Xbox 360 slim - $299 -- Old Arcade $150, Elite $250 -- READ OP

poker360

poker360

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shipping to retailers this week, and available to buy this week. not yet on any websites.

Hey guys, i just picked up my xbox 360 250gb S console. I have been trying it out and will give a few impressions, including how hot this thing gets. First off, the wireless adapter works great, very easy to find my network. The console itself is beautiful, loving the buttons where they are touch sensitive. I cannot hear the console when on dashboard, but i can while playing games and the disc is spinning (still not nearly as loud as old models). There is one big issue that i AM having with this however: The thing is whisper silent, but it is also Flaming Hot. Look at the picture. See the big vent on the side? That's where all the heat is at. It's not on the back like the previous console, it doesn't seem like the fan is pushing out the heat very well. This could just be me, but i had someone else touch it to verify that they indeed thought it was outrageously HOT. Let this be a warning to buyers! .. Also i do understand this may not be a problem at all. My Wii does get hot with wii connect 24 (But not as hot as the 360..). My Mac also get's rather hot (still not as hot as the 360..). I'm just throwing this out there.

Fix: Make your 360 sit horizontally. It will help the 360 ventilate better, and won't get nearly as hot!



http://www.gamestop.com/Catalog/Pro...7&sourceID=FKSJxY2VJAk-QITCFx9nwsTluOMMcV9Frw

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-250G..._7?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1276552010&sr=1-7



360 Arcade will drop to $150
360 Elite will drop to $250
New 360 250GB "slim" is $300


img7345.jpg



250gb hdd, built in wireless n adapter

Built in transfer software, so if you want to upgrade, no worries!
includes wireless controller, headset, and composite cables
 
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[quote name='gepet0']I traded in the elite and tatsunoko and super smash. After edge and taxes it was like 122. I forgot I hope it comes with components[/QUOTE]

Nope...just the standard A/V cables good for SD gaming. If you traded your unit in with component cables see if you can return and swap the cables, I'm sure they won't care. I saw a dude do it on the spot when I was trading mine in.
 
Just got mine via UPS and Gamestop, and I must say, it is a sexy machine. (With a "y". Not sex machine.)

It also has that unique "Xbox 360 new console smell" that I haven't been acquainted with since launch (Although this is my 4th xbox. Thanks, red ring).

And for those of you wondering, on the front of the console, the first thing you see is a big sticker on the front of the console with the words "Do NOT move console while disc is in tray".
 
Wow. Just got a chance to turn mine on, get it downloading. Just wow. I seriously could not hear it on the welcome/network screens. I've heard the high pitched whine of every model of 360 from Xenon through Jasper.

But not this one! It looks sweet. I've got it downloading atm and hwen it's not on, just downloading, the button light (the power icon) pulses like its alive. I seem to recall the others just flashed.

Anyways, the sound difference is nothing short of amazing. So far, its like my launch 60gb PS3. Quiet when idling, a whoosh when its gaming. Why did it take Microsoft this long to get it done? This isn't rocket science. PS3's been this way for years. I can finally use my 360 for games beyond exclusives. :D
 
[quote name='DualFPS']That's what I like to know as well. In the first couple pages of this thread, there were a few users who seemed to be really happy with 3-4 Xboxes... wouldn't that mean you wasted almost over $1000? Think of all the games you could buy with that.. or college books or pay house bills.[/QUOTE]

Some of us have large houses.

The real issue with this new Xbox is how are we (people with multiple 360's) going to play with the same gamertag/account on separate consoles? The old hard drive simply snaps on whatever 360 I'm playing on. Once I transfer my content to the new 250 Gig model...those days are over. That gamertag/account won't be able to be used on my old 360's. Unless I recover my gamertag each time or buy a bunch of new model 360's...neither of which I'm going to do. Hmmm.
 
[quote name='heybtbm']Some of us have large houses.

The real issue with this new Xbox is how are we (people with multiple 360's) going to play with the same gamertag/account on separate consoles? The old hard drive simply snaps on whatever 360 I'm playing on. Once I transfer my content to the new 250 Gig model...those days are over. That gamertag/account won't be able to be used on my old 360's. Unless I recover my gamertag each time or buy a bunch of new model 360's...neither of which I'm going to do. Hmmm.[/QUOTE]
Transfer profile to USB stick
 
Anybody know if any retailers are selling the new Slim S controllers? Or when they'll be released? Don't really see any reason to buy the old black with grey highlights at this point when the new ones with chrome are so slick...
 
Man I'm at a crossroads. I have a PS3, Wii, and 360; I simply don't play my 360 much at all. One of the reasons that I don't play my 360 that often is that I'm fairly convinced my 20 Pro will red ring at some point or another, so I use it very sparingly. That said, I really do want this new unit. In addition, several of my arcade sticks are modded to work on multiple console (including 360) and SNK seems to be favoring 360 with its downloadable games.

Is this pretty much the best time to trade my old system for a new one? I don't suspect there will be many other trade in deals for an old system. Part of me wants to see if Amazon runs some sort of killer trade in deal this summer, but that don't seem to have run a good trade in deal in a while.
 
Just got mine from BestBuy. I decided to cancel my Amazon order. It does not seem unreasonably hot to me. No hotter than my laptop. BTW...it is awesome and super quiet!
 
I picked mine up at Best Buy, and also canceled my Amazon order. I'm EXTREMELY irritated to find out that this new unit does NOT support 5Ghz N, which the official wireless adapter does. Very annoying indeed. So we're all still stuck on 2.4Ghz, ugh...
 
[quote name='Ragnorok64']Man I'm at a crossroads. I have a PS3, Wii, and 360; I simply don't play my 360 much at all. One of the reasons that I don't play my 360 that often is that I'm fairly convinced my 20 Pro will red ring at some point or another, so I use it very sparingly. That said, I really do want this new unit. In addition, several of my arcade sticks are modded to work on multiple console (including 360) and SNK seems to be favoring 360 with its downloadable games.

Is this pretty much the best time to trade my old system for a new one? I don't suspect there will be many other trade in deals for an old system. Part of me wants to see if Amazon runs some sort of killer trade in deal this summer, but that don't seem to have run a good trade in deal in a while.[/QUOTE]

This was almost the exact position I was in (20gig pro, afraid going to red ring so used my other 2 consoles more ). I decided to go ahead and get a new 250, and I feel that it was a great choice. (Although, I didn't have to spend any cash because I also had gamestop credit).
 
For those wondering about multiple consoles. My friend has 3 kids, the 2 boys have thier own. Then he has one upstairs in the living room and another downstairs hook up to his projector setup.
 
[quote name='DrMunkee']This was almost the exact position I was in (20gig pro, afraid going to red ring so used my other 2 consoles more ). I decided to go ahead and get a new 250, and I feel that it was a great choice. (Although, I didn't have to spend any cash because I also had gamestop credit).[/QUOTE]
I'm pretty much ready to commit to trading in my old system plus some games. I'm on the fence about trading in my Phat DS though. I still have some GBA games I wouldn't mind playing at some point.

What's the cheapest you can get a GBA SP nowadays?
 
This seemed like a good deal so I jumped on it. My old 360 was a 20gb launchbox that had been "repaired" (aka swapped out for another one) 4 times (3 red rings and one dead DVD drive). On top of that my 20gb drive was so full that I couldn't even download the Borderlands DLC or new Alan Wake episodes coming out.

Launch 360 (4 repairs) + one gamepad - $100
20gb drive - $30
B/G wifi card - $40

Total trade value: $170

So basically for the price of a 250gb drive I ended up with the new model that's hopefully way more reliable than the launch boxes. I did spring for the transfer cable though as I didn't have a large USB stick handy and I wanted to make sure I didn't loose any saves.
 
[quote name='heybtbm']Some of us have large houses.

The real issue with this new Xbox is how are we (people with multiple 360's) going to play with the same gamertag/account on separate consoles? The old hard drive simply snaps on whatever 360 I'm playing on. Once I transfer my content to the new 250 Gig model...those days are over. That gamertag/account won't be able to be used on my old 360's. Unless I recover my gamertag each time or buy a bunch of new model 360's...neither of which I'm going to do. Hmmm.[/QUOTE]

I've been thinking abou the same thing. I already tested out the RECOVER option and it is a slow process. I don't like sitting there waiting for it to do its thing.

I've never bothered before, but I'm going to look into moving my profile to a USB stick for when I use the other console.
 
[quote name='rbarba4']I've been thinking abou the same thing. I already tested out the RECOVER option and it is a slow process. I don't like sitting there waiting for it to do its thing.

I've never bothered before, but I'm going to look into moving my profile to a USB stick for when I use the other console.[/QUOTE]


USB stick option is pretty simple to use...
 
I really hate to report a problem with the 360 slim but....



Last night I watched some streaming Netflix then played some Batman AA no problems.
I woke up this morning and turned on the 360slim to watch something from Netflix. This LOUD fuzzy sound (like when your old analog TV doesn't have a signal noise) came blaring out. I restarted the 360 several times, reconnected the HDMI cable. No luck. Nothing but loud fuzzy. I started up Netflix and picked a show...great picture and loud fuzz.

I'm going to take the 360 to my gf for the weekend and try it on her TV(I don't have another HDMI cable). I will try calling MS in a few minutes but I need to pack and leave for the 2 hour drive to my gfs house.

anyone else have this problem?


after about 20 restarts the sound is fine again. I'm still concerned about the issue.


the sound is still working at this time... very strange
 
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I guess you can get this with 12% bing cashback from Tiger Direct. Saw the deal at Slickdeals.

Too lazy to make a thread right now.
 
[quote name='padlok']I really hate to report a problem with the 360 slim but....



Last night I watched some streaming Netflix then played some Batman AA no problems.
I woke up this morning and turned on the 360slim to watch something from Netflix. This LOUD fuzzy sound (like when your old analog TV doesn't have a signal noise) came blaring out. I restarted the 360 several times, reconnected the HDMI cable. No luck. Nothing but loud fuzzy. I started up Netflix and picked a show...great picture and loud fuzz.

I'm going to take the 360 to my gf for the weekend and try it on her TV(I don't have another HDMI cable). I will try calling MS in a few minutes but I need to pack and leave for the 2 hour drive to my gfs house.

anyone else have this problem?


after about 20 restarts the sound is fine again. I'm still concerned about the issue.


the sound is still working at this time... very strange[/QUOTE]
Try going to system settings and then I think you have to go to display or possibly sound settings. Then select to Auto-Detect your type of TV or it will say something similiar.

I had a related problem watching DVD's on my XBOX and it worked for me. I don't know if it's a similiar problem or not.
 
I think I would have picked it up if somehow the HDD was compatible with the older models - this way you could swap it out if you had two 360's or if one of them was away being fixed.
 
Dang. Well, I skimmed the Anandtech article and it does NOT give any info on whether we can use our own drives now...still an unknown (so then so to is whether I get one of these...)

EDIT: I take that back, they DO give info, I just didn't want to believe it. They're STILL using a proprietary hard drive! (ie a sealed one.) What the frak Microsoft? Well, forget this then. Without that, I don't really see the point in switching if you've already got a big enough hard drive *sigh*
 
I managed to pick one up last night (I love it. so quiet...) and I ran into a problem with my gamer tag. I figured I'd share it with you in case others ran into it.

On initial Xbox setup, it asks you to recover a gamertag or create a new one. I recovered mine, and it went OK. However, when I copied the contents of my old xbox to the new one, it seems that my old dakkonn profile corrupted my new one, which prevented me from logging into Xbox live until I recovered it a second time. Even now, my theme isn't getting applied till i log into xbox live. I may need to blow my profile away and recover a third time, by the looks of it. (or maybe just re-apply all my profile settings and themes.. who knows).

My suggestion to anyone who's upgrading, and copying their old HD data is to create a new local account on the new xbox, copy the old HD data to the new xbox, THEN recover your gamertag.
 
You probably wouldn't even need to recover your gametag if you copy the HD first before doing anything. (As long as the tag is stored on the HD and not a memory unit)
 
Sooooo isn't this the same "processor" or whatever as the Elite? So RROD is still just as possible in these (which is better than before, but still not great)?

I thought I read that somewhere...
 
[quote name='BigBizzee']Sooooo isn't this the same "processor" or whatever as the Elite? So RROD is still just as possible in these (which is better than before, but still not great)?

I thought I read that somewhere...[/QUOTE]No. this a completely different system as far as processors/chips/motherboards go.
 
[quote name='Justin42']You probably wouldn't even need to recover your gametag if you copy the HD first before doing anything. (As long as the tag is stored on the HD and not a memory unit)[/QUOTE]

Recovering your gamertag is one of the first few start up steps. I encountered the same problem.
 
[quote name='poker360']Recovering your gamertag is one of the first few start up steps. I encountered the same problem.[/QUOTE]I created a new offline just so it would let me continue then i transferred my old one over with a transfer cable and had no problems using it.
 
I also chose to make a new account. I made a new account, deleted it, then transferred my information.
 
[quote name='BigBizzee']Sooooo isn't this the same "processor" or whatever as the Elite? So RROD is still just as possible in these (which is better than before, but still not great)?

I thought I read that somewhere...[/QUOTE]

Okay, first, ALL previous Xbox packages had identical hardware. There was nothing special about the 'elite' model-it's just a bundle. Only difference between them the bundles is the accessories they include (and sometimes the color of the system.

Second, as iScar mentions, this is a new chip. The CPU has been identical in Falcon and Jasper. The CPU, GPU, and GPU's daughter chip where apparently combined into one chip for this newest revision, and it's made on a 45nm process, down from 65.

Third, that really tells us nothing about reliability. There can be problems on a new process that didn't exist on the old. The new single chip probably runs hotter than either of the previous chips did (in Jasper). The cooling system is new, the system is smaller, etc.

So we really don't know anything about reliability on this. I'm hoping it'll at least be as good as Jasper has been so far (I'm still thinking it's a bit too early to declare a victory there), but we really don't know for sure.

Also just thought I'd mention the "whisper quiet" claims are once again a lie. It's quieter than Jasper by what looks like maybe half the volume at load, but still 51db (probably closer to that 45db number with the drive spun down) which isn't anywhere close to whisper quiet or inaudible. Still, any reduction is nice!
 
[quote name='BigBizzee']Sooooo isn't this the same "processor" or whatever as the Elite? So RROD is still just as possible in these (which is better than before, but still not great)?

I thought I read that somewhere...[/QUOTE]

Actually, I was the first one to buy one in my area, and it was actually a dud. E 68 error right out of the box. I had to go exchange it.
 
[quote name='poker360']Recovering your gamertag is one of the first few start up steps. I encountered the same problem.[/QUOTE]

Yup 2 times gamer tag recover for me also.
 
[quote name='Wolfpup']

Also just thought I'd mention the "whisper quiet" claims are once again a lie. It's quieter than Jasper by what looks like maybe half the volume at load, but still 51db (probably closer to that 45db number with the drive spun down) which isn't anywhere close to whisper quiet or inaudible. Still, any reduction is nice![/QUOTE]

I don't know about that analysis. Did you pick one up yourself? I have and the Slim is slightly louder than my PS3 slim. The only time I even noticed my Xbox was on was when I was installing Red Dead to the console, and even that was quieter than my old Xbox that ran on the dashboard.
 
[quote name='BattleChicken']I managed to pick one up last night (I love it. so quiet...) and I ran into a problem with my gamer tag. I figured I'd share it with you in case others ran into it.

On initial Xbox setup, it asks you to recover a gamertag or create a new one. I recovered mine, and it went OK. However, when I copied the contents of my old xbox to the new one, it seems that my old dakkonn profile corrupted my new one, which prevented me from logging into Xbox live until I recovered it a second time. Even now, my theme isn't getting applied till i log into xbox live. I may need to blow my profile away and recover a third time, by the looks of it. (or maybe just re-apply all my profile settings and themes.. who knows).

My suggestion to anyone who's upgrading, and copying their old HD data is to create a new local account on the new xbox, copy the old HD data to the new xbox, THEN recover your gamertag.[/QUOTE]

I'm drunk!

I realized a little later on today that the problem is that I still need to get my content re-synced with my new xbox - thats why the themes only loaded when i was on XBL. I can't believe that I forgot about it..
 
I bought the new system on Friday and have been messing around with it for a bit trying to recover and move my saves and such. What a pain in the butt!

First off it took me a while to find a transfer kit. Then to top it off, I was convinced that the old hard drive was not being detected until I realized I had named the old and the name did indeed pick up. Turns out, it was the NEW hard drive that wasn't being detected. Stupid hard drive must have come loose in the box.

I had to pop open the side panel (nice, piece of cake) and properly attach the new hard drive. After that it finally was smooth sailing.

On a side note, I opened up the OLD hard drive case and tried using a SATA-to-USB converter. Both my computer and new XBOX detected an attached device but neither let me browse the contents of the old. Of course with not having the new hard drive set correctly in place, this might have thrown things off on the XBOX. Oh well, back to Fry's to return the converter.
 
For people that have transferred their old hard drive data to the new hard drive...

It seems the transfer software is included on the slim's hard drive. Can you use the same transfer cable that Microsoft sent out free back in the day? I have one that I got in 2007 to go from 20 gig's to 120 gigs. When the 250 gig drives came out I remember people saying you needed a NEW transfer kit.

I'm assuming they just needed the "new" software and the cable was the same. So therefore my old cable should work in this situation. Right? Can anyone confirm? There seems to be a lot of confusion in other forums. No straight answers.
 
[quote name='heybtbm']For people that have transferred their old hard drive data to the new hard drive...

It seems the transfer software is included on the slim's hard drive. Can you use the same transfer cable that Microsoft sent out free back in the day? I have one that I got in 2007 to go from 20 gig's to 120 gigs. When the 250 gig drives came out I remember people saying you needed a NEW transfer kit.

I'm assuming they just needed the "new" software and the cable was the same. So therefore my old cable should work in this situation. Right? Can anyone confirm? There seems to be a lot of confusion in other forums. No straight answers.[/QUOTE]

Hey, fellow Wisconsinite! Yes, your old cable will do. I used a USB drive myself, but I've read many, many posts over at GAF from people who have used the old transfer cable to bring data over to their new, slim 360s.

P.S. My goodness--who's that in your avatar?
 
Doh :(

I don't suppose anyone with the new model has taken out the hard drive yet, just to confirm it's really not user replaceable? I'm sure it's not since Anandtech already stared at it, but...dang, I do NOT want that to be the case :(
 
[quote name='Wolfpup']Doh :(

I don't suppose anyone with the new model has taken out the hard drive yet, just to confirm it's really not user replaceable? I'm sure it's not since Anandtech already stared at it, but...dang, I do NOT want that to be the case :([/QUOTE]

Hell, I don't know what I am going to do with 250gb of space. I have been using a 20gb for 3 years. Even if I put every single game I own on the hard drive I will still have a ton of space left.
 
I asked this earlier in another thread but no one answered. Maybe you guys will be more helpful! :D :D

Anyway, I'm looking to get the new slim obviously and ran into one issue. I use a large PC monitor to game on, so I have the Microsoft VGA cables. Does the new console use the same AV plug so that my VGA cable will work? Thanks!
 
[quote name='lllGurulll']Hell, I don't know what I am going to do with 250gb of space. I have been using a 20gb for 3 years. Even if I put every single game I own on the hard drive I will still have a ton of space left.[/QUOTE]

My launch 20gb (4 failures traded in for new slim) had about 30 arcade games and some DLC and it was so full I couldn't even download any new DLC for Borderlands, Alan Wake episodes, etc.. so I know exactly what I'm going to use the space for :D

As for those saying its not silent that's true but its still very quiet (at least as quiet as ps3 and wii if not more so) compared to my launch 360 which sounded like a lawn mower.
 
[quote name='Ness3']I asked this earlier in another thread but no one answered. Maybe you guys will be more helpful! :D :D

Anyway, I'm looking to get the new slim obviously and ran into one issue. I use a large PC monitor to game on, so I have the Microsoft VGA cables. Does the new console use the same AV plug so that my VGA cable will work? Thanks![/QUOTE]

Yep
 
[quote name='poker360']Recovering your gamertag is one of the first few start up steps. I encountered the same problem.[/QUOTE]
I just created a new profile then transferred my HDD & deleted the new profile, transferred one worked fine without recovering :)
 
[quote name='lllGurulll']Hell, I don't know what I am going to do with 250gb of space. I have been using a 20gb for 3 years. Even if I put every single game I own on the hard drive I will still have a ton of space left.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, but it's not that I'm worried about, I want to be able to throw in my own drive down the road, plus I want a different color, which may come in a different capacity (or with no drive at all).
 
[quote name='Wolfpup']Yeah, but it's not that I'm worried about, I want to be able to throw in my own drive down the road, plus I want a different color, which may come in a different capacity (or with no drive at all).[/QUOTE]You can still the this 250gb drive out and put it in another slim 360.
 
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