For all the flak the PS4 Pro has been receiving, there’s no denying that it has an intriguing price point. $399 for what’s now the default PS4 model but with better hardware and additional visual touches to supported games isn’t all that bad. That being said, with Microsoft’s Project Scorpio aiming to deliver true native 4K and VR, how will it price its next big console?
GamingBolt spoke to Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter about a good price for the Scorpio in relation to the PS4 Pro’s $399. He ntoed that, “Well, I think Microsoft would commit suicide if it was more than $399. And the problem they will face is if they launched it at $399, the PS4 Pro might discount to $349 in the same week. So I’d be really surprised if the Scorpio was more than $399.”
That being said, this is Microsoft we’re talking about. Pachter notes that, “I was really surprised when the Xbox One launched at $499 with Kinect, and it took them a while to unbundle Kinect and drop the price. So Microsoft has not executed well this cycle as far as pricing goes. Just as Sony executed poorly with the PS3’s pricing. So Microsoft’s playing catchup, and I’m hopeful that they don’t make the same mistake with Scorpio that they did with the Xbox One.”
While $399 seems like the right price, will its hardware ultimately lead to a higher price point? We’ll find out when Project Scorpio arrives in Holiday 2017.