TopTenREVIEWS

Xbox debuted in Fall 2001 in limited supplies, quickly capitalizing on a strong demand that translated into well over two years of continued sales growth. Without looking back, Microsoft has continually made refinements and improvements to the Xbox 360, expanding hard drive storage capacity, improving video, multimedia and internet functions and offering several console formats at economical prices, all while sacrificing nothing of game play.

Differences: Xbox, Xbox 360
Console	Xbox	Xbox 360 Pro
CPU	733 MHz Intel Pentium III-based Mobile Celeron	Xbox 360 Premium 3.2GHz PPC Tri-Core Xenon
GPU	233 MHz nVidia NV2A	500MHz ATI Xenos
RAM	32 MB	64 MB
Cache Memory	128 KB	1 MB
Standard Storage	8 GB	60 GB

The improvements in computing speed and power are apparent in the graphical and video difference that exists between the two consoles. The video output for the Xbox 360 offers a greater fill rate with increased color (bit) and shader output, making it ideal for larger and HD video formats. Though little change has been made in the Xbox 360’s audio configuration, its additional A/V configurations open it up to a variety of HD and other enhanced A/V settings, greatly improving its sound potential.

Xbox Screenshots

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Game Availability:

New game titles are no longer being released for the Xbox. The Xbox 360, however, has roughly 526 game titles available as of Fall 2008, with backward compatibility of 465 games available with a hard drive and the latest software update. Though the Sony PS3 offers full backward compatibility for both PlayStation and PS2, Xbox 360 makes a strong case for itself by including additional games and downloads through Xbox Live.

Though there are dozens of titles that have broken the million-mark, as of early 2008, the ten best-selling Xbox 360 games are:

1. Halo 3 (8.1 million)
2. Gears of War (4.7 million)
3. Grand Theft Auto IV (3.45 million)
4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (3.172 million)
5. Forza Motorsport 2 (2.274 million)
6. BioShock (2.2 million)
7. Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (2.08 million)
8. Guitar Hero II (2 million)
9. Saints Row (2 million)
10. Assassin's Creed (1.985 million)

Online Community:

The Xbox Live network boasts more than 10 million Gold subscribers and an Xbox Marketplace that makes game rentals and purchases available, while also offering software and game downloads. The Xbox Live network offers video and voice chatting, user forums and chat rooms, user profile and bio pages, user rankings and, of course, hosts multiplayer play with team/opponent selection available by skill level, age, region, language and custom, for play between friends and acquaintances.

Though both Gold and Silver Xbox Live subscriptions have many benefits, there are some crucial differences.

Differences: Xbox Live Gold, Silver
Xbox Live Subscription	Silver	Gold
Price/Month	Free	$7.99
Unique User Name	Yes	Yes
User Ranking	No	Yes
Voice Chat	Yes	Yes
Video Chat	No	Yes
User Forum	Yes	Yes
Online Play	No	Yes
Parental Controls	Yes	Yes
Software Updates	Yes	Yes
Xbox Arcade Game Use	1-2 Weeks After Release	Yes

Technical Support:

Microsoft offers a range of help and support options, including telephone, email and online chat assistance. A dedicated customer service line is available, with repair information, including cost and status readily available. Though no warranty is still available for the original Xbox, Microsoft offers an impressive 1-year warranty (from the date of purchase) for its various Xbox 360 consoles, with an additional 2 years of coverage offered for issues related to the “3 Red Rings.”

Summary:

Though the Microsoft Xbox still offers some excellent game play features, albeit new titles are no longer being released on the platform, some multimedia functionality and online connectivity, it holds little over the other 7th Generation video game consoles, like the Nintendo Wii and PS3, and pales in comparison to its successor, the Xbox 360.