We’ve all been there.
After years of faithful service and happy memories, the trusty old (insert gadget here) is tuckered out and needs replacing.
Some of us recycle our old gadgetry (and bravo/a to you), while others might try to sell it on the cheap, eBay-style.
But here‘s something I bet you never considered doing with your old… say, Xbox 360. → Read More
Good news, FiOS fans! Verizon and Microsoft have announced today that they have struck an agreement to bring live HD television channels to your Xbox 360 without any additional hardware.
Now, don’t expect to get Verizon’s full channel lineup on your console just yet — according to their just-released statement, Verizon will only be bringing “a selection of popular live TV channels to the Xbox 360.” So far, Verizon has 26 channels on deck, including MTV, Spike, Food Network, Comedy Central, HBO, CNN and Nickelodeon. → Read More
Watch out! Price cuts all around! Following the 3DS price drop, Sony just cut a cool $50 off the PS3, dropping the 160GB model to $250 down from $300. The 320GB model is also a little lower now with a $299 price tag.
This puts the PS3 in a slightly better position ahead of the oh-so-important holiday season. The Wii is currently priced at $150 and comes bundled with Mario Kart. The base model Xbox sells for $200 or $300 with Kinect. The PS3 suddenly looks a lot more attractive. → Read More
This isn’t a knock on the 360, but it really demonstrates the differences between the US and Japanese markets, and shows how you can’t please all the people, all the time. Only six thousand Xbox 360s were moved in all of Japan in May, for a total of around 1.47 million. Compare that to over five million PS3s sold and over ten million Wiis. Yet here in the states, the 360 is selling like hotcakes. Well, what can you do? → Read More
Want to contribute to making the 360 the best selling console of all time? Amazon has a might fine deal going on. When you purchase the $299 Xbox 360 4GB Kinect bundle, they’re throw in a $100 credit within two days of purchase. Use this credit for, I don’t know, Kinectimals, Michael Jackson The Experience, or pre-order Mass Effect 3 since it will utilize the Kinect’s voice recognition capabilities. Yeah, do that last one. → Read More
Despite industry sources and commentators suggesting that 2014, or 2013 at the earliest, would be the timing for a new generation of consoles, one insider claims Microsoft is planning on revealing it in the next 12 months, also known as “in the next year.” → Read More
Last night we got a live tour of the latest from Mad Catz, including this rather comprehensively-featured headset for the Xbox 360. The big “what’s new” on this one is that it’s “truly wireless,” with no cord to the controller — making it the only wireless Dolby 7.1 headset out there. That may be putting somewhat of a fine point on it (there are other “truly wireless” headsets, of course), but it’s true for now and the headset does look pretty great.
Check out our footage or read on. → Read More
Alright, finally. Microsoft released the Kinect last year with games that turned out to be to nothing more than virtual parlor games. But today at the company’s E3 2011 presser, they took the wraps off the first round of games that finally seem to be meant for gamers — you know, gamers as in people that enjoy virtual killing and such. The headliner? Oh it must be Star Wars Kinect. → Read More
Well, I think we can call the 360 a hit now. The console is six years old and, according to a chart by the NPD, has never seen a down year in the states. What’s more, it’s actually increasing in sales thanks in part to the Kinect. That, if you’re to believe these stats, makes the Xbox 360 the only console in history to see such growth this far into its lifecycle. Other systems tend to peak in year two or three and then quickly fall into the bargin bin. Not the 360. It’s currently riding high on its best sales number. → Read More
While I can’t imagine anyone would want to perform the feats demonstrated in this video, what you’re seeing is basically a hack that allows users to control PC programs – including Powerpoint – using the Kinect. Why? Because it’s there.
At IIT Delhi, a technologist named Ramaprasanna showed off his proof-of-concept demo using an unreleased Kinect SDK. Obviously you’re not going to get this on your Dell any time soon, but it’s interesting to see the direction Kinect on the PC could take. → Read More
Microsoft is rolling out a new update to the Xbox 360 which adds a few new features. Gamers in some countries can now link their PayPal accounts to their 360s and buy stuff that way, and standby mode has been tweaked.
Coincident with this update (coming over the next two weeks) comes the news that a recent firmware update adding support for the new expanded disc capacity feature may not be playing nicely with some 360s. But don’t worry, Microsoft is on the case. In fact, you might wish yours was getting bricked. → Read More
If this doesn’t point to a coming refresh of Xbox 360 hardware I don’t know what does. Starting May 22, Microsoft is offering a free XBox 360 (with 4GB of storage) to folks who pay $699 or more for a Windows 7 PC – note they do not say “laptop,” which suggests that makers like HP and Dell are trying to boost their waning, post-PC sales.
Obviously this is a great deal students but it definitely points to a bit of a fire sale when it comes to the smaller, less memory-studded Xboxen along with the PCs that are currently mouldering on shelves thanks to the relative success of tablets. While I believe that the belief that tablets are eating into PC sales is correlation without causation, I do think that the race to the bottom in PC prices and netbook sales has negatively effected PC makers who are now facing a customer – of their own making – who expects more for considerably less. As a result, sales and profits are down catastrophically. → Read More
With Nintendo officially announcing their next console in June, there’s a little pressure being put on Microsoft and Sony. Sony, of course, has other things to worry about, but some think that Microsoft will use this lead time to put together something relating to its next console. In fact, one source claims that the next Xbox is already out there, just in disguise. They know because they saw one at the EA offices. → Read More
You’ve waited for it. You’ve prayed for it. You’ve spilled the blood of countless sacrificial chickens for it. And now it’s here: Hulu Plus for Xbox 360. The service is launching tomorrow and you’re basically getting the Hulu interface with which you’re familiar plus a few Kinect add-ons including voice control and gestures. With sufficient bandwidth you also get high-quality streaming on what Microsoft is calling the “biggest screen in your house.” The service will be available for free from April 29 – May 6 and will thereafter cost $7.99 a month. Click through for more info on the service, including some words about Kintect interaction. → Read More
Reports are hitting everywhere that Xbox 360s previously banned for mods are now able to connect to Xbox Live. This started sometime earlier today and is either a genuinely brilliant move or simple oversight by Microsoft. Now these systems are apparently only able to sign on to the service and not participate in online play. But still, it’s something notable and gives a glimmer of hope for the millions of banned 360s cut off from the wonders of the Internet. You may have heard that Sony is in a bit of a pickle with their online PS3 service. Something about user data being stolen and generally nastiness. Could Microsoft be looking to recapture some of the Live defectors who previously jumped ship after their modded system was hit with a ban hammer? It’s unclear right now, but this mass reprieve would instantly breath new (old) life into Live. Update: Even before this post went live, it seems Microsoft corrected the error and rebanned all the systems. Bummer. → Read More
Although the chatter around the games industry indicates that E3 will bring a new console from Nintendo — and its rumored features are getting a little ridiculous. But what of the Xbox 360 and PS3? Is it time for them to get a refresh? Not quite, says one insider. → Read More
You knew something like this was coming as soon as Microsoft announced the Kinect way back when. It’s UFC Personal Trainer, and it’s exactly as you’d expect: flail about in front of your TV while an on-screen avatar carries out the moves. THQ says the National Academy of Sports Medicine helped design the game, and pro fighter gave their input as well. Hearings before the California State Athletic Commission are not expected to be included. → Read More
It’s now quite a bit cheaper to develop Xbox 360 games. Then again, you could probably develop for any new Android phone and be dealing with more powerful hardware, but that’s for another day. Microsoft has developed a new Xbox 360 development kit that’s smaller than the previous kit and has more memory and hard drive space. → Read More
As a fairly regular player of XBox 360 media (called “video games” by those in the know) I have found that the console often becomes hot enough to melt a DVD placed on top of it resulting in, say, a copy of Mario Kart Wii (another “video game” for a game console called the Wii) that is rendered unusable by said heat. This causes, in turn, our toddlers to melt-down and the end result is something called “Dad has to go to Gamestop again.” In all, it is a sub-par situation all around.
What if there were a way to channel all that hot air from the top of the console into the atmosphere? You could, for example, use a piece of cardboard and toilet paper tube to vent the hot gasses away from the device or you could dip the entire console in an oil bath. Or you could buy a $20 fan that snaps to the side of your 360′s case and vents the hot air away from the surface of the console. It is USB powered so it takes up one of your XBox’s USB ports (not that you were using them) and almost silent when active. → Read More
Xbox 360 gamers have another choice when it comes to fancy-pants headsets, coming to you by way of Mad Catz. The Tritton AX 120 is now available, and it’s being positioned as an entry level headset into the world of higher end gaming headsets. You know, because you really need to be able to hear your CODBLOPS opponents yell “you suck~!” in crystal clear quality! → Read More
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