Product Description

The Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system places you at the center of the experience. Xbox 360 ignites a new era of digital entertainment that is always connected, always personalized, and always in high definition.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7196 in Video Games
• Brand: Microsoft
• Model: B4J-00174
• Released on: 2008-07-31
• ESRB Rating: Everyone
• Platform: Xbox 360
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: 7.50" h x 11.75" w x 11.50" l, 13.36 pounds

Features

• White finish
• 60GB hard drive
• Wireless controller
• Customizable interface
• Go online with Xbox Live

Amazon.com
Xbox 360 sets a new pace for digital entertainment. More than just a cutting-edge game system, Xbox 360 also integrates high-definition video, DVD movie playback, digital music, photos, and online connectivity into one sleek, small tower, and in the process puts true Next-Gen power right at your fingertips.

Xbox 360, shown with wireless controller, is a sleek, customizable gaming and entertainment system

Under the Hood
Xbox 360 is much smaller than its predecessor--it measures approximately 3.3 by 12.2 by 10.2 inches and weighs 7.7 lbs. It's powered by custom IBM PowerPC-based CPU with three symmetrical cores each running at 3.2 GHz. It also carries a custom ATI graphics processor loaded with 10 MB of embedded DRAM, 48-way parallel floating-point dynamically scheduled shader pipelines and Unified shader architecture. This is powerful enough to draw 500 million triangles per second. In other words, it makes for great looking games in standard TV definition, and even better thanks to built-in support for HDTV 1080i televisions. It also supports the widescreen 16:9 format.

The unit has a 12x dual-layer DVD-ROM drive, which plays both the game media and progressive-scan DVD movies right out of the box. For game-save and media storage, users can choose between the detachable and upgradeable 60GB hard drive, or a separately sold 64MB flash Memory Unit. Along with storing files, the hard drive will make the Xbox 360 backward-compatible with part of the existing Xbox game library.

Control your Gameplay
Xbox 360 uses a refined button layout for its controllers. Back and Start buttons sit at the center of the controller and between them is a new Xbox Guide button, which instantly takes the user to the Xbox 360 user interface. From there, they can check for friends online, access personal digital content like photos and songs, and more. The black and white buttons of the first Xbox controllers have been replaced with new shoulder buttons placed above the left and right triggers. Xbox 360 can accommodate up to four wireless controllers and has three USB 2.0 slots to use for wired controllers or for streaming your digital media from digital cameras, MP3 players, and any Windows XP-based PC. Microsoft has also created a video-conferencing camera, sold separately, that will work with the system.

Xbox 360 can manage your games, your online friends, and your personal digital library

The Media Experience
All Xbox 360 titles can be played in either standard or high-definition resolution in 16:9 widescreen, with anti-aliasing for smoother graphics. Game designers will be able to take advantage of the system's multi-channel surround sound. The Xbox 360's digital media allows users to supplement any game's music from tracks in their own personal library.

Go Live
A built-in Ethernet port allows users to connect their system to a broadband connection for access to Xbox Live. The Xbox Live Silver Membership included with the console lets anyone create a Gamertag and gamer card to express your online identity, chat live with voice chat, and connect to the Xbox Live Marketplace to buy expansions, maps, and other digital items for your games. You can also update to a Xbox Live Gold Membership at anytime for even more benefits. The separately sold wireless adapter supports the common 802.11a, -b, and -g standards.

What's in the Box?

• Xbox 360 console
• 60GB detachable hard drive
• Wireless controller
• Xbox Live headset
• Standard AV cable
• Ethernet cable
• Detachable faceplate
• Xbox Live Silver membership

Customer Reviews

AMAZON NOT SELLING THE NEW VERSION
I purchased this Xbox from amazon, they shipped me a console with the old Falcon chipset and a manufacturer date of early 2008. BE WARNED THE "NEWEST VERSION" tag IS FALSE. I called amazon, and they shipped me a replacement which was also a old Falcon chipset still manufactured in early 2008. Just so it is clear, if you order this from Amazon you are NOT GETTING THE NEW VERSION despite how it is listed here. This version "The falcon chipset" is prone to the red ring of death error, and I would reccomend you stay away from it and go buy a console from a physical store. After talking with amazon, it was evident they did not understand the difference between the chipsets and didn't understand that what they were selling was not the newest version by any means. The customer service individual i spoke with assured me they would remove the "Newest Version" tag after I pointed out the error, but chances are that it will not be removed.

Here is how to identify which version you are getting:

The Box has a small rectangular cut out, where you can (with some slight manipulation) make out two peices of information. 1) manufacturing date and 2) voltage. While yes, you can estimate which version you got by the manufacturing date the voltage/amperage is the easiest. This number is found right above the "Made in china" found within the left portion that rectangular cut out. Xenon and Zephyr models have 12v and 16.5A. it looks like this on the box (12V...16.5A). The Falcon and Opus versions have 12v...14.2A. Keep in mind, from my experience and research all of these models are prone to RROD, and run harder and hotter than the "newest version". The newest version coined "jasper" can be recognized because while it too has 12v, it's amperage is at 12.1A.

In short:
12v...16.5A :not jasper
12v...14.2A :not jasper
12v...12.1A : JASPER, the newest version.

Some things to note about this product
Things to note about this product:

-If you are looking at this in Aug. 08 then note that this is NOT the Jasper console, these consoles are the newer bundles they created to clear inventory of Falcon boards while they work on inventory of Jaspers (The Jaspers were to be produced in August and that is what they are doing right now. Producing, not releasing for retail sale -yet-) When the stores sell out of ALL Falcon units they will start putting Jasper units on the shelves. Two tips for spotting a Jasper: 1. Check the wattage information, it should be below 175w. 2. Check the manufacture date. Jaspers should be manufactured during August 2008 or later. (I'm pretty sure I have this in another spot in my post but I'll put it at the top also, for easier access.

-This console will be reduced in price once again in early September. The new price-tag on these Pro bundles will be $299.99 (Edit: Next information may now give issues, as Amazon has done a bait and swap with their policy and removed their 30-day protection as of the 31st of August. Very low, Amazon, very low. If you bought a system before the change and before the 30 day period of the price drop you may still be able to get your price matched, but it will likely be a headache. See new section at bottom for possible ideas) Do not panic if you bought one at the $349.99 price. Why? Amazon has a price guarantee, meaning for 30 days if the price of any product goes down, you are entitled to cash back to price match the new cost. So in early September check back here when the price goes down so that you can get 50 dollars back.

-The September consoles are when 'technically' the new Jaspers should start rolling off the assembly line and into stores. HOWEVER there is a technicality with this. They may have them in the stores warehouses, but won't put them on the shelves til all of that store's FALCON units have been sold. This includes all the falcon units from that store's warehouses. All Falcon units must go first before they start selling Jaspers. Keep an eye on the wattage information to confirm your Jasper units. As the new GPU should reduce the PSU wattage requirements. (currently they all use 175w) Also, look at the manufacture dates. Any console that was manufactured from mid to late Aug. 2008 and on should be Japsers. As you know, they said they would manufacture the Jaspers in August, so that is the manufacture starting points you want to look for.

That is technically all the current information available. Did a lot of research on this, since I'm currently in the market. Hope this helps all of you future buyers, as well as those of you who have already made a purchase.

Edit: According to the member who posted a comment if you ordered before Sept. 1 directly from Amazon and are still within 30 days, you will be able to get your price matched to the current price tag. However ONLY if you ordered directly from Amazon and not another retailer that sold via Amazon. If you don't fit this category continue reading below.

If you didn't order directly from Amazon: So Amazon basically pulled a fast one one people, on the 31st of August they discontinued the price guarantee. Gee thanks, Amazon! Way to screw over your customers. You may still be able to convince customer support that because of the fact that you bought when the policy was still active that you should be covered still since they made a guarantee to you at the date of purchase. If after trying to get your money from Amazon you still don't meet with results, what you can do is return the 360 if you are still within the return period and get another 360 now that the price has gone down. Amazon provides free return shipping on some products so you may not have to pay for that. You wait for your refund, get a new 360 at 50 dollars cheaper and the shipping a 2nd time should still be free since all products over x dollar amount qualify for free super-saver shipping. Just don't TELL them that is why you are returning it. Say the unit scratches up your disks or something since that is a common problem with some of these older units.

Product review (obligatory since someone pointed it out in comments): Solid system, great graphics, has been known to give RROD issues but should be fixed with Jaspers so will lead to an even more solid system. Tons of fun, great games. The list goes on.

Will you still love me...when I'm 60gb?
Just picked up the new 60gb sku of the Xbox 360 and have a few things to report. My main reason for getting this was mainly due to getting the RRoD on my first 360 (which was purchased when Gears of War came out). Microsoft, of course, sent me a replacement unit in March of 2008. However, the replacement ended up sounding worse than my original. The fan was louder. The disc drive was louder. I heard all kinds of weird chirps and whirs coming out of it, which was very distracting and irritating. Needless to say, I was not pleased.

I began hearing about the new mother boards and power supplies being shipped with the newer sku's and started to get intrigued. Could Microsoft finally be solving the dreaded RRoD problem? Supposedly, the newer mother boards included a smaller, 65nm chipset that produced less heat and required the fans to spin slower (hence less noise and overheating). Many of you have probably heard of the Falcon chipset or the Jasper chipset. Well, I can't really tell which one my unit has, but I can tell you there are some improvements.

The new 60gb 360 has the 175 watt power supply. It is smaller and lighter than the original power brick. The console does run a little quieter and cooler. I would not say that it runs whisper quiet, but it's not nearly as loud as my original or replacement unit. The disc drive runs a little quieter as well. According to the label, my unit was manufactured in June of 2008, so I assume it has the Falcon chipset in it. If anyone has more information about these chipsets, please enlighten me.

It comes with an HDMI port, which I really like. I will say that after I connected the console to my TV, the image seemed a lot brighter than with component cables. I had to turn down the brightness on my TV, but it looked fine then.

The console comes preloaded with several demos, including Pac-man, Geometry Wars, and several others I can't remember. It has a full version of Hexic installed. After I transferred my game saves and gamer profile, I had about 45gb of storage left on the hard drive. Plenty of room for other demos and whatnot.

Getting it connected to Xbox Live took no time at all. Set up was straight forward and easy. I certainly hope that this sku stands the test of time (at least until the Xbox 720 comes out). So far, I like what I see.