With this year's holidays being just around the corner, it's only natural for companies to start tempting potential customers with cash-saving, too-good-to-pass deals. With that in mind, Microsoft, via the informative Major Nelson, announced earlier today its 2012 Xbox 360 holiday bundles in hopes of luring some folks in; among these are a 250GB console with Kinect, Dance Central 2, Kinect Sports, Kinect Adventures and one month of Xbox Live for $400, while there's also a 4GB, $300 option that comes with the same Gold subscription, Redmond's motion-tracking peripheral, Kinect Disneyland Adventures and Kinect Adventures. In addition, the Surface maker said retailers should start offering the console for $50 off MSRP, and that this limited time deal will also apply to the Halo 4 bundle which is due to come out on November 6th. Better yet, these new bundles and promos are available now -- so, for those living in the US, now could be a good time to snag one of Microsoft's renowned consoles.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, Microsoft
Microsoft announces Xbox 360 holiday bundles and $50 off promo for US market originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Oct 2012 18:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft's Surface tablets could already be considered warning shots across the bow, signalling that a change in strategy was underway. For anyone who was in doubt, however, CEO Steve Ballmer has clearly spelled out in a shareholder letter that Microsoft now sees its own devices as crucial to the company as anything else. There's a "fundamental shift" in how the Redmond-based crew works, he says, and investors should expect that Microsoft will periodically make "specific devices for specific purposes" (like Surface or the Xbox) that show off services in the best light possible. Ballmer adds that plans in the long run focus on new device types and learning interfaces. The message is ostensibly a rosy one for the company's future, but there's also a subtext for hardware makers that have complained about competing against their OS partner: get used to it. Ballmer sees Microsoft-designed hardware like Surface as complementary to what third parties do, and his company isn't about to reverse course anytime soon.
Filed under: Gaming, Tablets, Microsoft
Microsoft CEO Ballmer braces us for a 'fundamental shift' in strategy with more Microsoft-designed devices originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Oct 2012 19:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Earlier today, rumors started circulating around the web about Microsoft having hired a former CBS executive to oversee the creation of original video content for the company's famed console. It didn't take long for the whispers to turn into something more concrete, however, as Redmond has now made it official, announcing that Nancy Tellem will be the outfit's Entertainment and Digital Media president. According to Microsoft, Tellem's set to take over a new production studio in Los Angeles, California -- one that's going to be in charge of developing "interactive and linear content for Xbox and other devices." Certainly this could be seen as a smart move from Microsoft in its quest to take over the living room reigns, which would make perfect sense given the Xbox's obvious transition from a simple gaming console to an all-around media hub. You'll find all the official details inside the presser below.
[Image Credit: Getty Images / Peter Kramer]
Continue reading Microsoft hires former CBS executive to produce original video content for Xbox
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet, HD
Microsoft hires former CBS executive to produce original video content for Xbox originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Sep 2012 16:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |Microsoft | Email this | Comments Welcome to Engadget's back to school guide! The end of summer vacation isn't nearly as much fun as the weeks that come before, but a chance to update your tech tools likely helps to ease the pain. Today, we're getting our game on -- and you can head to the back to school hub to see the rest of the product guides as they're added throughout the month. Be sure to keep checking back -- at the end of the month we'll be giving away a ton of the gear featured in our guides -- and hit up the hub page right here!
It's time to balance out that daily grind at school with some well-deserved leisure. Fortunately, many of our choices walk that fine line between work and play -- if you're willing to stump up some more cash beyond a normal laptop, you could get something capable of handling the latest PC titles. Some of our other choices may be a harder sell in the education stakes, but we all need some stress relief, right? And with bigger consoles nearing the end of their life cycles, there's never been a more wallet-friendly time to get involved. Jump in after the break for our favorite gaming choices. If all your money's been earmarked for learnin', then you should certainly enter our sweepstakes. Leave a comment after the break for a chance to win, and visit our giveaway page for all the details.
Continue reading Engadget's back to school guide 2012: gaming
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Engadget's back to school guide 2012: gaming originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Aug 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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