Post by Dan @ 11:19am 20/06/13 | 13 Comments
Speaking to Joystiq, Xbox Chief Product Officer Marc Whitten maintained commitment to the announced US$499 price point, saying "We feel good about our price.", and believing in the value of "what this architecture can deliver over the long term".
The Kinect sensor is widely attributed to the pricing gap between the Xbox One and Sony's also recently priced PlayStation 4, but microsoft is standing firm on ensuring each console ships with the motion-controller/camera/microphone peripheral, and also that it must still be plugged in at all times for the console to operate.
"We still absolutely believe in Kinect. It's a core part of the architecture. Frankly, it's really critical that you build it as something that's always there, always part of the platform. So that game creators, experience creators can know they can rely on it. And you, the user, that there's always a consistent experience. That it's not just an accessory."The Xbox One console is due in November 2013, in 21 markets including Australia, North America, and Europe, for AUD$599, USD$499, GBP£429, and EUR€499
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Posted 11:36am 20/6/13
Originally MS said the microphone will always be on, even when the console is off, to allow you to voice-activate it to turn on. Then later they said you'll be able to fully turn off the console (including microphone). However the details of this have not been provided (I assume they haven't work it out), and it's not clear whether you have to jump through a bunch of hoops to achieve this - i.e. to the point where most people will stop bothering with the hassle, etc.
Posted 12:04pm 20/6/13
There's no way to turn off the telescreens & we've always been at war with Eastasia.
Posted 12:49pm 20/6/13
Posted 03:06pm 20/6/13
Posted 03:34pm 20/6/13
Posted 04:58pm 20/6/13
(About time I actually logged in, after lurking for like, six years...)
Posted 07:07pm 20/6/13
Posted 07:20pm 20/6/13
I have sticky tape over my laptop's webcam
Posted 08:08pm 20/6/13
Posted 10:24pm 20/6/13
Posted 02:12pm 21/6/13
If you cover your webcam with a postage note or blutack, do you also cover the microphone or, even more extreme, uninstall the drivers when you're not using it? How do you know that Microsoft are not recording your every keystroke? I haven't even touched on instant messaging services (Yahoo Messenger, WhatsApp, etc.), social networks (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), video and voice services like Skype (owned by Microsoft) and telcos. I'm certain all those services store your data somewhere. What about these new Samsun SmartTVs that have built in webcams and microphones and ceature the same video and audio features as Xbox One, but have been on the market for more than a year? Has this paranoia been spurred by the recent PRISM controversy?
Removing the conspiracy theories, I can see mandatory use of the Kinect One as avoiding the fragmentation of the user base and allowing developers to confidently program Kinect features (a key differentiating feature of the Xbox One) in to their games and knowing every Xbox One user will have the hardware to use it.
I'm not trying to start a war of words; just trying to see a rational view of this issue above what seems, to me, is some paranoid overreaction.
Posted 03:58pm 21/6/13
Posted 04:41pm 21/6/13
1. Microsoft designed both the OS and the hardware for the xbox, and they have complete control over what's installed on the system, how it is used, and what information is passed back and forth. You can't disable anything unless it's allowed with their simple UI. You will probably not know what's happening behind the scenes as it's a completely closed system controlled by one entity (MS) bent on making as much money out of you through the unit.
2. Microsoft didn't make laptops, only Windows which takes the role of a general-purpose OS. The user still has a high level of control over what's installed, what drivers are installed or disabled, etc. You can sniff around with ease to see if something dodgy is happening behind the scenes.
So a bit of a difference, and hence your analogy doesn't really hold.