Microsoft sure had itself a doozy of a press conference this year, but there's still more in store for Xbox 360 users than what was detailed
during the keynote. First off, with the upcoming update, Microsoft will let users store and play back games from their hard drives. You'll have to have the disc in your drive for piracy reasons, but it won't be spinning during game play, which means quieter gaming and quicker load times (and more 60GB sales, we thinks, how convenient). Next up, Microsoft will let users make Xbox LIVE Marketplace purchases on the web, which are then automatically downloaded to your 360 for your enjoyment when you get home -- or walk across the room. The old "blades" Dashboard interface will be moved to the new Xbox Guide, which will provide a quick way to access everything on your 360. Finally, the 360 will support the 16:10 aspect ratio over VGA or HDMI, and work in 1440 X 900 and 1680 X 1050 resolutions.
posted Jul 14th 2008 3:58PM
OH. MY. GOSHNICKELS.
16x10! My 3 years of miserably squished chaos is now over!
YES! My 300 pound avatar is going to look soooo realistically fatass now.
Even though I don't have a 360, I got to admit this is a pretty cool new feature.
I've been enjoying 16:10 with my pc for sometime now. free yourself from console slavery.
I'm really excited 16:10 is finally coming to the 360. Same with the HDD playback.
And this won't lend to piracy... at all... right?
Shhhh.... don't say anything or they may change their minds.
Well, no it probably won't. Since you have to have the disk in the drive still.
Finally HDD playback!!
engadget website go boom!
There you have it everyone. Six Microsoft-related articles (as of 4:24) on the first page of Engadget.
Show me someone who says they only give Apple love here in Engadgetland, and I'll show you a liar!
@tyler
Its one day out of the year so far. I wouldn't exactly call this definative proof that Engadget isn't horribly, horribly baised towards Apple. In fact, yep, that damn iPhone banner is still at the top.
What's wrong with the banner? That links to Engadget's review of the iPhone 3G... There is nothing to review for the 360 yet.
Go look at the posts from the launch day last Friday. Almost all of them have hundreds of comments. Although these 360 posts are popular, I doubt they'll reach the same amount of comments the iPhone posts do. No matter how much you hate reading the iPhone news, a majority of people (as seen by the comments and I'm sure page views) want to read those posts.
And of course the old question comes up, if you don't like the post, then why bother commenting on it?
Kal - the iPhone 3G launch was only one day out of the year too. Your argument is completely flawed. In fact it is definitive proof that Engadget isn't as biased towards Apple as you think they are. It shows that Engadget covers gadget related news. The iPhone does fall under that description, believe it or not.
As of right now, the front page of Engadget is almost all Xbox related. I'm fine with that personally, but it sure does make all those Apple haters look like idiots, whining and crying and bitching about all the iPhone stories, despite the fact that it was an Apple event being covered. This is a Microsoft event, now MS gets all the coverage. I don't see how anybody could fail to understand how this works, but Apple haters aren't exactly the brightest people on the planet.
There's a simple reason to why engadget, along with gizmodo, had 20stories/minute, with non stop updates on the iphone 3G release: that's the kind of coverage people wanted, and of course, in order to keep all those readers, engadget had to give them what they wanted.
read my comment history; I'm definately not an Apple supporter, but I can face facts. The iphone 3G release was one of the biggest gadget stories of the year, it was broadcast over all the main news networks (who rarely have news stories about microsoft.)
I'm sure engadget has more stories about Sony than Sanyo, or Dell than Toshiba, it really doesn't matter . . . .
Since when was Engadget ONE person? ;)
This will be the best update ever.
Your comment works perfectly with your picture.
engadget.... Why are you covering microsoft news so much... I'M LEAVING forever !!
:)
Today is Microsoft's E3 Conference spot.
Tomorrow is Nintendo and Sony if that's what you're waiting for.
no. What I mean is everyone gets upset whenever apple has their day in the spotlight, but when it's microsofts turn it's all good
It's not that we get upset when it's apple's turn in the spotlight...we get upset of fanboys (like you, clak, ocean, and whoever else). Any fanboy, whether they be a MS or Apple fanboy, will get a low ranking from me. :)
but to keep it fair, iEngadget will have to do liveblogs of dashboard updates as they occur in every timezone around the world, and then have posts on every single feature. And, of course, we should have had a countdown clock, and 4 posts a day reminding us that M$'s 360note was just X days away complete with an update of every current rumor.
;)
Don't forget any and all unboxings that occurr in the next 3 months.
"Don't forget any and all unboxings that occurr in the next 3 months."
Its already happening:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ltXTWNQs8c
dont worry erik, i was just about to post the exact same comment. lol Whats with all the microsoft love Engadget? /sarcasm
FAIL.
having to have the disc in there defeats the whole purpose of this....which is to copy the game over and put it away.
I also wonder if only new games will support this.
I'm just happy I don't have to put up with the noise my drive makes.
I agree for the most part--but I think this might have more to do with newer games which might span multiple discs. That id title that was announced some time is supposed be a multi-disc game--and I'm guessing Final Fantasy XIII will also span multiple discs. In these cases, it might allow you to just put in the first disc after install and play without a disc-swap.
I don't ever see that happening (being able to store and not have to keep the disc in the drive), as they will continue to have this set-up to stop people installing it then either:
1) Taking the disc back to the store
2) Passing it onto your friend, them passing it on etc.
wow, all the replies to inteller are being added to ryan's post (below)? bizare lol.
Fail? How can you think that for one second. Do you really think MS or anyone would allow you to copy a $60 game to your HD then never require the disk again as you pass the disk along to your dozen friends to do the same?? The copy to HD functionality is only for increasing performance of game play. It is not for promote game piracy.
"having to have the disc in there defeats the whole purpose of this....which is to copy the game over and put it away"
Thats NOT the purpose of hard drive installs, if you could copy to the drive and put it away then you could do that on numerous xbox's no problem, creating illegal copies they can't control.
The purpose is to:
"but it won't be spinning during game play, which means quieter gaming and quicker load times" :)
To be able to have it installed/running solely from the drive sans disc in drive, each game sold would have to have a unique code, say a serial, which is tied to the users xbox live preventing them from installing on many 360. Something along those lines. Which would be a pain in the arse for everyone :)
No, the point of putting on the hard drive is for performance. Not so you can put your disc away. Can you read the articles?
JOYSTIQ: There is a problem with the reply system. For example, this reply is supposed to be to inteller's comment. I'm guessing it will instead appear under ryan's. Please fix!
Uh... Meant "ENGADGET"--not JOYSTIQ. Sorry. I've got E3 tabbing madness going on.
I thought the point was to get rid of DVD load times and keep that loud DVD from making noise. Of course they want you to leave the disc in. What would stop you and your friends from splitting the cost of one copy of a game then each installing it.
I know many a time I get the "dirty disc" error in the middle of a game. Hopefully copying to HD would eliminate this. I wish they would let you plug in your own HD. I only have 10GB which isn't large enough to do anything.
You guys are such Microsoft fanboys.
How about having an online reg system, where you only dont need the disc in the drive if youve registered the disc serial number online?
I'm kind of glad i bought the elite now. The drive spinning does pose a noise problem for me, since the xbox is right next to me when i play.
Wow... 16x10 Aspect Ratio support.
That was a total surprise to me, but thankfully I shall benefit from it.
No longer shall I be bound by black bars!
Finally. My 24" 1920x1200 can be used in all its glory.
16x10....? I don't know too many 16x10 HDTVs. is this to appeal to a few twirps with projectors and computer monitors?
You're just on first name terms with the the 16:9s then?
If they had done that from the beginning, the 360 might actually be as rare on store shelves as the Wii is now. Sony should have supported this themselves back with the PS2.
That FFXIII announcement just made the PS3 only a third placer for 2009.
16x10....? I don't know too many 16x10 HDTVs. is this to appeal to a few twirps with projectors and computer monitors?
SO where are the Apple hater trolls now? Still commenting on Apple-related posts?
Why so many Microsoft posts!..WTF?...Arggghhhhhhh!...the pain...make it stop!...my fanboy nuts cant take it! (hows that?)
Hi, this is a topic about Microsoft.
Just thought I'd point that out so you can leave now.
Meh! Nice WiiMii's, not sure about the new Dashboard, guess I'll just have to try it, and WHEN OHH WHEN are we going to get decent movie/tv streaming here in Europe.
With all the breaking news today, I think there should be a "Xbox 360: Everything You Need to Know" banner on the top of the page.
Engadget, can you try to get some video demos of the new dash and the new xbox guide please?
Can any 360 owners let me know whether the RRoD issue has finally been quashed? I'm thinking of getting the 360 when the 60gb comes out, but am still apprehensive because of the issue.
3 year warranty on RRoD and the problems have been nearly all ironed out.
I know a bunch of people with 360s bought in the first 3 months of release, mine included, that work fine.
Yes, from everything I have heard, the RRoD is fixed. I'm on my 3rd 360 (the previous 2 were replaced free of charge) and it has had no issues (with more activity).
If you follow the advice of the manual (as is the case with ANY console) you should be ok. By this I mean, don't put your xbox in an unventilated area (i.e., a cupboard) and don't have it on 24/7. (actually that I almost do and mine is fine lol).
That having been said, I am on my 5th machine after the other four all failing me, despite having followed both those rules (well, the first one at least), but I've had my fifth for a long time now, and not had a problem. I think they have fixed the hardware issue.
Well, mine died yesterday and I bought it last October. But I think the newer ones are doing better and hopefully my repaired one will live a long and fulfilling life.
And no matter how silly you think it might be to keep the power brick in a ventilated area; keep it in an open area.
It can really strain the console.
My console was purchased on launch day, and I've never had any issue with it at all.
Well, I got a new Elite model in December, and sent it in last week due to, yup, rrod. This was one of the 'new' motherboards and was sitting on a glass shelf totally open around it. Perhaps things are 'better', but the RRoD is not gone. I ended up buying a PS3 to tide me over till the 360 got back... man I can't wait to get it back. The PS3 controllers suck (I hated the PS2 for the same reason) and the online components are really needing polish. While I will continue to prefer the 360, I have to admit that the PS3 is nice and quiet, and the failures on the "new" hardware of the 360 is continuing to leave a bad taste in my mouth.
As a PS3 owner and soon to be 360 owner, I have to say I was quite impressed with what Microsoft had to say. They had a little something for everyone and getting Final Fantasy is going to hurt Sony quite a bit I think. FF hasn't really been my cup of tea for a few years, but it is/was really important to the PS3's continued success.
I wonder if this news will help the 360 do better in Japan, or have the Japanese just totally written the 360?
lol the 16x10 is something that will be more in the future... their future proofing
the fact that the old xbox guide will be available still will make the hardcore people happy especially if you can set the 360 to default to that and bypass the 3d interface... therefor making everyone happy
"· Play from hard drive. Copy your games from the game disc and play directly from the hard drive. Not only will the drive not spin, but load times are quicker, as well. Of course, you will still need the disc in the tray to prove you own the game."
HOLY CRAP! screw sony's installs per game, microsofts giving us OPTIONAL ability to install the ENTIRE GAME to the harddrives thats f*cking wicked, especially since the dvdrom is the loudest part of the system.
No, 16x10 is for people like me who play on their computer monitors.
I wonder if they'll sell larger HDDs if they are going to push all this new video and being able to load games to the HDD.
And, not being OBSCENELY overpriced like the prior upgrades.
And when you have 2 GB's of free space left after 4 game installs, you'll wonder why.
Nice.. At least Microsoft is making lives easier for the pirates.
Because there won't be any way to bypass what the DVD drive sends to the console.. nooooooo
Maybe I should have held off and got the 60gb instead of getting the 20gb. I sure wish I could just use an external HD
Sony better have something good since they got bit in the ass by Microsoft and SE. OH NOOOZZZZ FFXIII NOT EXCLUSIVE WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA >>>>FANBOY
Watch out iXtreme users...
Sony better have something good since they got bit in the ass by Microsoft and SE. OH NOOOZZZZ FFXIII NOT EXCLUSIVE WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA >>>>FANBOY
Gizmodo just confirmed ... FFXIIII will be launched SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH PS3 version, so sony doesnt even get a timed exclusive to it lol
You'll have to have the disc in your drive for piracy reasons, but it won't be spinning during game play, which means quieter gaming and quicker load times (and more 60GB sales, we thinks, how convenient)
This will be hacked within a matter of weeks, methinks.
The 360s security is pretty rock solid though. I'm not so sure.
Since any hack software or otherwise to get around the disc requirement would probably get your box banned from Xbox Live, why not go all out? Then you don't have to worry about the hack getting fixed through an update and you can do a lot more with the modified box.
Current DVD firmwares are stealth, so I dont think Microsoft can ban you anymore.
what about being able to use a USB hard drive for games and downloads, instead of the ridiculously expensive ms versions....
I think you just answered your own question there, man. Why would MS enable such a feature if it means selling less ridiculously overpriced hard drives?
I wish MS would re-organize their storefront so you can find things more easily. Breaking down titles the way the PS store does makes it super easy to find demos and add-ons for games I haven't bought yet (I know I'll eventually breakdown and pick up Rock Band for my 360 so I always grab the free tracks).
See, these features shouldn't have been in at the start. They're just nice. That's how you do an update.
Playback form the HD is cool, but why do i need to have the disk in the tray? Yes, i understand it's an anti-piracy measure, but if rip 5 games to my HD, i want to be able to load a different game without getting my lazy ass of the couch
Oh well, i guess faster load times is not bad.
Call me a cynic but the only reason Xbox games didn't install to the hard drive before was because MSFT wouldn't allow it since not all xbox's have hard drives (ahem... "core" and "arcade"). Many PS3 titles already extensively install to the hard drive. You can't install the whole thing at one time on many of these games only because the whole blu-ray disk can be 25GB or more. Case in point: MGS4, an extremely popular game, has extremely short load times besides the original 20 minute data copy and 5 minute data copies between maybe 5 major breaks in the game. It has a 4GB data imprint on your PS3 hard drive and, as I said before, extremely short load times.
So now they let you optionally install the game completely, which gets around the fact that many owners dont have hard drives. And it will probably improve load times somewhat. But still doesn't allow developers to program their game to require (and thus fully take advantage of) a hard drive, as the original Xbox and the PS3 do.
These updates seem welcome. They are expanding media options (which still all cost money... which means I'll still be using torrents... do they have XviD codec support yet?) and they're agknowleding their their "Blades" GUI was unprofessional and juvenile looking. Good work I suppose. In the mean time my 20GB hard drive isn't nearly large enough to really take advantage of this, and I'm not spending money on their outrageously overpriced alternatives. $180 for 120GB!? I can get a 120GB 2.5" 5400rpm hdd (which is what they use in their proprietary plastic ugly-shells/"caddies" for under $70 shipped!
Your a cynic (and I'm not just saying that to be funny)!
I can't help but feel that if the developers had tried to they could have fitted MGS4 onto a dvd if they were to be a little less lazy with data compression. All that blu-ray offers is the opportunity for developers to be lazy with data compression. Other developers should take a leaf out of Rockstar's book, they are the master at fitting stuff in.
This option isn't for the developers, as it really isn't needed for them anyway. It is purely for anyone at home that may want to use this feature.
Oh and to complain that you have to pay to watch movies/listen to music etc is just such a useless point that it is unbelievable. Fair enough if you want to complain that they are two expensive or that europe gets charged more for the privalige than the US, but to complain that there is a charge at all is quite frankly ridiculous!
There is nothing wrong with the current GUI (the blades), in fact I much prefer it to this new idea they have. I would also certainly say the new avatar is a lot more childish than the blades. The current GUI is so much better than the Wii and the PS3 options (I have all three machines in my house btw). The xbox is streets ahead in terms of it's GUI.
However, yes the larger hard drive is too expensive, they really need to open up and let us use an external hard drive.
"I can't help but feel that if the developers had tried to they could have fitted MGS4 onto a dvd if they were to be a little less lazy with data compression."
Wait, backup a second there...
The amount of data on the BD for MGS4 is pretty high, even compressed. There would be absolutly no way this game can fit on a standard DVD (5 or 9GB). If you listen to what Kojima said about the release, he did not want to a) release multiple discs, and b) release DLC related to continuing the story. He wanted the story to be told completely and in one easy disc.
Best read up on the comments made by the creator before you put your foot in your mouth.
and BD >>> DVD. The new "improvements" copy from others. Mii-like avatars, XMB-like dashboard, Home-like community. When M$ comes up with something original, please, let me know. Until then, I still don't see the justification in buying a console with a 33% failure rate. My money is more important than that. I buy a console to play and enjoy, not to sit around while its being shipped around the world.
Shadowmage, you do realize that most of the innovations of this gen of gaming consoles came from MS. The whole universal friend's list, a unified online sytem, in game voice chat, video chat. I mean I can go on and on.
Oh yeah I own PS3 and a 360. I have to say I love MGS4, I'm just pissed off with the fact that everytime I change an act it's gotta install again. You know how much of a pain this is when my bro is playing on a different act than I am.
Why has Microsoft invaded Engadget (nothing wrong, just funny).
Sign me up
I think a 60GB HDD is in my future. Damn you Microsoft for making me poor.
i wonder is this will help stop drives ending up dead, (open tray error)
which is why i sold my 360 and got a ps3
What about all the themes and gamer pics we've paid for.
What the fuck about them.
Doesn't everyone complain about the install times on the PS3... Isn't this the EXACT same thing???
Nope, this is entirely optional.
1680 X 1050 support (16:10) for my Samsung Monitor . . . about time!
I'm no longer on the fence about repurchasing a 360. This Christmas a Jasper 360 + VGA cable = the way the 360 should've been released.
make sure you buy the ms vga cable as the others have some ghosting problems (I only noticed it after I was switching between an hdmi to dvi cable and my mad catz vga cable, not before).
@ donkamero
so now the torrent files will come with a slim base on the disc and the juice on the hdd
piracy will always truimph
"Next up, Microsoft will let users make Xbox LIVE Marketplace purchases on the web, which are then automatically downloaded to your 360 for your enjoyment when you get home"
Wouldn't that only work if you leave your XBox on while you're away? Not something I would be quick to do, frankly.
I, too, am very excited about 16:10 support over VGA. Since I haul my computer monitor around for any LANing I do, I've gotten used to the squished aspect...But no more! Finally native 1440x900!
I didn't see it in the article, is this the fall update or is it coming sooner?
Finally my 22 inch monitor im playing on can be used in it full resolution glory. I was getting sick of the 16:9 images being streched out on my monitor. For all those games still playing on standard tvs : 1685*1050 "a near 1080p" montor $200. Thank you MS even though it took a few years.