Know What You're Getting With The Xbox 360

The full system

The Xbox 360 full system comes with the console, wireless controller, a headset, an ethernet cable, composite AV cables, an HD component and 20GB HDD for less than $400.

The price may set you off by a few Benjamins, but it will be worth it. A good feature of the latest version of Xbox is that you have a choice for the hardwired version or the wireless version. Another feature is that the full system lets you enjoy your gaming without an HDTV or a high-speed internet connection.

The built-in HDD is this version's best feature, since it lets you save your precious level games and stream in larger environments. Another plus, the Xbox Live headset, which lets you go online and chat right away, a great added feature for serious gamers.

The core system

The core system includes the Xbox console, composite AV cables and a force-feedback wired controller. It doesn’t have everything, but for less than $300, you have enough to start playing, pronto. The games may have a limitation since the HDD is optional and you will have to buy a separate memory card so you can save your games. The memory card will also let you join Xbox Live, a good choice if you want to connect with fellow gamers.

The core system console features a 3.2GHz multi-core IBM PowerPC-base CPU, multichannel surround sound for blast-out-of-your-seat audio and a custom ATI graphics chip for near-lifelike visuals.

If you're buying the core system, you will do well with the basic gaming, although it lacks the bells and whistles of the full system. If, sooner or later, you want to go online, you'll need to pay for extra accessories and you also need a good, solid place on which to save all your data when the time comes.

To correct that, the Xbox core system may be completed with a 20GB HDD and a separate 64MB memory card, although it will cost you extra, far more than it would have had you bought the full system.

On the other hand, some gamers really, truly don't need all the extra accessories initially and would be better off using the extra hundred backs buying additional games. Besides, newer, better versions of accessories may come later on.

What's great about the latest Xbox is that it lets you choose which version suits your gaming personality best. The bottomline? Pick the full version if you want to lose yourself in gaming and choose the core system if the simple features are enough. Just be ready to spend just in case you fall deeper, though.

Everything Starts And Ends At The Xbox Dashboard

If you’ve just purchased an Xbox 360 and find it hard to navigate yourself to and fro and perform a particular function, the first thing you should understand about your new gaming unit is the Xbox Dashboard. The Xbox Dashboard is what a nucleus is to an atom: it’s the brain or control center of the whole unit.

The Xbox Dashboard has four integral parts, all of which will be explained to you one by one.

Part One: Xbox Live
At this section of the Xbox Dashboard, you can view and modify your gamer profile to ensure that the performance and features of the Xbox 360 will be to your own specifications. This feature is nonetheless also accessible in the other parts of the Xbox Dashboard.

The Xbox Live is the point of interaction of your Xbox 360 as this is where you can send and receive messages from friends who have a Xbox 360 as well. Similar to the messenger list of Yahoo and other online networks, you can check, add, and delete people to your friends list. If you are playing a multiplayer game, use Xbox Live to invite other players to play with you.

Lastly, this segment is also where you can gain access to the Xbox Live Marketplace and purchase add-ons to increase the entertainment value of your Xbox 360.

Part Two: Games
The Xbox Live Marketplace can also be accessed through this section of the Xbox Dashboard but only so you can try the demos provided for the various games and add-ons being sold. You can also watch game videos from the Marketplace and through this section as well.

The Xbox Games section also allows you to check out the various games available for downloading from the Xbox Live Arcade. Lastly, the Xbox Games section will provide you with the list of games that you have already played – a great feature if you’re fond of comparing notes with other players.

Part Three: Media
The media section of your Xbox Dashboard is, as its name already suggests, the media control unit of your gaming unit. This is where you should go in order to listen to your favorite music and view photos or videos in various formats. This can be connected to a desktop’s Window Media to obtain access to other online services.

Part Four: System
Lastly, the system section of your Xbox dashboard will allow you to change, add, remove, and modify settings and controls that affect your gaming experience.

Microsoft Xbox : The Leader Of The Bunch

Fill in the blanks. Nintendo is to Wii. Sony is to PlayStation 3. Microsoft is to what? If you are a gamer, you clearly know the answer. XBox. Gaming industries are competing when it comes to the bestselling component.

XBox was released way before the Wii and PS3. It can be purchased at $149.99. It promises fun for the new generation.

November 15, 2001, XBox was released in the United States. It was Microsoft’s first stab into video games. The most popular games for the system are “Halo:Combat Evolved”, “Dead or Alive 3” and “Oddworld: Munch’s Odyssee”.

The console was strongly supported by the gaming community earlier but there were graphical improvements that were somehow similar to that of the PlayStation 2’s version.

What gave the XBox the edge among its competition is the XBox Live. It is the online gaming service that lets the subscribers play games with or sometimes even against other gamers all around the globe. It is like connecting to the internet and interacting with the other users.

In 2004, the most successful game compatible with the Microsoft XBox was “Halo 2”. It holds the records as the highest-grossing game released in entertainment history. It made over 100 million on its first day of release. Add to the fact that it has been popular with the XBox Live.

It may be the dark horse when set alongside the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 at this point, but the Microsoft XBox remains popular with gamers.

Since this is an older model compared to the other consoles, you can opt for a brand new one or go for second-hand. There are many sites that advertise XBox.

If you’re looking for ways to save more on either the XBox or the latest similar model with a couple of alterations, the XBox 260, you can check out your nearest stores or the various sites that are selling the product. Chances are, if you look hard enough, you can opt for the cheapest console.

In getting the Microsoft XBox, the key to remember is that, be it brand new or second hand, it must operate at its finest. XBox is cool because it allows the gamers to connect via the internet and play their games through the server on the world wide web. True, the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 offers such option as well but the difference is that the Microsoft XBox was the first of its kind to do so.

Nothing beats the original.