By Brian K. Neal
With worldwide sales tallying over 10 million units since its release a year an a half ago, Microsoft's Xbox 360 platform is poised to overtake its predecessor. Already, the adoption rate of Microsoft's online gaming/media service, Xbox Live, has surpassed 60 percent of current owners. And the latest model, the Xbox 360 Elite console, is a compelling choice—for prospective buyers who don't own a 360, that is.
The Elite differentiates itself from the previous Xbox 360 Premium with a new black finish, support for HDMI devices, and a bigger hard drive. At 120GB, it boasts six times as much storage as the 360 Premium and twice as much as the largest Sony PlayStation 3 model). But that's basically it; these additions, while welcome, are certainly not enough to make current owners upgrade. Still, I do recommend that new adopters spend the extra $80 and go with the Elite instead of the Premium model (the Elite lists for $479.99)—especially to reap the full benefits of Xbox Live.
With worldwide sales tallying over 10 million units since its release a year an a half ago, Microsoft's Xbox 360 platform is poised to overtake its predecessor. Already, the adoption rate of Microsoft's online gaming/media service, Xbox Live, has surpassed 60 percent of current owners. And the latest model, the Xbox 360 Elite console, is a compelling choice—for prospective buyers who don't own a 360, that is.
The Elite differentiates itself from the previous Xbox 360 Premium with a new black finish, support for HDMI devices, and a bigger hard drive. At 120GB, it boasts six times as much storage as the 360 Premium and twice as much as the largest Sony PlayStation 3 model). But that's basically it; these additions, while welcome, are certainly not enough to make current owners upgrade. Still, I do recommend that new adopters spend the extra $80 and go with the Elite instead of the Premium model (the Elite lists for $479.99)—especially to reap the full benefits of Xbox Live.
Along with the other upgrades, the Elite comes bundled with a wireless black controller, a black 360 headset, and Ethernet, component, and HDMI cables. The included HDMI cord is appreciated, since it can set you back around $60 at most retailers. Also included are a free Xbox Live silver membership (for buddy chat and downloading game/movie trailers), and a one-month subscription to Xbox Live gold (for head-to-head online play).
The Elite's chassis is not much different than that of the 360 Premium. It's curvaceous, refined, and well thought out. Though it dwarfs that of the Nintendo Wii, it's not as space-hogging as the PS3's. You can position the Elite either vertically or horizontally. Its black exterior, which lacks the polished finish of either the PS3 or Wii, looks better than the previous model's white chassis with most entertainment setups. Located on the front panel are the
console's power button, IR receiver, controller sync button, and two memory stick ports that can accommodate 512MB units each. There's also a tray-loading progressive-scan DVD player (an optional USB 2.0 HD DVD drive is available for $200) and two USB 2.0 ports for connecting a multitude of devices, including Flash drives, digital cameras, or even Apple iPods. The top of the console hosts the Elite's most welcome feature—a detachable 120GB, 2.5-inch hard drive housed in an enclosure that matches the mood of the system's exterior. Located on the back of the Elite is an extra USB 2.0 port, an AC power plug, the long-awaited HDMI (v.12) port, and an Ethernet jack. What's truly disappointing here, though, is that Microsoft didn't give the Elite any type of internal Wi-Fi (a USB Wi-Fi peripheral is available for $100). This is especially mystifying, since both Sony and Nintendo bestowed Wi-Fi on the PS3 and the Wii.I'm glad to say that the Elite's wireless controller feels very comfortable in the hand. Its rubberized analog sticks are thoughtfully placed, and it has an impressive grip. The D-pad, however, feels stiff and offers minimal tactile feedback—a slight and forgivable shortcoming. The controller can be powered by either two standard AA cells or a rechargeable battery that lasts up to 30 hours. The biggest drawback in the 360's design, however, is the power supply unit. At more than one-third the size of the console and over 3 pounds, it's large, heavy, and almost impossible to hide
The Xbox 360 platform packs a powerful punch. Blockbuster epics such as Elder Scrolls: Oblivion; Gears of War; and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas are prime examples of the console's lofty capabilities. And game developers have yet to tap into the system's full potential. However, the Elite uses not the rumored 65nm CPU but the same triple-core, 3.2-GHz, 95nm IBM CPU as the other 360s (which explains why it generates the same amount of heat and noise) coupled with a custom AMD (ATI) graphics GPU that shares 512MB of system memory.
So the question remains: What substantial benefits, if any, are there for adopters of the 360 Elite? Much of this answer can be summed up in two words: Xbox Live. The Xbox Live marketplace is a digital media lover's dream. There, game demos are usually rolled out before their retail release on a try-before-you-buy basis, along with plenty of original and retro titles available for download. Also on offer are downloadable movies, television shows, and music videos—the majority available in both standard definition and HD.
On my tests, a typical feature movie such as the 108-minute Happy Feet in standard definition
(480p) occupied 1.2GB of hard drive space, and the HD (720p) version absorbed 5GB. Similarly, a 22-minute South Park episode took up 252MB of storage in SD, and the HD version swallowed nearly a gig (1008MB) of space. Though this may not seem like a lot initially, owners of the 20GB Premium model will see their hard drive capacity evaporate in no time. The Elite's 120GB of storage is a must-have upgrade, especially when even the games themselves receive updated, downloadable content on a regular basis. Upon first run, I noticed that the Elite has 17GB of storage already occupied with game demos, movie trailers, and other video content. You can choose to delete this data on your own time, of course. For Core and Premium 360 owners, a 120GB hard drive peripheral is available separately for $180, bundled with a hard drive transfer kit that will perform a one-time transfer from the 20GB model.The Elite can output to 1080p over both component and HDMI connections, but I noticed no major differences during testing. I saw slight improvements, however, when using HDMI. For example, distance detail was better in the murkiest areas of the sewer levels in Spiderman 3, which are generally dark, but that too was barely discernible. Unfortunately, the Elite sticks you with the same DVD player as the one found in previous models, leaving the external HD DVD drive as the only option for HD fans. On the bright side, the Elite's HDMI support gives it the ability to upscale DVDs to 1080p; something that cannot be done over component. It's no HD replacement, but the Elite's upscaler works very well and will tempt you to break out some titles from your old library. For audiophiles, the Elite's HDMI supports Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, Digital Stereo (two-channel PCM), and WMA Pro digital audio standards.
Like the 360 Premium, the Elite features a Media Center extender that gives it the ability to stream content (high-definition video, music, photos, and recorded television) from any Windows Media Center or Vista PC in the house. This gives the Elite an advantage over media hubs such as Apple TV, which currently offers little to no HD content. Setup for these media-centric capabilities is more time-consuming than complicated, as it requires a number of steps to get things going. In addition, the target PC must remain on for its content to be viewable. The
Xbox Media Extender interface is a carbon copy of Microsoft's WMC found on Vista and Media Center Edition PCs, so it's very intuitive, and navigation is a breeze. I tested the MCE on a 1080p set, and images from my PC were as sharp as they were on a standard monitor; the interface also supplied a light set of tools for retouching. High-definition movie files (MPEG, WMV) and recorded HDTV from my tuner also looked exceptional. Something I hope Microsoft will consider is an option, similar to Apple TV's, that lets you transfer media files from your PC to the 360. This could be done easily via a downloadable update, but given Xbox Live's continual success, that's probably wishful thinking.Overall, the Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite wins the crown as the best gaming/media entertainment device available. It boasts an already excellent library of titles and exclusives, an intuitive interface, and a well-executed, community-focused, online model that's chock-full of downloadable content. The inclusion of HDMI also has its advantages, though that's not as important as the increased storage, so that by itself it certainly won't sway those who already own the Premium model. But for new adopters, this black box definitely rocks.
source:pcmag.com
