They are charging this to spread the impact out. Given that Xboxs main user base is in the US it’s not surprising they have had to increase the cost in the US vs Sony who has not had to alter the US price much as only a percentage of their fan base exists in the US as they are the only console in town next to the switch for most of the world
If the US alone absorbed the price would be far higher it’s absolutely a knee jerk reaction globally.
Sony doing a mid gen refresh really doesn’t matter as they have also increased the cost of the base model at least in my region the cost has risen from $750 at launch to $829
Switch 2 pricing took the cost into consideration I imagine the cost would have been $100 less had the looming threat of tarrifs and the poor Japanese yen been a factor
But at the end of the day it is what it is and we should just be thankful that we already own the systems we want assuming here you do as most hardcore gamers will have a console if they intended on getting one by now.
It’s the next gen systems I’m worried about