You may or may not have seen the Xbox 360 Christmas bundles being announce across the world over the past few weeks, well if you have then you will be happy to see that we are not being ignored and if you haven’t you will be happy to know we are getting great bundles.
See everyone’s a winner.
Anyway to the bundles, if I recall correctly last years bundles included Viva PInata, Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance at different times. This year however has a decidedly more casual feel to it.
For the less hardcore gamers you can pickup the Xbox 360 Arcade which will have the following
Xbox 360 Entertainment System
1 Wireless Controller
Memory Card
5 Xbox Arcade Games
Sega Superstar Tennis
all for only R1799
If you prefer a bit more bang for your buck then go up to the Pro which has the following
Xbox 360 Entertainment System
60GB Hard drive
1 Wireless Controller
LEGO Indiana  Jones: The Original Adventures
Kung Fu Panda
all for only R2699…
Or you get the same two games free and an extra 60GB in the Elite for R3499Â
Compare that to the silver PS2 which is retailing for R2031 on Kalahari or the normal black one going for R1802 from ZAPS and you have to admit that Microsoft has done well with their aggressive pricing in South Africa.
Last Updated: October 17, 2008
Macethy
October 17, 2008 at 11:17
HAHA brilliant.The Xbox is cheaper than the PS2.Honeslty don’t see many consoles shifting this festive season,you know the economy and global market turning for the worst and all(refer to other article on Lazygamer about increase in game prices). 🙁
Kerry Parsons
October 19, 2008 at 18:22
Well I just CAN’T WAIT to get my 360! But when will the JASPER configuration be available in SA, and how will we recognize it from the box? With poor service and a lack of much of the good stuff (Xbox Live) already the norm for SA, I can’t afford to wait around forever if my console goes RROD. I need a constant gaming fix. And yes, the FALCON systems still do RROD occasionally.
Aside from a Jasper Xbox 360, I also need a good HDTV (Full 1080p) and right now the prices for recognized brands are ridiculous. An option is the Sinotec 47″ from Makro, but there are no reliable specs available anywhere and only one or two competent reviews so far. Seems like a good buy, but I’d like to hear that from a 360 owner.
Regarding the Christmas bundles, they are great but the bundled games aren’t as important as the quality of the console. I’d rather wait until I can be sure I’m getting a Jasper-equipped system and that the Sinotec HDTV is good for Xbox gaming before I start to care about Christmas bundles. Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda aren’t exactly on anyone’s wish list anyway as they tend more toward the B-grade, and with VALHALLA systems still a year away from reaching our shores in SA, I want my 360 to perform now, and without fault.
LazySAGamer
October 19, 2008 at 21:57
Hi Kerry,
Sinotec has a very good name in the local community and while I know very little about TV’s I have never heard anything bad about them… I’d say go for it..
As for the Jasper, I am still not aware of any being made available anywhere in the world and since Microsoft doesn’t announce these improvements it’s very hard to to say when you will get one.
However that being said the current 360 is quite reliable and the replacement procedure is the best in the world. If the thing dies you walk into the store you got it from and just replace it then and there. It really is that easy.
Kerry Parsons
October 20, 2008 at 12:44
Hey, thank you for the reply!
I too have not heard anything bad about Sinotec, but I also haven’t heard if they’re 1080p or 1080i (specifically the 47″ model now on sale for R11999 again) and the reviews that I have read haven’t been conducted by 360 gamers. I’ll have to try the TV out for myself before making the purchase.
The only news I get about Jasper is more speculation than anything, and it usually revolves around dates (Nov 2008 being the latest) and I’ve heard that the Lego Indiana Jones + Kung Fu Panda bundle will definitely be a Jasper system. But Microsoft has only ordered 10,000 Jasper boards from the Taiwanese manufacturer (according to Tom’s Hardware) for 2008, so it’s not likely that they’ll be in SA this year. Anyway I do think that the 65nm GPU of Jasper will be worth the wait, but on the other hand I CAN’T WAIT to buy a 360 and all the waiting is driving me nuts! I might as well settle for the Falcon.
I’ve heard that a lot of resellers are pulling the 360 from their shelves altogether (according to TeamXbox-SA) so that is why I’m concerned about returns. That said, my friends’ Falcon systems have yet to fail them (other than scratching the disks) so my confidence in the 360 is growing.
Thanks for the info!
LazySAGamer
October 20, 2008 at 13:57
TeamXbox-SA? Sorry I am not sure who you are referring to there.
I can confirm that Toys R Us and Reggies stopped supporting the 360 a while back but at the same time I can confirm that the major retailers are still very much supporting the 360 and that it will be around for a while.
There are also rumours that the 360 will be back on the Reggies shelf soon enough but there is nothing to back that up yet.