So How Much Is It Gonna Cost Nao?

[Dubya']

Starting with the 199GBP (including VAT) from the wiki and a Google search figure of 17.5% UK VAT (not sure if that's the correct percentage), the pre-VAT price is 170GBP. Since US residents don't pay VAT, that's the figure for them. Then typing "170 gbp to dollars" into a Google search, we get the result from Google "170 British pounds = 337.80700 U.S. dollars" at the exchange rate that instant.

 

[Sphinxter]

Cool, anything under $400 I'd see as a gift. I kid but think the U.S. economy is totally becalmed and in for a lot rougher ride than anybody yet realizes. The housing slump aint over til the fat lady closes a couple of banks, country wide might count as one. Big wad of bad paper out there floating around like an iceberg.

 

[jdh2550]

then let's see what happens with the US elections...

My guy is out

No not the mayor of New York - the pretty boy from South Carolina...

I agree with Sphinxter - it's gonna get a lot worse this year. Sub-prime mortgage madness in the US is going to continue to wreak havoc on international money markets.

Still, I'll just get my Mum & Dad to buy me one in the UK and send it over as an early XMas present

(Or, perhaps I can pick one up in May when I'll be back in the homeland?)

 

[fusion_power]

The price hasn't changed and is not expected to. The only variation that can occur is locking in a US/CDN price that reflects a reasonable state of the dollar during 2008.

Stupid weak dollar.


Who cares. Here, in Euroland, the weak Dollar has Advantages. And because in America you pay nearly nothing for things like fuel, Energy, etc... (compared to Europe) I think its ok that some things there now are more expencive (or call it valuable) than in the past.
Even with the Dollar-Euro relation these days, many electronic products in europe are much more expencive than in USA, its common to calculate a $200 product from USA with 200 Euro in Europe...and this pisses me off since Years. Compared to Asian or US prices for electronics (Compare Games and Console prices! ), in Europe you have to pay a fortune more.
I'm glad, that the Pandora will have a fair Price .

 

[Gaeryc]

The price hasn't changed and is not expected to. The only variation that can occur is locking in a US/CDN price that reflects a reasonable state of the dollar during 2008.

Stupid weak dollar.


Who cares. Here, in Euroland, the weak Dollar has Advantages. And because in America you pay nearly nothing for things like fuel, Energy, etc... (compared to Europe) I think its ok that some things there now are more expencive (or call it valuable) than in the past.
Even with the Dollar-Euro relation these days, many electronic products in europe are much more expencive than in USA, its common to calculate a $200 product from USA with 200 Euro in Europe...and this pisses me off since Years. Compared to Asian or US prices for electronics (Compare Games and Console prices! ), in Europe you have to pay a fortune more.
I'm glad, that the Pandora will have a fair Price .

In finland the cheapest wii I have saw has been 250€ and ps3 40gb models sell at about 480€.

 

[fusion_power]

In finland the cheapest wii I have saw has been 250€ and ps3 40gb models sell at about 480€.

It seems, our prices here are nearly equal, around 240-250 Euros:
http://amazon.de/s/ref=nb_ss_w/302-3471315....x=0&Go.y=0

I don't know, how much this Wii version costs in USA but at the Moment 249 Euros = 367.77 U.S. Dollars.

Hugh!

 

[javaJake]

Wii sells for $250 retail, last I heard, here in the US.

 

[Magnulus]

Wii sells for $250 retail, last I heard, here in the US.

You bastards!! ^_^

 

[Chip]

Wii sells for $250 retail, last I heard, here in the US.

The $250 Wii is a lie, just like the cake.

Sure, technically the retail price of the console is $250, but it is not exactly easy to find a store which has them in stock and is willing to sell you just the console. Many stores (Toys R Us is one of the worst) will only sell them in $500-$700 bundles, which forces you to buy a stack of terrible games (on which the stores make a much higher margin). Not all stores do this, but considering the demand, only the stores with the absurd bundles are likely to have them in stock at any given time. Sure, you could walk into a Gamestop and get lucky, but the stores in my area have 30-50 people waiting in line on known Wii delivery dates.

A quick ebay search lists the cheapest new-in-box Wii at about $330 after shipping.

 

[javaJake]

I'll let you in on a little secret: GameCrazy has a waiting list for Wii's. At $250. That's right. Waiting list.

I love GameCrazy. Service is top notch. (The new person at the store in my area is a character!)


Edit: BTW, a waiting list is only as good as your patience.

 

[Clad]

However I expect it to recover to around 1.98 for a while then probably drop again to hover at 2.05 for a while, then let's see what happens with the US elections...

Actually US policy regarding the value of the $ is not likely to change at short/medium term, no matter which party will get the presidency.

The most plausible scenario to get a weaker £/$ ratio is to look at Germany. It's mainly them that are opposing to a weak euro, because germany's exports aren't really affected. As soon as the commercial balance of germany will start to decline, it might get enough to shift the balance of power at the ECB to target a lower euro. And because of the european internal market, of which the UK hasn't opted out (yes, sometime that happens... sometime), a lower euro will lead to a lower GBP, thus making the Pandora more affordable for Americans.

Which leads to two questions :

- Why couldn't the ECB think of the Pandora a bit more, and of the general european economy a bit less ? They should choose their priority better.

- Why would we want those filthy americans to get their hands on our preciousssss Pandora anyway ? Could you imagine Homer Simpson, the most accurate description of a north american ever, with a Pandora ? Blasphemy !

 

[DaveC]

It is still a deal for what you get, even when paying in USD.

And the election probably won't matter for awhile. You just don't erase trillions of dollars of debt in 4 years. The best that can be hoped for is that the next president will at least start to reverse the reckless spending spree of the last 8 years.

I still don't get the Wii mania these days. Everyone going apeshit for a reworked Gamecube with a gimmicky controller seems odd. I played it at a friend's and the controller worked well, but the awful low res graphics were a big let down. It was ok overall but I don't see what the big deal is.

 

[Magnulus]

- Why would we want those filthy americans to get their hands on our preciousssss Pandora anyway ? Could you imagine Homer Simpson, the most accurate description of a north american ever, with a Pandora ? Blasphemy !

As someone who's been watching Seasons 4-6 of Simpsons since christmas, I have to say that that is SLIGHTLY over-pessimistic as far as north American males go.
They usually have a lot more hair than Homer.

 

[Tobriand]

- Why would we want those filthy americans to get their hands on our preciousssss Pandora anyway ? Could you imagine Homer Simpson, the most accurate description of a north american ever, with a Pandora ? Blasphemy !

Well, no, I can't. But it would be very VERY good advertising if he did...

 

[javaJake]

Bolded for speed-readers, since it's a long 'n.

It is still a deal for what you get, even when paying in USD.

...which is why I'm getting it.

And the election probably won't matter for awhile. You just don't erase trillions of dollars of debt in 4 years. The best that can be hoped for is that the next president will at least start to reverse the reckless spending spree of the last 8 years.

...and Democrats don't want to reverse that spending. *begins a political debate*

I still don't get the Wii mania these days. Everyone going apeshit for a reworked Gamecube with a gimmicky controller seems odd. I played it at a friend's and the controller worked well, but the awful low res graphics were a big let down. It was ok overall but I don't see what the big deal is.

Maybe you don't see the big deal, but I see it. I see everyone who tries it walking away, proclaiming its awesomeness (and that's everyone from not-a-bit-of-hand-eye-coordination folks to regular gamers).

Here are my main points I give to most: Graphics aren't everything. Yes, graphics give a boost to everything, but you don't miss them on the Wii. It's more of an optional bit to gaming. The controls aren't dumb. Anyone who says motion controls are dumb might as well touch screens (essentially 2D motion controls) are also dumb.

Here's where I don't like the Wii: not enough hard-core games (more Zelda! more Mario! more racing! less minigames!).


Keep in mind this is off-topic, so if you (DaveC) replies, I will not, so we can keep the normal topic moving. I just don't like seeing the Wii bashed like this without any good reason.

 

[bnolsen]

Well I hope pandora (or a machine like pandora) marks the beginning of a bigger mindshare shift from traditional console bricks over to portable systems. Pandora's got all the controls and more to replicate traditional controllers (replace extra shoulder buttons with clicky analog)

Nowadays I just can't stand sitting in front of a TV. Just have to wonder if pandora itself will be part of that inevitable move.

 

[javaJake]

Pandora is part of the inevitable shift from seperate and immobile to unified, mobile, and wirelessly connected.

 

[Orkie]

Pandora is part of the inevitable shift from seperate and immobile to unified, mobile, and wirelessly connected.

When you can get 50+ inch portable screens, I may agree that a complete changeover will occur.

 

[atomicthumbs]

And when I can play TF2 and Garry's Mod with my Xbox 5u43853543hgrjdi.

 

[Clad]

And the election probably won't matter for awhile. You just don't erase trillions of dollars of debt in 4 years. The best that can be hoped for is that the next president will at least start to reverse the reckless spending spree of the last 8 years.

Proportionally to GDP, USA is far from being one of the most indebted developed country. France's debt is around 2 trillions for instance, and it's deficit is bigger and worsening, with our president saying that "there is more important issues than the national debt". That doesn't prevent our currency to be ridiculously and incoherently strong.

US debt actually is a very small factor to the US$ situation.