I know the way it works now, if you have ultimate gamepass it includes xbox live. If they assume most people will get gamepass going forward (and why wouldnt you after this new console launch?) then it would make sense to make the basic live subscription free.
They'll get better pricing by working directly with the manufacturer, but wholesale pc components arent like clothes and other goods you can buy for pennys on the dollar. At most theyre getting about 30% off. I've built a couple pc's in the last year with similar specs to what they're offering, and they cost over $1000 to build. So I'm just really interested to see how much they ultimately charge and also how they plan on keeping that powerful of a system running cool in such a small enclosure. Sure it can be done, but to do it at the rumored prices would be amazing and slightly unbelievable.
Cooling isn't really Microsoft's strong point... But in all seriousness, no one can roll out a console that costs more than $500. Can't do it. The $599 price point for the PS3 killed all the momentum of the PS2. It took the entire generation for Sony to recover.
Exact reasons why im so sceptical, but if they pull it off, it'll be a great deal for buyers. I went through a couple warranty claims on those RROD 360s, so im all too familiar with their fails. But I did make a nice chunk of change fixing them for other people, so not all bad.
I believe that's why Xbox went with the shape it did, the top is one big fan. You would think they learned with the 360 for going with style over function. I read articles awhile back that the Devs were getting overheating issues with the PS5 leading to hardware issues. But that was awhile ago so they might of ironed out those issues.
