Xbox my own version of the story

Alan McCloskey · #1 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

well alot have been said abt 360. well i finally laid my hands on one. the wjole design concept is cool. but i feel a bit disappointed.my first concern is the controller . the whole wireless thing is ok but i feel a disconnected from my game.not becos its wireless but the pad is lighter. cokmpare that to xbox which was heavier though bulky but then when u play any action pack game the pad becomes an extension of my very own nervous system its this feel i miss in 360. its like watching an action movie with ur volume on mute.but i dont know how u guys see it but in the long run i will just have to manage the box.

Alan McCloskey · #2 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

Easy solution, buy a wired controller :X

Alan McCloskey · #3 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

There are some after-market controllers that might feel better to you (but they all look so similar to Microsoft's controller). Personally I love the new Xbox 360 controller, and it's weird to pick up my "classic" Xbox controller now.

Are you referring to the "original" Xbox controller that was as big as a house? I only know a few people that ever liked these, and they have huge freakin' hands!

Alan McCloskey · #4 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

Well, I finally got around to having repairs done on my FOURTH Xbox 360... so this will put me on my 5th console. This new unit died only 2 months after receiving a new unit from Microsoft repair.

When I got the red ring of death this last time I hadn't been playing games on it for a while, just using it as a Media Center extender.

MS blamed the problem on plugging the unit into a surge protector, and stated that "most problems with the console were because a surge protector robs the console of electrity it needs to run". The guy also kept telling me that "If you know anything about electricity then this will make sense."... I probably know a little more about how electricy and computers work than some guy on a helpdesk making $10 an hour...

Even if this were even remotely true, there's no way that there would be anywhere close to a 30W decrease like this tech said. He did say that most problems are caused by the console overheating and the solder points coming undone... but again he blamed this on a surge protector.

So anyway, I'll be on my 5th console in about a month (about the time it takes for MS to get the new console to me).

When I was at WCG07 I ran into a MS employee who mentioned that new Xbox 360s are going to start shipping with a lower chip fab by the end of the year, which should eliminate the problem. MS isn't going to "admit there's a problem" and advertise the new console... so you'll have to check serial numbers to see which consoles use the new motherboards.

If I can find any info at all about the new motherboards and which serial numbers they use, then I'll certainly let everyone know.

Alan McCloskey · #5 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

My answer would have been "so you would rather me be ordering new power bricks every two months because I wasn't using a surge protector?"

(yes, you can really blow a brick that fast on my power grid) Regardless, that guy was a n00b. And not because he's making $10/hr, because he's an idiot.

Alan McCloskey · #6 04-20-2008, 12:39 AM

Well, he sounded like he was reading a script (right down the the awkward overuse of my first name), so it must be the "official" microsoft answer to the problem.

"Oh, no, it's not a manufacturing problem... our engineering is completely solid. Every user in the world is the problem because they use surge protectors".

Alan McCloskey · #7 04-20-2008, 12:40 AM

Well I have been playing more PC games lately... basically I get the PC version if it's out on both PC and 360 (Bioshock, Lost Planet, The Orange Box, etc).

Alan McCloskey · #8 04-20-2008, 12:40 AM

I finally get my 360 back tomorrow! Yay!

Does anyone want to gamble on how long it will take to break this one? The closest one gets a cool prize!

Trisha Oliver · #9 04-21-2008, 09:12 PM

Dude I didn't even know your 360 broke in the first place?! One of my students bought a new 360 and sent it out, then the "fixed" 360 came back with a broken tray and wouldn't close. Losers. So it was sent out again, and finally after two months......it was working! :iamwithstupid: Lame Microsoft. Apparently if you just take your system to Microsoft they might be more nice. Nintendo does this also, so I've heard.

Alan McCloskey · #10 04-22-2008, 03:51 PM

The MS campus is only a few miles from me, and I wish I could have taken my console there.

Unforutunately, the Xbox repair center is in TX, so it had to be shipped

Last time they replaced the whole thing, but this time they actually "fixed" something. The serial number was the same, and there was some scotch tape on the outside for some reason.

Well, so far it hasn't broken. My original Xbox is still fine, so it will probably last for many many years. I don't have the same faith in the 360.