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Microsoft Announces Improved Xbox 360 Warranty Process
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Xbox 360,
Reports of people having issues with the Xbox 360 have been widespread, with some Xbox 360 users requiring multiple replacements of their hardware. It is hard to gauge the actual level of defective units in the wild, but from a purely anecdotal perspective, it appears that the Xbox 360 is much less reliable than its competition. Microsoft, though, is standing behind the console, having recently extended the default warranty to one year and now enhancing the warranty process.
First, Microsoft is now paying for return shipping for all consoles returned for repair. In addition, consoles repaired under warranty will have the work guaranteed for a minimum of 90 days, longer if the original warranty is still in effect, those out of warranty will have a one year repair guarantee. Microsoft also is apparently moving away from sending refurbished consoles to users, instead returning the original console to the user when possible. This also has the added benefit of not invalidating any of the user’s downloaded content, a problem in the past. Other benefits promised include faster service, and better support staff.
One could certainly frame these improvements in a number of ways. On the one hand, it is great that Microsoft is stepping up to the plate to ensure that the end user has as good an experience as possible when their console breaks. On the other hand, a lot of these fixes should have been built into the process from day one, particularly turn around times, console repair, and support. Nintendo has been lauded online for a couple of particularly good examples of support; perhaps Microsoft is now realizing that a good warranty experience will help reduce online complaints.
Read More 
| Xbox.com
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PSP Core System Now $169.99
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Hardware, PSP, Release Dates, Rumors,
Stop the presses! It seems that Sony has finally taken notice that their latest console iterations aren’t selling all that well. While rumors of an impending PS3 price drop are just that, rumors, Joystiq.com has recently uncovered evidence that Sony’s PSP Core Pack will be discounted at Gamestop by $$30 to $169.99, in an effort to boost sales.
Will this price drop be the lift that the ailing handheld needs? Or is this too little too late for Sony’s feature-rich, games-poor handheld? We’ll have to wait to find out, but $169.99 is already sounding to us like a much better impulse-buy price point.
Read More | Joystiq.com
Rock Band - Make Room for the Peripherals
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Electronic Arts, Hardware, Music, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
As we had guessed a few times before, MTV, Harmonix and EA are working together to suck the Guitar Hero well dry. The news today is that these three companies will be working together to produce Rock Band, a GH-like game that will include new peripherals that will let you drum, sing, and of course strum your way to rockstar fame. Looks like it’s time to make some more room in your home for gaming peripherals - given that the Guitar Hero guitar is nearly real-guitar sized, we can only imagine how big the Rock Band drum set is going to be… or perhaps they’ll build some nifty motion-sensing drumsticks?
With online play, killer peripherals, and a pretty hot looking list of record labels signing on, this game could be huge… both in the metaphorical AND physical sense. Hopefully the controller(s) won’t make the game as expensive as a new console, though. Rock Band is currently announced for the PS3 and Xbox 360 although developers have hinted that a Wii version is also in the works.
Click the jump for the full press release…
Click to continue reading Rock Band - Make Room for the Peripherals
Read More | USA Today
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It didn’t take long for someone to dissect the European PlayStation 3 to see what makes it tick, and the hardware geeks at Beyond3D have analyzed the motherboard pictures and compared them with the US and Japanese PlayStation 3 to see if they can determine the exact differences, and where Sony might be going with their hardware design optimizations. The known difference is the removal of the Emotion Engine that provided hardware compatibility with the PlayStation 2. Other optimizations seem to have the Graphics Synthesizer connected between the RSX chip and the HDMI transmitter. Beyond3D seems to believe that the Graphics Synth chip will eventually be integrated into the RSX. Another unexpected development has the southbridge chipset shrinking for the PS3, indicating a possible move to the 65nm production process. While this has little to do with the game playing capabilities of the PS3 (other than backward compatibility), the article does give hardware design nerds some insight into Sony’s ongoing quest to reduce costs.
Read More | Beyond3D
Microsoft finally confirmed the rumors; the Xbox 360 Elite will be available on April 29th for $479.99. As previously leaked, the new black console will feature an upgraded 120 GB hard drive and HDMI port, finally giving Microsoft’s console a true digital output for those with digital HDTV displays. The 120 GB hard drive will also sell separately for $179.99, while seems somewhat high, and would only seem reasonable next to Microsoft’s $100 price tag for the 20 GB drive. It is also somewhat disappointing that Microsoft’s “Elite” console only comes bundled with a month of their Xbox Live Gold service; it would seem an inexpensive way to increase the value of the bundle to include a full year. At least the bundle includes an HDMI cable, something Sony decided not to include with the PlayStation 3. In addition to the new bundle and hard drive, Microsoft will also be selling black versions of their accessories to go with the new console, so that gamers don’t have to worry about their wireless controller clashing with their game system. While this bundle offers a lot to new purchasers of the Xbox 360, it seems hard to justify to existing owners. It also seems disappointing that when Microsoft promised that they would make an HDMI connection available when the time was right, it kind of seems hollow that the connection requires a whole new console.
Microsoft’s full press release continues after the jump.
Click to continue reading Xbox 360 Elite Finally Official
Nintendo Alters Wii To Block Modchips
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Mods/Hacks, Nintendo, Wii,
Reports in Taiwan indicate that Nintendo may be altering the circuit board layout of the Wii to make mod chips more difficult to install. According to Digitimes, however, new modchips to deal with the changed layout may be less than a month away. While these changes probably won’t be difficult to work around, other mod chip installers believe that there are more complex methods available to Nintendo to block modifications for a longer period of time.
Read More | Digitimes
Early this morning, Sony officially made the 1.60 firmware update available for the PlayStation 3. This update includes a ton of enhancements for the console; honestly, some of the improvements should have shipped with the machine, like background downloading. A full list of the improvements and how to utilize the new features is available on Sony’s website now, but from a high level, users with 1.60 can look forward to:
- Internet Browser usability changes, including a new auto-zoom feature, a full-size virtual keyboard, flicker-fixer, and a resolution adjustment setting.
- Support for Sony’s Folding@home client for distributed protein folding research.
- Remote Play via access point, allowing Remote Play functionality for all PlayStation 3 consoles, not just the 60GB edition.
- Users can now toggle disc auto-start on the PS3
- Bluetooth keyboard and mouse support
- The ability to restore PS3 backup data onto another PS3.
A deeper look into some of the new features continues after the jump.
Click to continue reading PS3 Firmware 1.60 Now Available
Read More | Playstation.com
Playstation 3 1.60 Firmware Update Coming This Week
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, PlayStation 3,
With the European launch of the PlayStation 3 coming up, Sony is preparing to release the 1.60 firmware update for users in all territories on March 22nd. The update should, of course, enable the “full” version of the emulation software for European PlayStation 3 consoles, but in North America and Japan, users will get the following new functionality:
- Internet Browser changes: The firmware update adds a pinpoint zoom feature that automates the selection of the optimal enlargement ratio. In addition, there will be a new resolution option for adjusting web page viewing, including adjustments for flicker settings for interlaced output resolutions.
- Folding@home: The Folding@home client for protein folding research will also be enabled, as previously announced by Sony.
- Remote Play: users will now be able to use the Remote Play functionality through any wireless access point, not just through the built-in wireless on the PlayStation 3, so those users with the 20GB models will not be able to use this functionality.
- Background downloading will be enabled. This will probably not be universal background downloading; as others have mentioned, background downloads will probably not be able to take place during gaming sessions.
- Full size keyboard: Sony is adding a full-size virtual keyboard that users will be able to select rather than the current keypad-based entry.
Read More | Sony Japan (Google Translation)
NPD: Nintendo DS, Wii Lead Hardware Sales
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360,
February’s NPD data has been released, and things look good for Nintendo. 1up has the details on video game sales for last month, and the Nintendo DS sold 485,000 units, the Wii 335,000. For the rest of the next-generation hardware, Microsoft maintained its sales pace by moving around 228,000 consoles, while the Playstation 3 saw a significant drop to 127,000. The PSP didn’t do much better against the DS, moving 176,000 handhelds.
The only bright spot for Sony would be that in the non-handheld category, the PS2 took second behind the Wii, selling 295,000 units, showing that their now last-generation technology still has plenty of legs at retail. Still, having their PS3 sales drop by nearly half over last month’s sales is a significant change; if new software from Sony can’t change course, the company may have to do something drastic to turn things around.
Microsoft should be pretty happy; while they didn’t lead the pack, the company will surely trumpet their increase in year-over-year sales. That, and having the number one game at retail for the month of February, Crackdown will also help. 1up’s article also further details the rest of the software charts for the month.
Read More | 1up
IBM today announced that the company is now producing a 65 nm version of the Cell Broadband Engine in East Fishkill, New York. The Cell Broadband Engine, of course, powers Sony’s PlayStation 3, and the move to 65 nm promises to help Sony reduce the cost of their expensive console further. Sony has proven to be aggressive in attempting to increase profitability for the PlayStation 3, removing the expensive Emotion Engine chip in Europe at the expense of near-universal compatibility for Playstation 2 games. A 65 nm version of the Xbox 360 processor has been rumored for a while, with the alleged Zephyr revision of the console boasting the new CPU. While this announcement by IBM is a long way from a new CPU integrated in the PS3, this definitely puts Sony on the road to reducing power consumption and component costs for their hardware.
IBM’s full press release continues after the jump.
Click to continue reading IBM Cell Manufacture Hits 65nm
