With the conclusion of the Electronics Entertainment Expo (E3) news is understandably short for this issue, at least from Sony and Nintendo. Microsoft on the other hand has had quite of few noteworthy stories relating to the release of the new slim Xbox 360, as a result this article will be mostly Microsoft Xbox related – sorry fanboys – but still discussing industry wide issues as well as some of my own opinions.
Microsoft surprised everyone by launching the slim 360 so soon after announcing it, as well as keeping it under wraps for as long as they did. When the Xbox 360 Elite was released, pictures and spec leaked a couple of months early, leaving very little for speculation except when Microsoft would unveil the ‘secret’ system that everyone already knew about. The slim Xbox 360 on the other hand was rumoured, but actual pictures weren’t leaked until about two days before the Microsoft press briefing. Once unveiled I think everyone was expecting a fall or holiday release date, not the next day; with the attendees of the press conference getting one for free.
I have often wondered how much of these ‘leaks’ of technology are actually planned and how much is genuine. In the instance of the Xbox 360 Elite as well as the leak and subsequent legal battles of the iPhone 4 I think they are genuine errors. In both cases the press leak had the effect of killing any suspense and anticipation in the market, once everyone knew about the new versions the actual announcement and release were almost useless. Compare those cases with the new 360, with the photo leak in a European advertisement all eyes were on Microsoft when their press conference started, waiting for the official announcement (with all the specs and prices thrown in) or the classic “We do not comment on rumours and speculation.” But what was the cause of this difference? I think it all comes down to timing, and the complacency of consumers. In my first two examples Microsoft and Apple both tried to cover their tracks and stick to their scheduled announcement schedule. This resulted in everyone in the industry and market knowing everything they were going to say before they said it. With the new 360 Microsoft was able to use the leak to their advantage to gain even more press coverage than they would normally have had – and that is why I wonder if it was staged, the timing is just too coincidental.
So, on to some Xbox 360 Slim dissection, courtesy of Anand Lal Shimpi (www.anandtech.com). Microsoft seems to be discontinuing a few current accessories that aren’t performing as they should. In light of the recent firmware upgrade that allows the Xbox 360 to utilize generic flash drives for saving games and other Xbox Live purchases, the market on Xbox 360 Memory Units has plummeted. Why pay $20 for a 512MB memory unit when you can buy a flash drive with 4GB for about $10 on sale? Microsoft has clearly reached the same conclusion as they have removed all memory unit slots from the Xbox 360, replacing them with extra USB ports. Another accessory that has changed is the faceplate – remember that removable plate on the front of the 360? Yeah, it seems no one else does either. When the 360 first launched Microsoft showed off the individuality of the system through customizable faceplates. Unfortunately no one really wanted to spend the money on one of the few designs that were ever released. Also many people pointed out that since the side panels were not removable as well the faceplate just looked stupid on a stand-alone system. The new 360 uses a shiny black case made of three pieces, all attached using the same annoying latch system from the original – only worse.
While not announced at E3, Microsoft has confirmed that there will be an ‘arcade’ equivalent for the new system this holiday season, selling at $200. There will also be bundles with Kinect as well, selling for $300 and $400, for the new arcade and standard slim respectively. In this case the deconstruction I mentioned shows how the price reduction will probably be done, at least in my opinion. When the case is removed a small compartment is exposed in the new system, with a small circuit board in it. This is the wireless N module, which connects to the main motherboards by an internal USB port. As far as I see it, the only reason to not hardwire the wireless module into the system is if you intend to have it be optional so that you could sell the same system without it for a lower price point – something like the new ‘arcade’ slim for instance. Another obvious change is the size of the hard drive, if 250GB is going to be the new standard I’m expecting 60 or 120GB in the new ‘arcade’ version. As games get larger the days of the hard drive- less Xbox 360 are numbered.
Talking about the hard drive brings up a point I am a little angry about – change without change. The new 360 uses a different sized hard drive case, making it impossible to use an existing drive in the new system. The interesting part comes when you take both hard drive cases apart, to reveal the exact same model of drive within. Not a single thing was changed, except the case and connection to the system, yet all current hard drives are rendered useless if you ever upgrade. This leads to my last point, the death of the current model of the Xbox 360. Don’t get me wrong, I think the new 360 is great, if I had the money lying around I would go out and get one right now, but I don’t, and there is nothing wrong with the system I have. Ignoring the new form factor the new 360 doesn’t have any big feature changes, as both a 250GB hard drive and the wireless N module are available separately for the current system. But the current system has been discontinued, with only the new systems currently in production. What this means for current owners is a future abandonment for accessories; memory units will no longer be made, the current hard drive will be dropped, white controllers and accessories will be replaced with gloss black. The systems that every 360 owner currently has will soon be obsolete, unless you fork over the money to get the newest, shiniest, and most up-to-date technology there is.
Well, hope this article wasn’t too cynical. Hey Microsoft, if you send me a new system, I’m sure I would write a great review 😉 Keep on gaming!
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