Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has already made it very clear that he does not expect the Xbox One X, Microsoft’s supercharged console that also promises to be the most powerful console ever made when it finally launches later this year, to sell well. In fact, he famously said so in an interview with GamingBolt last month.
Now, however, speaking on his own internet show, The Pachter Factor, he has reiterated that he does not expect the upcoming console to do well. Like before, it appears as though Pachter’s hesitance in this regard comes not from a perceived lack of games or support for Microsoft’s platform, but rather, its cost, which at $500, is abnormally high.
“I think it won’t sell so well because it costs twice as much as PlayStation 4,” Pachter said. “I mean, I think that’s the easy answer. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One S are nominally are priced at $299 and they’re pretty regularly discounted to $249, and they are almost always bundled with something. You kind of have to be a moron to pay $299 for a console now and not get a piece of software for free which does have a perceived value of 50 bucks.”
“For $600 you can buy a PlayStation and an Xbox and get a piece of software for each for sure. I promise that. If you can’t get that I’ll give you the 50 bucks difference,” Pachter boldly predicted. “For $600 you can buy both consoles and two games, and for $500 you can buy an Xbox One X and no games and if you want to buy two games, there’s an additional $100 cost added.”
This is in line with what Pachter said to GamingBolt last month- you can pick up an Xbox One S and a PS4 Slim for the dame price as an Xbox One X- why would anyone pick up an Xbox One X in such a situation? Even the brand new Nintendo Switch, which is one of the most popular consumer electronic items on the market currently, is only $300, and is likely to see at least a bundle as we head into the Holiday season.
So yes, I agree that the Xbox One X’s price is going to be a major deterrent, and that it will subdue the kind if impact or market penetration the system might otherwise have been able to have. The Xbox One X launches on November 7.
