The Xbox India Facebook page has revealed the Xbox Series X and Series S India price and release date. The Xbox Series X and Series S prices are Rs. 49,990 and Rs. 34,990 respectively which is inline with what we had speculated. As for a release date both will be available on November 10 in India with pre-orders beginning on September 22. We had doubted the veracity of these claims considering the Xbox India website has not been updated and the link in the Facebook post redirects us to the US Xbox news site with no India pricing. However this format of listing appears to be par for the course for Microsoft as its Xbox UK Facebook page linked back to the US Xbox news site that featured the US Xbox Series X and Series S price. The Mako Reactor reached out to Microsoft and a spokesperson for the company has confirmed that the post with its details are legitimate.
Retailers speaking to The Mako Reactor on condition of anonymity confirm that Microsoft has been talking to them to list the Xbox Series X and Series S although no pre-order date had been pinned down for India just yet.
Xbox Series X and Series S India launch and BIS concerns
That said, it’ll be great if India does eventually get the Xbox Series X and Series S in time with the rest of the world. The Xbox One released in India nearly a year after its global launch as did the Xbox One S while the Xbox One X made it here almost three months after its international release as did the Xbox One S All Digital edition.
In a market where Microsoft plays second fiddle to Sony (arguably third fiddle if you factor in the Nintendo Switch), a day and date India Xbox Series X release would be a fantastic statement of intent. Reason being, Sony’s never done a day and date launch for India either. In fact, the PS4 India release date was delayed due to BIS issues faced by Sony. Before electronics can be sold in India, they need to go through mandatory certification via the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). This includes a number of gadgets such as consoles.
The Department of Electronics, and Information Technology (DeitY), introduced compulsory BIS certification requirement in 2012, which went into effect in 2013. The process is often thought to be time consuming.
Sources in the supply chain speaking to The Mako Reactor claim that Microsoft’s India distribution partner, Redington has been efficient in this regard and it could be crucial in getting to the Indian market on time with an international Xbox Series X release date.
Xbox Series S features
- All-Digital (amusing how the lack of access to physical media as an option is touted as a feature)
- 1440p at up to 120fps for games
- DirectX ray tracing
- Variable rate shading
- Variable refresh rate
- Ultra-low latency (no indication to what this means for the Xbox Series S has been given in the promo video)
- Custom 512GB SSD
- 4K streaming media playback
- 4K upscaling of games
Update: 8:05pm IST – story edited to reflect Microsoft confirming that these details are correct.
