$99 XBOX 360 and Kinect Bundle Now Available

Those of you who were waiting for an opportunity to get an XBOX 360 with Kinect at a much cheaper price can finally get your hands on Microsoft’s gaming console for only $99. Yes folks, it’s official: Microsoft has released a statement saying that gamers will now be able to buy a 4GB XBOX 360 and Kinect bundle for only $99. The deal will be available through this online coupon as pictured above.

The catch, of course, is that a two-year XBOX Live Gold subscription, which will cost you $15 per month, is attached to your purchase, so the whole package will cost you around $460 for the next two years. As of this writing, a new 4GB XBOX 360 and Kinect bundle is going for $276 on Amazon, so prospective buyers will be able to save around $177, but only for the unit itself.

If you’re planning to cut out of the two-year contract before it ends, you should know that early termination fees will be handed out by Microsoft. If you end the contract after a month, you will end up having to pay $250. The longer you maintain the contracted subscription to XBOX Live, the less you will have to pay when you finally decide to cut loose.

So if ever I decide to grab this offer right now and maintain the two-year subscription until it ends, it will cost me around $460. However, if I decide to buy the Xbox 360 and Kinect unit, and then buy a separate subscription to XBOX Live, I may end up shelling out around $376 or even less, depending on whether or not I manage to find a cheaper subscription rate for XBOX Live.

Aside from the math, there’s another variable that potential buyers should be aware of. The $99 XBOX 360 with Kinect bundle is only available at retail Microsoft stores, so online shoppers will not be able to take advantage of this offer as of this time. Additionally, the number of retail stores that have this bundle are limited only to a smattering of locations across the United States.

I’m not sure why Microsoft hasn’t made this offer available on the Internet as well, but my guess is that they are testing the waters first to gauge the reaction and interest of the consumers before they go full-auto.