Let me get this straight, for $300 I can get an Xbox 360, but it won t play Xbox games, won t be wireless and won t come with a remote control or harddrive. Or I could spend $400 and get the things that the 360 should really ship with, but it still won t come with a game or have the stuff I really want.

To truly have the system that Microsoft talked about when they unveiled the 360 I would have to spend closer to $650. Here s the break-down:

Xbox 360 Standard: $399.99
Gold Xbox Live Subscription: At least $49.99 (Likely more.)
Wireless Networking Adapter: $99.99
Second Wireless Controller: $49.99
Two Play and Charge Kits: $19.99 times two.
Total: $639.94

And that s without what will likely be a very pricey Xbox 360 game, which could push the total closer to $700...and don't forget the HDTV.

So the question is, how much are you willing to spend for gaming? If you had $700 would you buy a loaded 360 or the couch you ll be sitting on to play those games?

This price is going to do more to prevent Microsoft from getting a head start on Sony in the next-gen race then any Cell processor or Killzone 2 will ever do. I m guessing Msoft will be dropping the price to something reasonable around the time the PS3 is set to hit the market. If Sony s smart they won t kick-off their console at a price that won t just dent your wallet, but blow it into moneyless shreds.

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