XBOX 360 Elite, too little too late
Some have praised Microsoft for the addition of a new XBOX 360 model but all they have managed is to follow in the footsteps of the PS3 and it is still lacking WiFi and the HD-DVD drive. The XBOX 360 Elite is too little too late to save it from the scrap bin of history. Sony has taken the high end with the PS3, Nintendo has captured the low-end with the Wii and most XBOX 360 owners I know are content with their Premium systems.
Those with Core systems might want to consider the new model but other than that there isn’t much left for the 360 Elite to do. Sure, it has HDMI and a larger hard drive, it might even be making use of those new 65nm processors Microsoft has been promising but that’s not enough to warrant the $480 price tag.
The PS3 on the other hand with a $600 price tag offers the Blu-Ray drive, WiFi and a 60GB hard drive. With a little know-how the hard drives on both the XBOX 360 and PS3 can be replaced with a standard 2.5″ laptop drive. Or if that doesn’t float your boat, Microsoft will be selling the 120GB hard drive as a $180 accessory for both Core and Premium systems with the data transfer kit being sold seperately but some protected content won’t make the transfer.
The Wii is topping sales charts in the US but that’s okay, most people are just buying what’s cheapest, the graphics on the Wii just don’t impress me that much and neither do the “unique” games.
As for the XBOX 360, the console hardware is not a profitable venture for Microsoft as they are taking a loss on the console. That’s nothing new, Sony takes a loss on each and every PS3 sold as well. Though, Sony and Microsoft might be able to argue that’s made up with the sales of games. And still Microsoft decides to add a third model of 360 to choose from. It’s not priced competitively enough, if you’re looking at the XBOX 360 Elite a jump in price from $480 to $600 is not such a great leap to pick up a PS3.
I’m going to stick with my Premium model, maybe I’ll upgrade the hard drive, I can live without HDMI for now but Microsoft should take note, make a 360 with the HD-DVD drive integrated, WiFi and charge something less than the PS3 price and they’ll have a winner. Nonetheless the sheep have flocked and the XBOX 360 Elite is already selling out of preorders.
By the time you have read this post the XBOX 360 Elite will either be available very soon or will already be available as it is slated for release today. Anyone out there plan on picking one up?
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30 Responses to “XBOX 360 Elite, too little too late”
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April 29th, 2007
Im not sure how you can say its to little to late after 11 million units have been sold, your not forced to buy ths product its just another option for you to have. Any one that doesnt want 3 options instead of 1 is mad. As for HD DVD microsoft have always said they will never include it, but you can but it as an add-on, its all about choice, and not forcing you to buy something you don’t want.
April 29th, 2007
That’s 11 million units of the Core and Premium systems, if the Elite sells as well, I will certainly be impressed. It’s another option but all they did was add HDMI… why not toss in at least WiFi because I’m not going to “ad-hoc” it with the WiFi module nor am I going to string a 50′ LAN cable. More people have Wireless networks and I don’t know about you but my 360 is not in the same room as my PC and router.
April 29th, 2007
That’s just one analyst’s opinion about MS (an unknown analyst at that, who wanted to stir a buzz on the net and make a name for himself) MS is currently making a profit off each console sold as well as having the the highest game tie in ratio. MS also surprised analysts last week when they announced a huge year end net profit in the billions, so they’re not worried about the xbox losses yet.
April 29th, 2007
I’ve never owned a 360, partly because I always hated the white (seriously, enough with this theme, and damn-you Apple). The Elite being black is almost enough to get me to go to the store today.
Thing is: Am I buying into technology that is on the way out, or was the 360 so advanced two years ago that it’ll be around for two more years?
April 29th, 2007
I went to Target this morning with the hope of finding an Xbox 360 Elite in stock. I had a printout of many of the electronics stores in the area in case I had to drive from one to the other in search of a console. I got there at 8:10 AM and since the store opened at 8 so I figured I was too late. I didn’t see any scruffy looking, geeky, 18 to 35 year olds so I figured there had been a mad rush already and I was too late. Still I hurried to the electronics section and found a line of about 10 people with 5 or so people milling around. I had gone to this particular store in Culver City the night before and I was told there were only 6 in stock so I figured even though they hadn’t been sold out they would be before I had a chance to buy one. I asked the two people at the end of the line if this line was for the Xbox 360 Elite. One guy in his early 20’s turned and said he was there for the Nintendo Wii. An older lady probably in her 40’s turned and said she was waiting for whatever the new console was (huh?) I looked over the counter which had three people at the register (this was the camera/register section in the electronics area) and saw a bunch of Wii boxes. I was a little confused. There seemed to be a delay and soon someone walked up with more boxes of Wii’s. A few minutes later one of the sales reps called out “Is anyone here for the Xbox 360?” I hesitated for a moment and then raised my hand. Out of the 15 or so people milling about I was the only person who raised my hand. On the release day of the XBOX 360 Elite, at 8 in the morning, with a gathering of about 15 people, it appeared I was the only person who wanted an XBOX 360 Elite instead of a Nintendo Wii. The sales rep waved me to his register (the other register was apparently devoted to Wii’s). There was a young Asian couple also there and they purchased there Xbox first. I looked over the counter and saw all of the Xbox’s Elites sitting there. The sales rep said he was surprised people were buying these. I explained to him the advantages of the Elite and he replied, “Oh, I don’t know it had an HDMI connection”. I purchased my Elite and walked out. I passed a few people with Wii’s in their bag. There were 4 Elite’s in the store when I left. I wonder how many Wii’s Target will sell today before all of the Elite’s are purchased.
April 29th, 2007
Too little too late? THe PS3 is dead at this point. Unless a miracle happens (nothing on the horizon points to it) it won’t even sell as well as the xbox1. It is too expensive and they killed the $500 model. The biggest hit it has coming this year is GTA4–which will be on xbox360–along with Halo3. And will Sony have a price cut this year? Maybe–but if they do then you know MS will follow and that will just make the xbox360 that much more enticing–It has sold 11mil at $300/400–imagine sales in the next 12 months at say $200/300+GTA4+Halo3+Fable2. This time next year the xbox360 will be over 20mil and the PS3 probably won’t even have cracked 10mil.
April 29th, 2007
oh–and one more thing–After GTA4 and Halo3 come out–and developers see how well things do on xbox360 versus PS3–you can bet that Final Fantasy and Metal Gear Solid will no longer be exclusive to PS3.
April 29th, 2007
Hey bob–that is a great story. Tell me–how many PS3s were sold while you were there?
April 29th, 2007
Well, what Microsoft should have done with the elite was also add motion sensing like the Wii, and then maybe things will run smooth.. cause with a one year headstart, they have not gained much with it…
April 29th, 2007
*LMFAO* the xbox 360 elite is a joke, they’re trying to compete with the PS3. I own a 360 and the PS3 killls the 360 in every way. Of course it’s more expensive but it’s well worth it. I’m having hardware issues with my 360 already and I haven’t played all that much. When exclusive 360 games are going over to the PS3, I’m getting rid of my 360.
April 29th, 2007
Steve, you ever hear of the term “Ice skating uphill?” Your that guy. You obviously don’t even own a 360, moron.
April 29th, 2007
Bob, try using paragraphs, it really helps a novel flow better.
April 29th, 2007
Wow the 360s a JOKE and the PS3 is the real deal eh..Like they say (no accounting for taste) Please do tell what makes the PS3 so awsome? is it the lack of rumble or maybe the lack of games..No wait its the non removable batteries..or the dreadfull online or maybe the price point. LOL like it or not I am having FUN!!! with my 360 and I dont have to pretend its
anything but a game machine. Hear that FUN FUN FUN till my daddy takes my 360 away!!!
April 29th, 2007
all we need now is sony to release a silver ps3
April 29th, 2007
Maylon, stupid dumb***, that’s the only way you can defend your crapbox and yes I do think 360 is crap. Batteries take forever to charge, you won’t be seeing any real support for 1080p when 720p is barely making it on some games, there’s a lot of tearing, it’s frickin’ loud, it’s laggy, the HD-DVD add-on is slow… I do give the edge that 360 has more on-line support then PS3 but that’s all it’s got.
Oh and rumble is coming back with Sixaxis so no worries there.
April 29th, 2007
honestly this thread has FAILED! everyone here is a total sony or ms fanboy. I got both consoles and if u ask me other than the free online PS3 has nothing over the 360…and my 360 is the core set. Yeah no one here is going to believe it but it’s true so just shut up and cry about it.
April 29th, 2007
The 360 will be the top selling console in April and May because of the Elite. Watch.
April 29th, 2007
Come on people you all know it the xbox 360 is going down and ill tell you why right now. The ps3s use bluray disc for their games witch hold 50gb of space and the xbox 360 uses normal dvd disc wich holds only 8.gb of space wich is barly enogh space for good looking games so yahh right now 360 leads but yust wait 1 more year and the ps3 is the one that will have all the beter games. Now all u peeps dont bullshit me about being a ps3 fan cuz i tell the truth. Right now im going to buy a 360 only cuz its cheaper. Anyways its like cars they make new models every year so whats wrong if video game systems do that!
April 29th, 2007
I think the Xbox 360 “Elite” is a good idea with a very bad name… Elite make people think that is the better model, when is just a model for those who video marketplace is a high priority…
April 29th, 2007
Sony may hold bluray over ms head but, do you guys know that the only blueray player walmart is going to carry is the ps3, they are investing in 2 million hd dvd players made in tawian that will sell for $199
April 29th, 2007
raynond,
that is a myth, the translations got all mixed up, and Walmart themselves have come forth and said it was a rumor….
and Walmart will be selling blu-ray players as well as HD DVD players. Walmart isn’t dumb, they’ll make more money selling both formats.
April 30th, 2007
ROTFLMAO!! Oh Sony Fanboys is this your last gasp… a death rattle! Say what you will about the XBOX 360 but the fact is that MS can bring a superior product to market for less than the 20Gb Ps3 that No One wanted! lol. MS has so much money in the bank that they can do this to SONY ALL DAY. In Canada they are already cutting $50 off the PS3 and yet no one cares b/c it still costs more than 4 months of car payments!
Losses? The company makes plenty of profit actually! This is only one division and VISTA just dropped so the cash cow is quite heathly thank you very much!
April 30th, 2007
Hey Xbox fanboys,
How many times has your Xbox 360 crashed. I hear alot of people have to send in their Xbox 360s 3 or 4 times. That is crazy!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 1st, 2007
None of this matters..I don’t think the Elite is gonna make enough of a splash to even outsell the Wii. You all read Bob’s huge story, on Elite’s launch, he was the basically the only one there to get it..the rest of the 15 people were there for Wii. And all the PS3’s were stacked like garbage in the middle of the aisle, just like every Best Buy you’ll go to.
For all of those that praise the PS3, there was an interesting investigation on Gamespot or IGN..can’t remember…that showed comparisons of screens from all types of games from racing, fighting, adventure, all that crap. The 360 was obviously superior, detailing lighting better, displaying more crisp shapes. *just so you know*
I’ll probably get an Elite though, just because I’ve wanted a 360 for a while now, and for $80 extra, I think the Elite is an excellent iteration for people that don’t have a 360 yet.
May 1st, 2007
I have the X360 core, but I was smart enough to go on to ebay to get the add-on accessories to equal premium, priced cheaper.
May 2nd, 2007
Bob’s been cutting and pasting that story everywhere on the net.
Nice Bob.
I wasn’t at the store because I had mine shipped. It wasn’t that important to get it at 1201 on the 29th. I can wait a couple of days. This is my first xbox and I’m primarily getting it for it’s Media Center capabilities which are first rate. IPTV is also a possibility, and when I was at the Exchange today they had a whole wall full of Xbox 360 games. It’s enough for me.
May 3rd, 2007
Dose anyone not get the fact that both blu-ray and hd suck. There is a difference from regular DVDs but franctly it just gives me a head ache. And the wifi is really bad on the PS3 it cant get good signals from any modems at all but the xbox’s wireless network adapter works perfictally. And again the xbox is more reliable Sony just shoved alot of expensive Crap into the PS3 without thinking about customer satisfaction
June 18th, 2007
I thought I got a good one when I bought the 360 last Christmas. Boy, was I disappointed. Just six months later, my unit has as much value as scrap iron.
The hard drive is totally defective, it overheats faster than a volcano. Microsoft has been selling lemons all along. I have given up hope on my unit. Never again will I trust Microsoft. I am going back to my first love — Sony. The PS3, I mean.
August 13th, 2007
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I couldn’t understand some parts of this article, but it sounds interesting
February 23rd, 2008
Jessie…
Ill admit it. i have been to your blog SIX times since your last post looking for a new post ….