Microsoft Announces New Xbox 360, Kinect Add-on

Microsoft has announced an update to the Xbox 360 console and Kinect, an add-on to your Xbox that lets your body become the controller, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3).

Kinect for Xbox 360, formerly known as “Project Natal,” was debuted in a live performance imagined by Cirque du Soleil.

“At Microsoft, we believe fun is a universal magnet, uniting us and connecting us all together,” said Don Mattrick, senior vice president for the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “We believe interactive entertainment is the greatest form of all entertainment, and it should be open and approachable to as many people as possible. It is this belief that led us to remove the last barrier between you and the entertainment you love. By making you the controller, we will transform how you and your friends experience games and entertainment.”


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The Year We All “Kinect”
Kinect for Xbox 360 brings roaring rapids, wild tigers, mountainous obstacle courses and zooming racecars to living rooms in North America on Nov. 4 and will roll out to the rest of the world thereafter. Uniquely magical and instantly fun, Kinect for Xbox 360 tracks your body movements and gestures. It even understands your voice.

By taking technology out of your hands for the first time, Kinect lets people who have never picked up a game controller join the excitement. See a ball? Just kick it. Want to learn how to dance or get fit? Just follow the moves. With Kinect, all you have to do is be you — no controller required.

Kinect also puts your favorite movies, television shows and music at your fingertips, turning ordinary entertainment into an extraordinary experience. Jump right into a movie in instant-on 1080p HD2 by simply saying “Xbox, play.” Browse a selection of millions of songs with just a wave of your hand. Kinect instantly makes playing games, watching movies and listening to music more fun and interactive than ever before, and it is available only on Xbox 360.

The New Xbox 360
Microsoft also surprised the world with a new Xbox 360 console designed for the future. Back in black, the new Xbox 360 is sleek, silent and sexy. Connect in seconds to the always- expanding world of Xbox LIVE through built-in Wi-Fi N and store twice as many games and entertainment on a 250GB hard drive.


The newly designed console is whisper-quiet, so the silent tension of a game or movie is never broken. The new Xbox 360 system also comes with everything you need to get started, including an Xbox 360 wireless controller, Xbox 360 headset, HDMI output, USB flash drive storage capabilities and more, and a one-year limited warranty on the console, available this week and priced at $299.99 ERP.
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Microsoft also announced the Xbox LIVE Gold members will now have free access to more than 3,500 ESPN global events, Zune music has expanded to Xbox LIVE, Video Kinect to video chat with family and friends, as well as further global expansion for Xbox LIVE.

It's rumored that Kinect for Xbox will cost $149.99.

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