You can criticize Microsoft all you want for some of their past decisions regarding the current generation Xbox: Was the timing right to come to market nearly a year after the PS2? Why did the Xbox never take off in Japan? What was with that ginormous “Duke†controller? Why wasn’t the DVD dongle included with the system? With the pricing structure of the Xbox, did Microsoft make any money?
The list could go on and on, but on the grand scale, the Xbox has been a huge success for Microsoft. “To even be mentioned in the same sentence as Sony and Nintendo is a huge complimentâ€, according to J Allard, Microsoft Corporate VP. Most “experts†were skeptical at best when Microsoft announced their foray into the videogame industry, yet here we are 4 years later with the Xbox a major player; surpassing Nintendo’s GameCube and steadily gaining ground on Sony’s PS2.
As the sun slowly starts to set on the life cycle of our beloved black box, Microsoft is bound and determined to learn from past mistakes and change the way that the world views gaming and electronic entertainment. Rumors regarding the Xbox successor began as early as 2003, and we’ve been riding the rollercoaster of hearsay ever since. Whether you actually believed that the console would include a DVD burner, or a removable hard drive that doubled as a media player, or TiVo support…now it is time to get all the facts straight. It is time to unveil the Xbox 360.
In order to provide you with the absolute best coverage of the Xbox 360 unveiling on the ‘Net, we’ve split our focus into five parts: the story behind the Xbox 360, an overview of capabilities (user interface, controller, Xbox Live), a full technical breakdown of the console, and two articles focusing on the specifications. Be sure to check out the full complement of our Xbox 360 coverage right here:
Xbox 360: Pulling Back the Curtain – the story behind Microsoft’s upcoming console.
Xbox 360 Dissected – all the official specifications and other techno-speak.
Xbox 360 System Specifications – a quick reference table of the Xbox 360’s specs.
The Xbox 360 Software and Services Features – a quick reference table of Xbox Live and more.
The Xbox 360 package
Even though Microsoft opened up their vault on the Xbox 360 earlier this evening on MTV, there are still a few important details that remain uncertain. For one, we don’t know the actual pricing of the console, the release date (tentatively set for holiday 2005), or what the final launch package will include, but we did manage to get a “loose†idea based on a mock-up of the Xbox 360 box, which displayed the following items:
* Xbox 360 console
* Hard Drive (20GB)
* Wireless Controller
* Media Remote (possibly a limited time promotional pack-in)
* Xbox Live
* Headset (wired)
* Ethernet Cable
There will be only one package available to consumers at launch, not the two versions previously rumored (one with a hard drive, one without). The Xbox 360 is white in color, with a brushed metal DVD tray, and other metal and chrome accents on the sides of the console. The unit is approximately 11 ¼†tall (and 3†wide) when standing upright, although it can be placed flat like the original Xbox, and it is “stacking friendlyâ€. The included 20GB hard drive is removable and upgradeable. This means if you have a ton of content downloads or Xbox Live Arcade games on your HD, it is simple to pop it out and take to a friend’s house for use in their Xbox 360. The console will also still work without the HD inserted.
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The list could go on and on, but on the grand scale, the Xbox has been a huge success for Microsoft. “To even be mentioned in the same sentence as Sony and Nintendo is a huge complimentâ€, according to J Allard, Microsoft Corporate VP. Most “experts†were skeptical at best when Microsoft announced their foray into the videogame industry, yet here we are 4 years later with the Xbox a major player; surpassing Nintendo’s GameCube and steadily gaining ground on Sony’s PS2.
As the sun slowly starts to set on the life cycle of our beloved black box, Microsoft is bound and determined to learn from past mistakes and change the way that the world views gaming and electronic entertainment. Rumors regarding the Xbox successor began as early as 2003, and we’ve been riding the rollercoaster of hearsay ever since. Whether you actually believed that the console would include a DVD burner, or a removable hard drive that doubled as a media player, or TiVo support…now it is time to get all the facts straight. It is time to unveil the Xbox 360.
In order to provide you with the absolute best coverage of the Xbox 360 unveiling on the ‘Net, we’ve split our focus into five parts: the story behind the Xbox 360, an overview of capabilities (user interface, controller, Xbox Live), a full technical breakdown of the console, and two articles focusing on the specifications. Be sure to check out the full complement of our Xbox 360 coverage right here:
Xbox 360: Pulling Back the Curtain – the story behind Microsoft’s upcoming console.
Xbox 360 Dissected – all the official specifications and other techno-speak.
Xbox 360 System Specifications – a quick reference table of the Xbox 360’s specs.
The Xbox 360 Software and Services Features – a quick reference table of Xbox Live and more.
The Xbox 360 package
Even though Microsoft opened up their vault on the Xbox 360 earlier this evening on MTV, there are still a few important details that remain uncertain. For one, we don’t know the actual pricing of the console, the release date (tentatively set for holiday 2005), or what the final launch package will include, but we did manage to get a “loose†idea based on a mock-up of the Xbox 360 box, which displayed the following items:
* Xbox 360 console
* Hard Drive (20GB)
* Wireless Controller
* Media Remote (possibly a limited time promotional pack-in)
* Xbox Live
* Headset (wired)
* Ethernet Cable
There will be only one package available to consumers at launch, not the two versions previously rumored (one with a hard drive, one without). The Xbox 360 is white in color, with a brushed metal DVD tray, and other metal and chrome accents on the sides of the console. The unit is approximately 11 ¼†tall (and 3†wide) when standing upright, although it can be placed flat like the original Xbox, and it is “stacking friendlyâ€. The included 20GB hard drive is removable and upgradeable. This means if you have a ton of content downloads or Xbox Live Arcade games on your HD, it is simple to pop it out and take to a friend’s house for use in their Xbox 360. The console will also still work without the HD inserted.
Click Here to read More of the Article
Source
