XBox 360: Call for action!

I'm only a casual gamer but I'm intensely interested in this generation of gaming hardware. I think this is gaming's "breakout" generation. Nearly everyone is going to have one of the 5 devices out there by the time the generation is done and lot of us are going to be doing more than gaming. Some of the rules that applied to the previous generation will not apply here. The current hardware has a lot more staying power than previous generations. Sort of like the Audio CD. The Audio CD was seen by most as good enough. While DVD Audio and SACD offered better quality, people were happy with Audio CDs and they didn't buy into the higher fidelity.

In a way, Sony has the right idea with their 10 year strategy for the PS3. The Cell chip has enough processing power and by the time new hardware comes out from Nintendo and Microsoft, developers should've learnt to fully utilize all that power.

Anyway, I want to talk about the XBox 360. Against all odds (I'm writing on a Mac, I don't like paying for online gaming, I'm not interested in the Zune), I find myself liking the XBox 360. More surprising, I like it for the software! Yes, Microsoft is definitely doing good on the software front here. Unfortunately, their hardware is falling behind. Here's my call for action to get the XBox 360 back to being competitive. As of now, its falling behind and will likely be relegated to 3rd place in this generation again. Here are a few things Microsoft should do -

1. Bring sexy back.
It worked for the DS Lite. Yes, the games are awesome but MS needs to redesign the XBox.
A few suggestions -

• Get rid of the monstrous external power brick, we need one nice svelte XBox.
• It would be nice if I didn't feel the need to reach for my noise canceling headphones when the XBox is powered on - make it quieter. A slot loading disc drive might help too.

2. Make XBox Live Gold cheaper.
Yes, hardcore gamers don't mind paying for XBox Live but if you're looking to get this into kids' homes, you need to look beyond. Faced with a choice between a Blu-Ray playing PS3 with free online play and a DVD playing XBox 360 with paid XBox Live, guess which one is getting picked? Also casual gamers like me would like to play a few nights a week, but I'm not going to pay for this privilege.
Free would be nice but even $24 ($2 a month) is easier to swallow than the current cost.

3. Include wi-fi.
This is 2008! How many homes have ethernet in their TV room or bedroom? Wi-fi is everywhere. Your wi-fi accessory is outrageously priced and I don't want a Gaming adapter in addition to the noisy console and its huge power brick.

4. Increase storage.
You need to keep up or move ahead of the competition here. 160GB standard would be nice, 320GB for the premium? Personally, I'd like the ability to upgrade the drive myself, but I realize that the non-techie users (vast majority) would prefer to buy these upgrades at Best Buy.

5. Sell Media Center.
How many XBox 360 users who have Vista pay for Tivo? I bet it isn't a small number. MS needs to sell this functionality. Btw, we need the wifi toting, quieter XBox that can fit in a TV cabinet for this to happen. Create a Media Package - the 360 console with a USB TV tuner for those using Vista Premium or Ultimate. For $50 more, you can have a DVR too!

6. Make it reliable, stupid!
Last but not least, the hardware needs to be reliable. MS is lucky the users like the games and software as much as they do. I can't image a mass market device being so unreliable. My unit has been replaced twice in 2 years! I don't have much hopes for it staying alive long after the 3 year warranty ends. It would be nice if there was a trade in option for the older XBox owners on a newer console.

I'd like to end by giving kudos where it's due. These are the things that the XBox 360 gets right -

1. Great integration with XBox Live. Superb online experience.
2. Graphics on par with PS3 even while having launched first and using DVD media.
3. The best wireless controller of the current generation. Feels right, reliable.
4. Best games library of current generation.
5. Media Center is awesome.
6. XBox Live Arcade is best in class. Great selection.

XBox 360 is back, Media Center is awesome!

Alright, finally got my XBox 360 back from the "Repair Center". I've been looking forward to trying a few things.

First, I had some WMV video (Twenty20 cricket) burned to a CD. I tried playing it, works great!

Second, I'd installed Windows XP Media Center 2005 onto my PC and wanted to try it out. It took a little bit of effort to set this up for the XBox. I had to download the Media Center Extender software from Xbox.com. When I tried that, it prompted me to install Media Center Rollup 2 from Microsoft.com. When I downloaded that, it prompted me to install .NET 1.1 and .NET 1.1 SP1!! What's up with this crap MS? Can't make all-in-one updates? I don't mind downloading all those updates in one package to skip the steps!

Anways, the final result after all the installs - stunning! I have a boatload of WMAs on my PC that the Media Center picked up and added Album art to. I also had a compatible TV Tuner card, that let me watch and record Live TV through the 360. The experience was quite compelling - the audio playback even used all the surround speakers, something that music playback from the 360 Dashboard just can't seem to. The Media Center experience on the XBox 360 is one of the standout features and I am amazed it hasn't been pushed more. With Vista, the Home Premium and Ultimate versions have Media Center built-in and with the addition of a compatible TV Tuner, every 360 user with those versions of Windows Vista can partake in the fun. I'm going to spend more time trying the Media Center functionality, watch out for that.

Third, I accumulated a few games when the 360 was gone - Halo 2, Halo 3 and Viva Pinata (for App). We'll have to try those games out. I don't think I'd really play Halo 2 after playing Halo 3 so I've decided to play Halo 2 before opening the Halo 3 game.

For all the trouble I had to go through, Microsoft sent me an anemic 1 month free of XBox Live Gold. It's worth $5 at most - well better than nothing I guess.

RROD again!

Okay, I think Microsoft did a good job on the XBox 360 software; none of the other consoles can match the elegance of the "blade" interface they have going and the integrated Live (online) functionality. They also have the best controller. The 360 controller has just the right heft, includes rumble, easily swappable batteries and can be made to work with a Windows PC.

However, the XBox 360 has one big weakness - the crappy console hardware! I just had my console go RROD on me again. For the uninitiated, RROD = Red Ring Of Death, which is what you see in the picture. It is the XBox 360 equivalent of the Windows BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death and if you haven't seen that before - you must be a Mac/Linux user or a really lucky human!).

I bought my XBox 360 in May '06. I had my first RROD in March '07, after an estimated 240 hours of usage. The second RROD happened this week after just another 120 hours of usage. Plain unacceptable and may really be the reason I jump off the XBox 360 bandwagon.

My biggest gripe with the RROD is the timing, I was really looking forward to Halo 3 in a few weeks! And now I'll have to wait about 4 weeks to get my console back.. oh well.