are good accessories, right? ItÂ’s not like oneÂ’s bad or oneÂ’s the other. But it comes down to youÂ’ve just got to make a choice. I think from a broad appeal basis we hope the remote control will have broad appeal.
Click to expand...

Enjoy your limited time remote :lol
 
jiggle said:
I must've missed this earlier, but the wireless controller doesn't come with a rechargable battery? And to charge it, you'll need to buy a separate cable?
Click to expand...

Yeah, which is another reason why I choose the "retard pack". I don`t want to deal with all this shit just for my controller.
 
Gregory said:
I think it is. The 360 has the same socket in the back as Xbox does. Which propably means I can use my RGB scart for the 360 too.
Click to expand...

If you could somehow confirm this, you're the man.. no matter what the guys in the PGR3 thread say about you ;) Unfortunately, that socket in the back looks bigger to me.
 
Pachinko said:
For some reason I'd be willing to bet that MS is changing the cord input design so that you can't use the Xbox 1 stuff with Xbox 360, forcing any early adopters to buy the premium pack.
Click to expand...
Why would they? The hookup has at least looked the same in photographs. Nintendo has used the same video cords since the SNES, I believe. Sony has had the same cable hookup through 2 generations (aside from the early model PSX which actually supported standard RCA cable). Is MS greedy enough to make everybody buy new cables?

For the record, I don't have component inputs but I do have a Dolby Digital system. Small 5.1 systems are pretty cheap compared to buying a new television set that supports component and is a decent size. Plus component hasn't been standard on TVs for 5 years....and I don't think it even is today. I imagine there are plenty of people like me -- especially considering how many people have been putting off a TV purchase as they wait for lower cost HD sets.
Er, they changed it to USB because the controller will work on PCs too.
Click to expand...
I'm pretty sure he's talking about the video cables, not the controllers.
 
border said:
I'm pretty sure he's talking about the video cables, not the controllers.
Click to expand...

Oh, probably. He was talking about the controllers before that :)

Regardless, the retard pack still contains a universal controller out of the box while the premium pack does not.
 
sangreal said:
Correct.

GI actually called Microsoft out on this:


Enjoy your limited time remote :lol
Click to expand...

It sounds like he was caught off guard.. I haven't heard such a rambling response since the last Perrin Kaplan interview=)

I think from a broad appeal basis we hope the remote control will have broad appeal.
Click to expand...
 
newsguy said:
If you could somehow confirm this, you're the man.. no matter what the guys in the PGR3 thread say about you ;) Unfortunately, that socket in the back looks bigger to me.
Click to expand...

Crap. It does seem a little different now that I checked the XBox socket more closely. Guess the guys in the PGR3 thread were right. :/
 
I was REALLY upset that the included headset isn't wireless. I'm paying an extra $100 for a standard headset? Wah. :(
 
They need to lower the price of the hard drive then just buy the retard pack and the hard drive. $100 for a 20 gig hard drive? Come on.
 
Gregory said:
Crap. It does seem a little different now that I checked the XBox socket more closely. Guess the guys in the PGR3 thread were right. :/
Click to expand...


Noooooooo. I always buy 2 sets of cables for my consoles because I constantly swap the systems from my TV to my living room. So aside from the set that comes packed in the premium pack, I gotta buy another $40 set. Yes, monster cables are near the same price... but they're twice the quality. First party MS component cables are shit, they're thin like dental floss. At least last gen we had the breakout box where we could use better cables than the ones they supplied.
 
Heian-kyo said:
Except they don't. Their revenue will be higher in the quarter the 360 is released, but they will not, in any way, profit more off the Premium pack. The best profit comes from a consumer purchasing a Core pack and slowly stocking up on accessories. Extra wireless controller (or three), a couple memory cards, headset for Live, etc. MS knows Premium pack buyers will buy very few, if any, accessories at launch or anytime thereafter.

Hence why I believe there will be more Core systems shipped at launch than Premium packs.
Click to expand...


Those are big ifs. Perhaps people only buy the core system and a 64Mb memory card. The premium pack is guaranteed 100 dollar extra to MS pocket. Also, the premium pack only comes with one wireless controller. That's only a 10 dollar upgrade above the wired controller. Then MS can nickel and dime those premium owners for a battery pack and play and charge. You would still need to buy three more anyway.....I don't understand where this "$200 dollars of extras" is being thrown in.
 
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