Microsoft will be offering consumers the choice to buy the Xbox One without the Kinect camera. This new Kinect-less Xbox One package will be sold for $399.99 (USD), matching the price of the PS4. It will be available everywhere Xbox Ones are available starting June 9th. The Kinect camera will be sold separately sometime in fall. Details on these standalone cameras have not yet been revealed.
Originally, the Kinect played a much bigger role in the Xbox One environment, so much so that the console would not function without one connected to it. Kinect’s integral part in the console loosened beginning with the 2013 announcement that it wouldn’t be needed for the console to function. Today, the camera has been fully relegated to peripheral status. Microsoft notes the Kinect is still “an important part of our vision.” The $499.99 Xbox One with Kinect package will still be available and will be the only way consumers can get a Kinect until fall. They point out that more than 80% of users use the Kinect and that it averages around 120 voice commands per month.
Now that the Xbox One is competitively priced with the PS4, will this make it more attractive to gamers on the fence between the two consoles?
