xbox 360 elite

japan

The 40GB PS3 Didn't Sell Out in Den-Den Town

When the Xbox 360 Elite hit Japan, the black console sold right out. And when the 40GB PLAYSTATION 3 went on sale, it didn't. Japanese site Ota Road claims that the limited edition Elites (Japan only got 5,000) wasn't nearly as abundant as the 40GB PS3. What's more, the new and cheaper PLAYSTATION 3 doesn't seem like it sold out anywhere in Osaka's Den-Den Town. Things to keep in mind: This isn't based on official sales figures, but rather visiting multiple Den-Den Town retailers. What's more, stores most likely had a larger stock of 40GB PLAYSTATION 3s than Xbox 360 Elites. However, the Elite's launch was backed by little to no support from Xbox Japan, while Sony rolled out four television ads for the new, cheaper PS3 model. That's not to say this new model is a failure, but rather, that it just didn't sell out like the Xbox 360 Elite did. As we posted earlier, there was a good turnout at the Akihabara launch. We won't know until we see the sales figures, though. One thing that is sure: There's no shortage of 40GB PS3s in Japan.
Did the Elite do Better? [Ota Road]

4:00 AM ON WED NOV 14 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
5,111 views 96 comments

Latest by dv8godd: @yoni: I wasn't pointing fingers at anyone specifically, as it wasn't my intention to offend... if you felt that was directed at you, it wasn't. But there seem to be a number of other comments above that seemed antagonistic more »

xbox 360

MSoft Gets 360 Arcade Into the "Proper" Hands

It sounds like, if you read between the lines of the attached press release, that Microsoft might finally be officially rolling out the Xbox 360 Arcade edition next Tuesday... or maybe not.

The press release, found on the Hispanic PR Wire, is really more about the importance of giving Xbox 360s to your family, regardless of your background. That's right, even poor people can play games. Thanks for clarifying Microsoft.

To be fair Microsoft is donating two of the 360 Arcade consoles to each Para Los Ninos center on Skid Row in LA and throughout Southern California. I hear the Elites are all going to those Beverly Hills' children centers.

more »

10:00 AM ON FRI OCT 19 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
1,648 views 16 comments

slow burn

Elite Also Selling Out in Osaka

It's not only Akihabara where the Xbox 360 Elite is selling out, but also Osaka's Den-Den Town. The console went on sale October 11th for ¥45,524 (US $388). By October 12th, the Elite had sold out in Akihabara; however, it wasn't until the 14th that the console sold out in Den-Den Town. There were only something like 5,000 of these consoles at launch. Even in a territory where Xbox is hardly popular, that number certainly does not look like enough.
Nipponbashi Sell Out [Ota Road Blog]

12:00 AM ON TUE OCT 16 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
2,098 views 44 comments

Latest by teeth7: @Lyme: Mine's grey. I have a ca. 2006 Xbox 360 Premium. more »

new 360 bundle

Microsoft Gives Away Two Games With 360s

Microsoft this morning confirmed part of the bundle rumor that's been ravaging the Internet for weeks: All Xbox 360s and Xbox 360 Elites will now come with free copies of Forza Motorsport 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance, a $90 value.

Better still the price for the consoles will not be going up, which is very much like a price drop in my mind. According to the press release, posted after the jump, both the bundled 360 (at $350) and the bundled Elite (at $450) will be available by the end of the month.

The fact that this is called the Holiday Bundle, makes me think it's not going to last. So if you're in the market for the 360 now might be a good time to jump on board.

more »

7:58 AM ON MON OCT 8 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
19,471 views 92 comments

full disclosure

An Elite Loaner

Shortly before I left for the Tokyo Game Show, my "fixed" Xbox 360 crapped out (right after I got it back from repairs). And when I returned from TGS, there was an Xbox 360 Elite waiting for me. Microsoft sent me a "loaner," while my console is getting a fix it. I put my 20GB HDD on it and am not using the HDMI cable. The machine does seem to run quieter than my first gen Xbox 360. But man, the Elite sure can get hot. Here's the pickle, though: It's an American Elite, and I live in Japan. Not sure if that makes life easier or not. Wouldn't it be nice if Microsoft sent everyone whose console broke an Elite to hold them over during the repair wait? Expensive, too!

7:00 AM ON WED SEP 26 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
3,613 views 85 comments

Latest by : @whalleywhat: The 4th amendment is practically completely covered in brown already. You can tell that Bush had peanuts. more »

not a piano

My New Elite 360

Hey, so the Elite finally launched in Australia yesterday. Microsoft were kind enough to ship one over to my place to check it out, and I can safely say...it's exactly the same as Crecente's! Oh, except for the fact we've got nothing to put on the 120GB HDDs, since the Video Marketplace still isn't here. I will say this though - it's quieter than my original, makes less clunking and clattering noises when I'm loading BioShock and looks positively fetching on my black entertainment unit, where it blends in so well you can barely see the thing.

10:30 PM ON THU AUG 30 2007
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
6,961 views 43 comments

Latest by keyransolo: Do I see a Dreamcast under the 360? I'm buying an Elite this Xmas. more »

wolf in sheep's clothes

Hey, Elites Crap Out Too

Just a reminder not to leave your Xbox 360 on all day in a plastic case. Not good for the machine! Rumors of better Elite performance aside, this must be the first conked Xbox 360 Elite I've seen. Bummer, because I quite like that sexy paint job. The platform's good fun, too. Shame about the quality.
Dead Elite [thesportsfix, Thanks Laird!]

1:00 AM ON WED AUG 29 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
18,079 views 114 comments

Latest by Justcrim: @rainofwalrus: I didnt say the damn thing didnt got hot! When My room was so hot from doing this, and it was the hottest my room has ever been. And it was VERY thorough. Started at about 4pm when I got more »

better late than never

360 Elite Finally Dated, Priced For Australia

Talk about scraping in by the skin of their sack. Microsoft announced waaaaay back in March that Australia would be getting the Elite during our southern "winter". March went by, then April, then May, and we heard nothing. June and July went by and we still hadn't even had the announcement, let alone seen the console. But it's OK! That announcement came through today, and the Elite will launch on August 30. Second-last day of winter. CLOSE. It'll retail for AUD$729.95 (USD$572), which is only AUD$50 more than the 20GB Halo model.

9:40 PM ON THU AUG 16 2007
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
1,373 views 29 comments

Latest by ion1626: What is that stuffed robot sitting on top of the 360? Is there somewhere online where you can buy one? more »

only in hong kong

The Milk Ultra-Limited Edition Xbox 360 Elite

The recommended gift for your first anniversary is paper, no? If I'm right on that, then the sixth anniversary is clearly an Xbox 360, as Hong Kong magazine MILK is celebrating its sixth year of publication with this very handsome limited edition Xbox 360 Elite, complete with subtle MILK branding. How limited? There are two. more »

2:40 PM ON TUE AUG 7 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
13,278 views 70 comments

xbox 360

Another One Bites the Dust

As of last night I have officially had nine Xbox 360s die on me, which means when I get this replacement, I will be on my eleventh Xbox 360 (counting debugs and retails).

Over the weekend we had a little neighborhood party at my house and in the midst of it I decided to show off Guitar Hero II for the Xbox 360. We played it for a bit, maybe 30 minutes and then I went to turn the 360 off and turn the music back on. When I pressed the power button on my Xbox 360 Elite it started making sounds like a blender. This lasted about 10 seconds and then it powered off. I found the news a little bizarre, but didn't think anything of it until Sunday night.

Last night I found a bit of free time on my hands and went down to the 360 to finally check out Vampire Rain (which should totally be better than Chocolate Rain). I turned the 360 on and popped the disc in. The console made a whirring noise for a second and that was it, just sat their displaying the Xbox 360 menu. I hopped over to the game blade and down to the place where it should say "Play Game". No dice. It just had an option to open the DVD tray. I tried a different game. I tried a DVD, No luck.

Then I hopped onto the Xbox 360 forums and discovered I had just become a member of the broken DVD player club. So that's eight dead because of a Red Ring and one dead because of a bad DVD player. Microsoft really needs to get their shit together. As I pointed out to Peter Moore back when they announced the new warranty for the 360, warranty or no, customers are still going to be annoyed if their new or relatively new consoles keep dying. It's an inconvenience and certainly shakes confidence.

8:00 AM ON MON JUL 23 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
31,078 views 212 comments

speculation

UK Retailers Price Unpriced Xbox 360 Elite

First American retailers let it slip that the 60GB PLAYSTATION 3 was getting a price drop, and now their British counterparts spill the beans that the Xbox 360 Elite is getting, well, priced. European sellers HMV, Play and GAME are all pricing the still unofficially priced Elite at £329.99 (US $676) when it drops on August 24th. (Yes, everything is expensive there!) When questioned about this leaked price, Microsoft replied that they have "nothing to announce at this point." Hey, why announce anything when retailers are doing it for you?!
Retailers Put Up Elite Price [Eurogamer]

6:40 AM ON WED JUL 18 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
1,784 views 29 comments

Latest by Grum: @OtakuboyT: doctor who round house kicking daliks down some stairs and deflecting laser beams with his beard would be tv worth watching i think more »

e307

Xbox 360 Elite Hits Europe August 24

Europeans will experience the thrill of replacing their beige, HDMI-less lives with sexy, pure digital output as the Xbox 360 Elite makes its way to Europe later this summer. Announced by Shane Kim at the Microsoft E3 2007 keynote, the release date was rumored weeks ago by a Spanish language site weeks ago. Better late than being in Japan, right?

12:30 AM ON WED JUL 11 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
1,150 views 11 comments

xbox 360 elite

Announced, Dated for Japan

Microsoft Japan just sent word that the Xbox 360 Elite will go on sale in The Land of the Rising Sun on October 11th. The 120GB version previously hit North America this past Spring, retailing for US $479.99. The Japanese version will retail for ¥47,800 (US $389) and contains a black console, black 120GB HDD, black wireless controller, black headset, HDMI cable, HD AV cable, LAN cable and AC adopter. Individual black wireless controllers are also going on sale for ¥4,750 ($39). To recap: Japan gets the Elite later, but at almost a hundred bucks cheaper. The question remains: will anyone care? At that price, they should!

2:00 AM ON THU JUL 5 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
2,433 views 47 comments

Latest by bugbread: For all you people who are talking about the cheap wonderdeal: Imagine that you get a job in Japan, when the yen is 100 to the dollar. Easy to remember, right? Let's say they sell the new console PlayBoxii for $500 more »

rumor

360 Elite Dated, Priced For Europe?

Maybe. If Spanish site La Trifuerza are to be believed. They're claiming Microsoft have told them the console will hit European shores on August 24, for the princely sum of â¬449,95 (USD$605). Reliable source? Who knows, I've never heard of them, but that price and that date certainly seem within the boundaries of what Europeans should be expecting. more »

1:30 AM ON TUE JUN 26 2007
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
2,396 views 77 comments

added value

Bid On That Drew Carey-Signed Elite

If you remember, and really, how could you not, Drew Carey played some FIFA 07 against a bunch of US football stars. For cash (albeit all in the name of charity). End result of Carey's day out was $160,000 donated to the Mooch Myernick Memorial Fund, whose aim is to help out poor city kids by getting them playing the world game. Which is super. more »

6:20 AM ON MON JUN 18 2007
BY LUKE PLUNKETT
706 views 21 comments

transfergalicious

Get Your Free Elite Transfer Cable

Crecente blogged about how to get your current Xbox 360 data over to your brand new blackalicious Xbox 360 Elite, but Microsoft gives you the details on how to get the key component: the transfer cable. more »

7:40 PM ON MON APR 30 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
1,287 views 7 comments

free stuff

The Elite's Preloaded Content

The Xbox 360 Elite comes preloaded with eight videos, one Arcade Live game and three demos. more »

xbox 360 elite

Elite Pre-order Bundles Up, Not That Screw-jobby

If you can't drag yourself out of bed on Sunday morning to secure yourself a shiny (okay, matte) new Xbox 360 Elite and don't mind waiting a couple days to get it in the mail, GameStop has Elite pre-orders up now. And, as expected, they're bundle-only. more »

3:40 PM ON THU APR 26 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
2,285 views 13 comments

xbox 360 elite

HowTo: Transfer Data to Your 360 Elite

Those of you Xbox 360 owners planning to purchase an Xbox 360 Elite this weekend (you know you're out there) will need to transfer your data from your current console to the larger hard drive on your new Elite. more »

3:18 PM ON THU APR 26 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
14,172 views 83 comments

xbox 360 elite

Xbox 360 Elite In the House

more »

xbox 360 elite

Retail Rumor: Xbox 360 Launch, Peripheral Info

Can you feel the excitement?! This Sunday, the Xbox 360 Elite goes on sale in the States. Via retail moles, here's what you need to know: more »

1:00 AM ON THU APR 26 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
5,512 views 70 comments

xbox 360 elite

Elite Pre-orders Coming To Gamestop Thursday

Specialty retailer Gamestop is kicking off Xbox 360 Elite pre-orders tomorrow, in anticipation of the new, blacker console's bow on Sunday the 29th. The Elite, which sports HDMI output and a 120GB hard drive, will debut for a retail price of $479.99. I have no idea if Gamestop and EBGames will sell a base, non-bundled package at that price, but I have my doubts. We'll check in with them tomorrow. more »

8:40 PM ON WED APR 25 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
1,720 views 46 comments

xbox 360 elite

Inside the Xbox 360 Elite

The Llamma guys got their paws on an Xbox 360 Elite released by accident a week or so early at the local Wal-Mart and immediately set to taking the thing apart. more »

2:00 PM ON FRI APR 20 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
8,645 views 77 comments

ebay

Xbox 360 Elite Now On eBay

At least one Target store has broken the Xbox 360 Elite street date, selling the $479 upgrade to the Xbox 360 to a man in Chico, California. Not set to hit until April 29th, one lucky shopper got his hairy mitts on the Elite and did the only sane thing. He put it on eBay. more »

5:40 PM ON WED APR 18 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
5,807 views 30 comments

xbox 360

Researchers Say Hardcore Gamers Down On Xbox 360 Elite

Research firm BrandIntel says that hardcore gamer sentiment for the new black Xbox 360 Elite is not positive and that Microsoft "might want to change the perception" of the new console offering with the critical hardcore crowd. Citing research on 25 popular message boards and blogs, reports Next-Gen, opinion of the $479 unit is below favorable levels. more »

6:20 PM ON TUE APR 3 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
3,583 views 97 comments

hmv

HMV: Elite Hitting Europe Late This Summer

Burning question: So when will the Xbox 360 Elite hit Europe? No clue, but Tim Ellis, head of games at retailer HMV, says: more »

1:00 AM ON THU MAR 29 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
1,091 views 15 comments

microsoft

Elite Not Dated For Japan Yet, 120GB HD Is

While North America will be getting the Xbox 360 Elite in late April, the spray painted console hasn't gotten dated for the Japanese market yet. Microsoft Japan pinged us, announcing that the 120GB hard drive will hit stores June 7th, pricing at ¥18,900 (US $162). Likewise, the 64MB Memory Unit will go on sale in The Land of the Rising Sun and retail for ¥5,775 ($49). With Microsoft Japan already having problems moving the regular system, can't help but wonder: Is there even really a point to sell the Elite? Brian Ashcraft

11:00 PM ON WED MAR 28 2007
BY BRIAN ASHCRAFT
936 views 29 comments

Latest by Flazh: I'll wait a few months for them to realise that no-one also wants this then buy it for Â¥2000 out of a bargain bin :D more »

microsoft

New Painful Details On Xbox 360 HDD Data Transfers

Despite totally knocking it out of the park with the new Xbox 360 Elite and addressing all current hardware issues, resulting in a warm welcome and universal acceptance, there are few teensy issues with the new 120GB hard drive and the data transfer process. more »

8:40 PM ON WED MAR 28 2007
BY MICHAEL MCWHERTOR
8,065 views 82 comments

clips

Clip: Xbox 360 Elite Just Sitting There

I had an interesting conversation with Albert Penello yesterday about the Xbox 360 Elite and Microsoft's changing stance on HDMI. Here's Microsoft's Channel 10 talking him through the announcement and showing off the new console. Brian Crecente more »

2:00 PM ON WED MAR 28 2007
BY BRIAN CRECENTE
3,333 views 63 comments

xbox 360 elite

Feature: Microsoft Gets Elite

By: Brian Crecente more »