Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite Console - Black

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the XBox had more to do with game selection, really, and in that the XBox excels.

GAMES: The XBox's library of games is unparalleled right now. There are many incredible XBox exclusive titles, from the obvious Halo 3 to games like Bioshock, Forza 2, and Gears of War (and this is a very small sampling of what's actually out there). I'm not impressed with the PS3's game library, and while I couldn't live without my Nintendo franchises like Zelda, Mario, and Metroid I'm finding myself craving more games beyond the party type games (which the Wii is great for) and Nintendo's own titles.

XBOX LIVE: The Xbox's online community is second to none right now, and while I can see promise for both Sony and Nintendo in this area neither system offers as much as the XBox does at the time of this writing. Aside from the enormous and well-established community, the XBox live marketplace offers classic games, TV shows, and movies for download, as well as game trailers and demos and a whole lotta other stuff. I love being able to download so many demos of games I might like to try--it saves on some rental fees for sure--and I'm looking forward to picking up some classic games like Contra and the incredible Castlevania: Symphony of the Night soon. I wouldn't say the classic game library rivals Nintendo's Virtual Console yet (not even close, really), but there are some great games nonetheless.

THE HARDWARE: The XBox elite is black, which I personally prefer to the white. It has an HDMI port and comes with a cord, so it's capable of full 1080p HD. I also love the 120 GB hard drive--though I've never been one to fill a game console's hard drive it's nice to know I have the space, and with all the game demos and other things I've been downloading it may become a possibility. The Elite also functions as a DVD player with upconverting capability, and the quality I get from playing a DVD on my XBox is incredible, so much so that I'm not using my old DVD player anymore for regular DVDs.

Hardware reliability has been a concern, and was something that really held me back for a while. Following were a couple of my major concerns and this is how the Xbox 360 has handled them:

-Noise. My 360 is much quieter than many reviews led me to believe. My wife doesn't know its on unless she's in the same room.
-Heat. This was a big one for me. I don't have space to keep the console upright--it has to be on its side--and I've heard horror stories of overheating after very little play. The console has about 18 inches behind it for ventilation and seems to run just fine, though I haven't had it on for more than about 3 hours at a time. There's a lot of heat coming out the back of it but the console itself doesn't seem to heat up much. When it's really hot outside I keep an upright fan blowing the general direction of my TV (where the Xbox is) and plan on getting a cooling system just to be safe, but so far heat has not really been an issue for me.
-Ruining discs - I've heard of the console scratching discs beyond playability and also of cracking. My console lays on its side and I don't move it while a disc is playing, and so far I've had no issues, though I haven't used it enough to say it will never happen.
-Red Ring of Death - Again, no problems yet. The 3 year warranty helps, though the prospect of not having the thing for a couple months while they fix it brings my blood almost to a boil just thinking about it.

Overall I'm tremendously happy with my XBox 360, and my only real concern with it is the potential for hardware failure. Still, this is a great machine, and definitely worth the price tag for me. I'm disappointed that wireless capability was not included in the console (it's a pretty expensive add-on), since both the Wii and the PS3 have that built in. Since I have an HD TV I'd love to have a built in HD-DVD player, but I think it was a wise choice not to force it upon people who don't want it by building it into the machine.

Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite Console - Black

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have purchased for the Xbox instead of the Playstation. This is because of the enchantment of the Xbox "Achievement" scoring system, rewarding the player with (unfortunately useless) global points for making various accomplishments in every Xbox 360 title.

I have begun researching the PS3's "barely used" resale value.

Besides playing games - and there are tons to choose from - the Xbox is well-built to use the internet. Though I myself am not a big online-gaming enthusiast, I can still use it to upgrade games, download visual content for background themes and the like. I have even begun downloading TV shows. The system allows you to establish 1-on-1 chat rooms, which I use often to talk to my brother who lives cross-country. We can catch up on current events while playing two different games. The PS3 allows you to chat, but you can't do anything else while chatting.

Unfortunately, the Elite has one major limitation. In fact, the feature that makes this system "Elite" is it's biggest drawback - the 120 gb harddrive. My PS3 only has 40 gb's, and I've already packed it with MP3's and movies (honestly - what else is it good for??) What drew me to purchase the Elite Xbox (besides it's black color which blends much better into home-entertainment setups) was it's large storage capability. However, Microsoft has made it impossible to download or copy any music content onto the Harddrive. The only way to import music is to "burn" it from a CD. Obviously the intent here is to discourage piracy, but it has also alienated any iTunes subscribers or the like. I probably would have been just as happy with a standard Xbox 360. I still have over 100 gigs available!

Thus the benefit of the Elite is to be able to download lots of game content, pictures, videos, etc. This comes at a cost, as very few of these downloads are free. Take that into consideration before you buy.

System malfunctions seem to be rare - a few game crashes here and there. I am sympathetic to earlier owners of malfunctioning systems. As of this writing, May 2008, I'd say you'd be "good to go" buying one of these systems.

Microsoft I apologize. I've complained about a fair amount of money I've given you over the years, but I have to confess - you did this one right. I look forward to many, many more hours of hardcore, balls-to-the-wall gaming.

Look for me online - my gamertag is "Vipera Raddei!"

Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite Console - Black

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loud disk drive. I'm sitting about eleven feet away so I found that to be incredibly annoying. But when it comes down to it, it is a minor gripe. Everyone kept telling me how much better the 360 was then the PS3, but in my opinion, they are just different. I chose to buy a PS3 first because I knew that blu-ray would win out and I like watching my favorite films in high definition glory.

So when it comes down to it, I'm very glad I purchased a Xbox 360. I'm also glad I purchased a PS3. Both pieces of technology should keep buyers happy for years to come, as I know I am.