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And, of course, I literally just bought one.

Today at Comic-Con, Microsoft announced that they would be dropping the price of their Xbox 360 HD-DVD Player add-on from the already competitive $199 to $179.  In addition, if you buy the player between August 1 and September 30, you get five free HD-DVD’s.

Also in the announcement, coming relatively soon are the HD-DVD releases of 300 (July 31) and Heroes: Season One (August 28).  To herald these releases, Xbox Live will roll out some online content.  On August 14, Live members will be able to access an HD version of 300 for “rent”, or however they refer to it.  Also, “in advance of the street date”, Live members will be able access a free download of the Heroes pilot episode in HD.

I’m pumped about both of these releases…I missed 300 in theaters, and Heroes was my favorite new show last season, though NBC is the only local network not in HD in my area.