$99 Xbox deal from Microsoft

If you're looking for a way to get a great console for a small upfront investment, this is your chance

If you've been waiting to purchase an Xbox 360 with Kinect, now may be the time to take the plunge. Microsoft's rumored deal of a $99 Xbox 360 with a two-year, $14.99 per month subscription to Xbox Live Gold has gone live at Microsoft Stores around the country.

To get the deal, you need to bring offer code 885370366266 (or the coupon with that code on it) to one of the 17 Microsoft Stores located around the country. It doesn't appear that this deal is currently available online or at other retailers such as Walmart and Best Buy, though they may indeed follow suit in due time.

Taking advantage of this deal requires you make a two year commitment to the Xbox Live service, which will cost you a total of $360 extra. If you cancel your Xbox Live account subscription before the two years are up, you'll be subject to an early termination penalty. That penalty starts at $250, but after a period of five months, it starts decreasing by $12 per month.

(Source)

This article was written by Fox Van Allen and originally appeared on Tecca

CinemaNow For Xbox 360

If Hulu, Netflix, YouTube, Crackle, live TV, and Microsoft’s own proprietary video download platform wasn’t enough for you, there is a new way to stream movies and TV shows from your Xbox 360. CinemaNow, which operates as a joint deal between Best Buy and Sonic Solutions, has launched an official app for the Microsoft platform, further expanding the reach of its 14,000 pieces of content.

That concent ranges from full-length movies to music concerts, short films, and TV show episodes. It has all the major licenses including Disney, Sony, Warner Bros, NBC Universal, etc, etc, etc. Unlike Netflix or Hulu, CinemaNow charges users per movie or TV show, and with most titles users have lifetime access to their content on any device that has CinemaNow support. The service is available on computers as well as Internet-connected TVs, Blu-ray players, and set-top boxes. Everything is stored in the cloud so buying a TV episode on the Xbox 360 means you can watch it on your PC later.

This of course is just the latest addition in the growing library of video streaming apps on the Xbox 360. There’s nearly too many to count at this point. Another recently announced addition is Crackle, a Sony Pictures-centric free streaming service that offers Kinect-powered voice control through the app. As always, Xbox Live Gold is required.