Falcon 360s "just in time for Christmas"
If you've been waiting for the Falcon -- the 360 motherboard housing a smaller, cooler 65nm chip -- to arrive before making your 360 purchase, you may be waiting a few months yet. According to Xbox 360 guru Dean Takahashi, the first 360s housing the new chip are probably on there way from China right now. So, why will it take months for them to make it onto store shelves? First of all, the new 360s have to make a 6 week trip on the boat. The second reason is inventory. See, Microsoft still has plenty of 90nm Xbox 360s to sell out at retail before the Falcon starts cropping up. The real question then, is how long that's going to take. As Takahashi points out, Halo 3 and the recent price cut will likely drive sales, which should help thin the 90nm population, but ultimately it will take a few months before the Falcon is readily available. In Takahashi's estimation, "it's probably just in time for Christmas." Of course, he also points out that there is no way to tell one Xbox from the other. At this point, the only way you know you have a 90nm box is if it doesn't have an HDMI port. Even then, there are 90nm boxes with the HDMI port, so you still won't be sure when the Falcon arrives. All we do know is that the new chips are coming.
The way we see it, you can A) wait until Christmas, or B) buy one now and have it replaced with a Falcon after it Red Rings. Remember, the Xbox 360 is all about choice.
[Via Joystiq]
