XBox 360 Elite

[freebfrost]

Not true. Core and Premium are sticking around.

I'll subscribe to this thread and check back in a year - I'm betting that there will no longer be a Core then.

If I'm wrong, I'll owe you a Coke!

 

[John Crichton]

Expensive HDMI cables are a scam.

This I agree with.

The thing with digital signals is its either a good signal, or its no signal - the only difference might be in durability, but 99% of the time, you'll plug it in once and that's it. You can get HDMI cables for under $10 online, and for under $30 at Target (which is where I got mine), and they will look just as good.

Not all of them are the same. I got one with my DirecTV Tivo and the quality was not so good. So I blew $30 on a 6 ft Phillips cable from Walmart and it was fine. I expect to have to replace any cables that come packed in with a system is the bottom line.

But yeah, the expensive ones like the $100 Monster Cables (as you said) are a scam for HDMI. Doesn't change the fact that the one in the Elite box will most likely stink if you have a good TV, which you should if it has HDMI inputs.

 

[John Crichton]

So as someone seriously considering a 360, what model should I consider? A few things:

1. I don't own an HDTV

Get the Pro ($400).

2. Not sure I care about XBox Live (though I really like XBLA)

Those games are tiny and unless you buy every single one plus a movies/trailer/TV shows and never delete anything you'll have plenty of space on the 20GB HD.

3. Do I really need 120G of hard drive space for games?

No way. Plus, you can always upgrade the HD years down the line when prices drop.

A lot of the games I'm liking are (to the best of my knowledge) primarily single-player: Oblivion, Mass Effect, GTA IV, and so forth. A friend claims that XBL "makes the system." Is XBL still worth it even if I'm not engaging a lot in the multiplayer? What's the price for an account?

I pay for XBL but I don't use it a ton. I think it's like $60 a year. You can get a 2 week trial, I think...

XBL is not for everyone, especially folks who don't care about online play.

 

[TwistedBishop]

Live Gold is $50 a year. That's strictly to play multiplayer. It sounds like you'd be more interested in demos and such, and all that's free using Live Silver.

Don't get the Elite unless you plan to buy an HDTV soon or you just have to have it in black.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

A few caveats though - you can easily hook up your 360 and your PC and store your larger files (i.e. those videos) on your PC. And HDMI is only valuable if you've got a true 1080p HDTV and are willing to shell out another $100 for a 3' long cable!

On a side note. You can guy 6' HDMI cables online for 19.99. The level of rip off in major store bought HDMI and DVI cables is mindboggling.

 

[Felon]

A few caveats though - you can easily hook up your 360 and your PC and store your larger files (i.e. those videos) on your PC.

How does that work? Does the PC see the Xbox as a removable hard drive?

 

[John Crichton]

It's not possible without a hack. Otherwise, there would be little use for a bigger HD. MS would never make it that easy.

 

[Felon]

Exactly so. Ragging on Sony while lauding MS because of price is more than a little disingenuous. A simple economic analysis very clearly shows that either 1) if you're interested in online or 2) feature-for-feature, the cost of owning a 360 is much higher than the PS3 over the system's expected life.

By all means, please provide said simple, clear-cut economic analysis.

 

[TwistedBishop]

I'm a big fan of Xbox, but it is true that if you want to add on a bunch of stuff (next gen optical drives, wifi, and multiplayer) the $600 PS3 does come out to be cheaper.

 

[ThirdWizard]

I'm definitely getting one when I get a 360. That will probably be next month. I don't have an HDTV yet, but I will, so I want to be ready for it.