Microsoft has announced an external HD DVD player for the Xbox 360. Price was not revealed, and it will go on sale later this year. I’m unsure of why anyone would want an external HD DVD drive. Instead, Microsoft should scrap the core Xbox 360, and instead make the current HDD 360 the core system. Then add an HD DVD player to that, which would then become the expanded system.
Make sense?
HDTV = High Definition Television
What’s the definition of HDTV? At least 720 lines of resolution, basically. That means 1280 x 720 progressive, 1920 x 1080 interlaced, and 1920 x 1080 progressive are all HD formats.
Which means that Harrison is going just a little over the top when he claims the Xbox 360 isn’t HD:
Speaking exclusively to GamesIndustry.biz this week, in an interview to be published tomorrow, Harrison described the Xbox 360 as “a lot better than their [Microsoft’s] first introduction to the console business,” but questioned the console’s claim to being a High Definition device.
“The true definition of HD is the three elements of the HD value chain - the display, the content and the hardware to play back that content,” he explained, “and PlayStation and Sony is the only organisation that has all three bits of the value chain together.”
Because the Xbox 360 is HD. Simple as that. It can play games in HD. Therefore it is an HD device. Sure the PS3 has more and better support for HD, but that doesn’t mean the Xbox 360 doesn’t support HD. The two are what I like to call unrelated.
GamesIndustry.biz - “The HD era really only starts when we are on the market” - Harrison
According to the latest data trickling out of Japan, sales of the Xbox 360 have been pretty bad.
Only about 62,000 units were purchased on Saturday and Sunday, according to an independent study by Enterbrain, which publishes leading Japanese game magazine “Famitsu.” That was also less than half the 123,000 units Microsoft sold of its previous generation Xbox in the first three days of sales in February 2002.
With the big push that Microsoft was making for Xbox 360 sales in Japan, I thought they’d do better than the first time around, but half! I never expected that!
Luckily they have some time and money at their disposal before the PS3 hits…
According to GameSpot, plenty of Xbox 360 consoles were available throughout the launch weekend in Japan.
But after hardcore gamers made their purchases, many 360 units remained unsold. For example, the Akihabara branch of Yodobashi Camera promoted the Xbox 360 heavily. It established a dedicated area and cash register for the machine, where many customers stopped to check out a trailer of the 360’s forthcoming adventure game Ninety-Nine Nights. However, most visitors walked away without buying a 360. On Sunday evening, one of the busiest shopping times in the weekend, over two dozen Xbox 360s were stacked up behind the 360 cash register and several idle, bored-looking sales assistants.
I think that Microsoft was hoping for a little better. But they have a long way to go, and Microsoft has always been most persistent. Deep wallets and everylasting patience usually win out in the end.
Japanese analysts are trash-talking the 360, comparing it to the PlayStation 3 and complaining about its lack of newly-developed titles for the Japanese launch.
As a long time reader, you probably know my opinion of analysts. With their crystal balls and soothsaying, how can you trust them?
So even though they’re predicting a walk in the park for the PS3, my personal console of choice, I still won’t believe it till I see it.
“We had previously thought that Xbox 360 could gain a major share of the Japanese market by taking some market share from front-runner Sony Computer,” says an analyst for Mitsubishi UFJ Securities. “But we now think that such a prospect may not be realized, given the limited attractiveness of its titles and its lukewarm functions.”
“No one — consumers or software makers — has been talking about the Xbox 360 lately, although we only have a couple of days before the release,” said another analyst from Tokai Tokyo Research Center. “Given also the fact that basic functions of Xbox 360 are inferior to Sony’s next-generation machine, and that there are not many newly-developed titles ready for the Japanese launch, Xbox 360 is not likely to become a must-buy console here in Japan,” he added.
Microsoft Xbox 360 is now in a proposed class action suit which claims that in Microsoft’s big to gain share in the global video game market, the company released the Xbox 360 as a defectively designed unit.
The class action suit also claims that Microsoft was so intent on releasing the Xbox 360 before competing with Sony PlayStation 3, and rival Nintendo Revolution, that the video game machine has far more defects than earlier found.
I heard that Microsoft claims that the 3% error rate was industry norm. Personally, I thought that 3% was high, but then I’m no expert at these things. So I guess my un-expertness is coming back to bite me. If 3% is high, then maybe this class action lawsuit isn’t so frivolous. But if 3% is the norm, it’s silly.
I set up a poll question about this Xbox 360 lawsuit for this over at my forum. What do you think, is this going too far, or not?
But seeing these commercials and other advertising from Microsoft has some people upset. Why is Microsoft pushing the 360 so hard when you can’t even walk into a store and pick one up?
Some people are taking exception to this. They think that Microsoft should stop what they’re doing and wait for the channel to get some decent supply of 360’s before turning on the advertising faucet.
Personally, I don’t care. If Microsoft wants to make people aware of the 360, that’s up to them. Creating demand is what companies have to do, and if you want to buy a 360, you’re probably willing to wait until one becomes available. That’s Microsoft’s thinking, and I don’t think they’re far off.
Low availability is part of a console launch. That’s a fact. If advertising bothers you so much, then turn off your TV.
Discuss here or in the new PS3Blog.net forums.
So, you’re thinking that next-gen gaming is for you, but you don’t know whether or not to spring for a new HDTV. It’s a lot of money, and you’re unsure if you should spend it, or how.
Well, 360 Insider has an article that may help. They have several screenshots comparing 480p to 720p. So what you see there will probably not be as drastic as what you might see, because most TV’s are 480i, not 480p. But still, you can see how much clearer and detailed the 720p images are. Something that doesn’t come out very well in these screenshots is how good it really looks. Once those images start moving, all memory of 480p is tossed and you revel in the future of TV. Not only that, but HDTV’s are generally bigger than normal SD TV’s, so you’ll get a huge screen on which to enjoy your games.
I already have an HDTV and it’s great. I can’t wait to hook up an HD gaming console. And remember, the PlayStation 3 will support 1080p, not just 720p. If you have an HDTV with a 1080p display and input, that’ll be the ultimate.
Discuss here or in the new PS3Blog.net forums.
This week Aelon.net wrote an article about the XBox launch. Here’s a little taste:
Swing back 3 weeks. I am cruising around the local mall and the Xbox 360 launch fever has just started. I ask the manager of a local EB about word from on high. He says that whenever their store preorders things you get a ballpark from the distributor on how many can be sent (for high demand items). They got the ballpark of about 150 for Xbox 360s. They preordered 200 (telling the last 50 they would probably be in the second wave). Guess how many they get? 30. Ouch. If that is the extent of the production delays Xbox 360 will become the greatest console that no one has.
Head on over to Aelon.net to check out the rest.
Supposedly, according to someone that doesn’t actually make the console, it costs about $470 dollars in parts to make an Xbox 360. Then you have to pay to assemble all those pieces. All told, that means that Microsoft will lose $127 per console sold.
Personally, I don’t think this is such a big deal. Microsoft has so much money in the bank that they could lose money on every Xbox 360 sold from now to eternity and still put it in their “lost in couch” column on their balance sheet.
Besides, this won’t last forever. I have a feeling that this time around, Microsoft has engineered things so that economies of scale and hardware optimizations will eventually allow them to profit on the console, much like Sony has done with the PS2.
Ah, whatever. I don’t think it’s such a big deal. If I had an Xbox 360 it would just go in my component rack with all my other stuff, and it would fit if it was twice as thick.
But that doesn’t mean you don’t find the Xbox 360 interesting, fascinating, or down right exciting. While I report some Xbox 360 news that I find interesting, this site isn’t really meant to be an Xbox 360 resource.
For those of you looking for a good Xbox 360 resource, you’ll be happy to know that Gaming-360.com is back online and that they have two new writers as well. So now you get Hiro, Phoghawk, Moontopher, and Twitnip all talking about the Xbox 360. It’ll be interesting to see how many posts are about the same topic….
Gaming-360 was my favourite Xbox 360 site before it went on hiatus, and now they’re back. They were my first respected site! I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with.
They point out that the PS3 will have a Blu-ray player, while the Xbox 360 doesn’t. The PS3 will supposedly be more powerful. (Although the consensus currently seems to be that they’ll be roughly equal.) Don’t forget that the PS3 will be backwards compatible! Yeah yeah. What else… oh yeah! Sony might slash the PS2 price to $100. How is that a good reason to wait for the PS3? I dunno.
How about this: if you’re an RPG fan, the PlayStation is the platform to be on. Historically it’s had the lion’s share of RPG’s, and that is likely to continue. What about Gran Turismo? The next installment will be PS3 only. Ditto for Metal Gear Solid. Formula 1? PS3. The PlayStation 2 has been the place for RPG’s, platformers, and some good racing games. The Xbox has been the place for FPS’s, and also some good racing games.
Because at the end of the day, it’s about the games. People have complained about the lack of a killer launch game for the Xbox 360’s launch. Well, it all depends on your outlook. What kind of gamer are you? What kind of games do you like? For many people, the PS3 will have the games they want. And the same is true of the Xbox 360’s launch today.
Kinda like my article, but with pictures! Lots of pictures. They have pictures comparing RF vs composite. And composite vs S-Video. And 480p vs 720p. Etc. One thing I don’t think they mentioned is that the difference between composite and S-Video is highly dependent on your TV. If you have a great 3D comb filter in there (like my Sony 35″ XBR CRT), then the difference will be negligible. If you don’t (like my Hitachi HDTV), then there will be a big difference.
But what it really comes down to is this: if your TV supports it, use component. Or VGA. You need one of those two to view HDTV. If you have a normal TV, use S-Video. And finally if you don’t have that either, use composite. What’s that? You don’t even have that? Then RF it is, though you’ll have to get yourself an RF modulator from Radio Shack in that case.
So it comes as somewhat of a surprise that the Xbox 360 is receiving a so-so rating from several media outlets. “Good, but not great,” says CNN. “Don’t buy the Xbox” writes The New York Post. Mostly they complain about the price. Personally, I think the Xbox Live price is the kicker, not the price of the console. And upgrading to HDTV? You should be doing that anyway.
They do have a point about must-have games for the system. There’s nothing jaw-dropping. Well, unless you’re a huge fan of one of the franchises. Personally, I’m a PGR2 fan, so I look forward to playing PGR3. Too bad it’s only two player.
So what do you think? Boom or bust? How’s the Xbox 360 now that it’s actually playable, and you can see the launch titles? Come Tuesday, you’ll be able to play it, too.
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