Advantages: Brilliant graphics, HDMI Output, Excellent Games Library, Xbox Live
Disadvantages: Expensive Games, Xbox Live Fee, Lack of Blu-Ray, Hardware Errors

...After hearing how good Microsoft's next-gen gaming console was, I decided to invest. And what a good choice that was. I purchased an Xbox 360 Elite last year and how glad I am that I did. Pro's: - Powerful graphic engine - Brilliant display at 1080p Full-HD (HDMI) - Brilliant line-up of games - Excellent online (Xbox Live) system Con's: - Games pricey at £40-50 each* - Xbox Live Subscription at £40 per year** - Lack of a Blu-Ray drive unlike its competitor, Sony PlayStation 3*** - Prone to crashes and hardware errors**** *New games are hard to find at prices lower than £40, which is a lot of money on top of what you pay for the console itself **Xbox Live is a very good service offering a full friends messaging system and a wide range of services such as Game Demo's and Arcade games but considering the Nintendo Wii's and Sony... Read review

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Advantages: Powerfull
Disadvantages: Erm....... None!

...Power is the first thing that comes to mind when i think of the xbox 360 elite, it has a huge 120GB hard disk drive and the graphics seem to run alot smoother that the original xbox 360 for some reason. I had the original xbox 360 but that died on me about 2 weeks after buying, microsoft seem to have sorted out these little issues that kept crashing the system. The elite has a HDMI port which means you can connect this straght into your HD socket on your tv, I have a 42 inch plasma and i thought the graphics was good on my old Xbox 360 through a scart lead but once i plugged this in i was blown away! The graphics are amazing, perfect detail can be seen on the games that you play. You get the HDMI cable with this system too which is just great as they are quite exspensive to buy, you also get one black wirless controller and a headset... Read review

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Advantages: PS3 is more cost effective
Disadvantages: PS3 has less games at present, but this will change

...Ok the playstation 3 is expensive weighing in at £425 however if you compare just the Basic Hardware with say XBox 360, you will be surprised how cost effective it is. For example the XBox 360 Premium console, has 20 GB hard drive, headset, wireless controller, AV cable. And costs around £279, if you can wait until 24th August 07 Microsoft have planned to release the Xbox 360 Elite The Xbox 360 Elite is an All new Super Sexy Black, with 120GB Harddrive and a HDMI output + HDMI lead all for an estimated price of £320. However there are some bits missing from the XBox 360: If you want to connect wyour Xbox 360 wirelessly to the internet your going to need the official 'Wireless Bridge" this will set you back around £60. The PS3 has built in wireless capabilities, and is enabled from the PS 3 Menu The Xbox 360 & PS3 both support... Read review

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Advantages: Looks good, Save your games, Store Xbox Live content.
Disadvantages: Size not as advertised, not enough room for multiple movies/ Xbox Originals

...to be getting a lot of movies and Xbox Originals I would recommend stepping up to the 120GB drive. Slightly less space consuming are the demos which can clock in a few hundred MB to around 1GB so you have enough room for at least 13 of them. As well as providing space for your content, the Hard Drive can improve your gaming experiences, it can cache data from games to speed up loading times and issues like texture popping, it is also necessary for some games so if you want full access to the Xbox 360 library a hard drive is a must. Price & Conclusion If you have bought the Xbox 360 Premium package you will be delighted to know that this Hard Drive comes as standard, if you have the Elite you will be lucky enough to have the 120GB version. If you have bought an Xbox Core or Arcade system, I highly recommend you put your memory card on e... Read review

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Advantages: Extended warranty.
Disadvantages: Poor support handling, repair lasted a couple of months.

...My Xbox 360 was originally repaired in September 2007. When it came back it seemed to work o.k. It was not until my kids got some new games last Christmas, that the Xbox was played with for any length of time. Within 2 days the Xbox started given the audio video error (all red lights lit). After buying a new AV lead, the same error flashed up then quickly turned to the 3 red lights error (the so called ring of death.). During this episode the Xbox also chewed up 2 new games. We were not very happy, especially as games are so expensive! I waited until after the holidays to contact Microsoft, to get the Xbox repaired. 3 phone calls and 2 emails later, I am still waiting for Microsoft to send me, via, email, the shipping labels. Microsoft have offered me a new controller by way of compensation but I will not be rushing out to buy the Elite... Read review

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Advantages: HDMI connection colour black
Disadvantages: 360's game's catalogue still needs expanding

...Bought this an upgrade from a standard 2/3 yeard old Xbox 360. Immediately liked the HDMI connection much easier to use than old component cabling from older model. Black seems to suit the 360 fits in much better with DVD and TV where it lives much more unobtrusive than the white of the original. So far I have had the Elite about 5/6 months now and it has none of the freezing that I suffered with the previous model. Apparently the trick is to check the serial number which tells you which board and fan are fitted to it which should elimanate any of the overheating problems the previous model suffered - ring of death. Black controllers much nicer looking and again less obtrusive the previous white ones (don't show dirt as easily). Most of the functions when using the console don't appear any different than before. Obvious changes... Read review

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Advantages: Cheap, good quality
Disadvantages: Already obsolete, only cheap if you already have an XBox 360

...I bought this about a month ago fully realising that in the long term BluRay looked to have already won the race. I had not counted on the race being so close to the finish line and since purchasing it the two final nails seem to have been hammered into the HDDVD coffin. Firstly Toshiba announced they were dropping the format and now Microsoft have also announced they will no longer be carrying this drive as part of the XBox accessories list.. It is a shame that this has happened as it is a great product and at around £100 was by far the cheapest way (assuming you already owned an XBox 360) of experiencing high definition. The drive itself is a little on the large side, being about half the size of the XBox itself. It comes in an off white colour, matching the original XBox 360 but making it look out of place next to the new black... Read review

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Advantages: Good range of add-ons
Disadvantages: add-ons are expensive

...The Xbox 360 is a well priced console, with soon to be 3 major offerings The Core System Which comprises of Xbox 360 console, and wired Controller aprox : £199 XBox 360 Premium = Xbox 360 Console, 20 GB hard drive, Wireless controller, Headset, HD-AV Component Cable, Scart Block, PSU, Ethernet Cable. £279 Xbox 360 Elite ( coming to the UK 24th Aug 07) Xbox 360 Console, 120 GB hard drive, HDMI Output + HDMI Lead, Wireless controller and Headset. (exact spec is not confirmed, there could be additional surprises before release , a built-in wireless bridge would be nice! ) Estimated : £320 So it's a console which fits a wide range of budgets. There are a wide range of add-ons which is a good thing but also can be a bit of a pain if you compare what you get... Read review

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Advantages: Excellent graphics and an amazing array of games.
Disadvantages: Noisy

...console before, as well as the Elite console, so I will be able to comment on those. Premium Xbox 360: When the console first launched, I think this is the only console that people should be buying from the selection. It suits me fantastically, and can now be brought from stores/websites for a package deal. I brought mine from play.com for £299.99. This included the Premium console, 2 wireless controllers, 3 games (Gears of War, Project Gotham Racing 3 and Command and Conquer 3), 1 wireless headset, an ethernet cable (used for Xbox LIVE) and 1 month free using Xbox LIVE. This is a great package deal, considering the console itself is £279.99, I got 3 games plus an extra controller for only £20 more. The advantage of having a Premium console is that it has a 20GB hard drive, unlike the Core console. This means that when playing games, the user... Read review

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Advantages: Halo themed, looks very nice, durable, unlikely to scratch
Disadvantages: Expensive

...clips on in place of the basic one that comes with the Xbox 360 console - once the basic one is removed, of course. Everything fits and looks perfect. One slight 'problem' I have here is the fact that the Xbox 360 is white (or black, if you have the Elite version) and thus from any angle other than the front it looks a bit unnatural - there's a sudden change of deep blue to a slightly creamy white which looks a bit odd at first. My faceplate has been on the front of my Xbox 360 for a long time, though, so I'm quite used to it and it doesn't look so strange anymore. Extras The faceplate also comes with a code which you can enter on the Xbox Live Marketplace to download a free Halo-based theme. At the time I got mine, there were three themes to choose from, but I assume there are more now, especially since Halo 3 has since arrived... Read review

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