RedRingOfDoom
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Xbox 360 warranty extended to three years
In a monumental move for Xbox 360 owners everywhere, Microsoft has expanded its warranty coverage to three years, and will take a $1.05 billion to $1.15 billion charge to earnings for anticipated repair costs on the malfunctioning consoles. The company had previously extended the 90 day warranty to one year, but this move comes with a clear acknowledgment of the persistent problems with many of its systems (specifically the red ring of death), and an offer to reimburse users who have already paid for repairs to their consoles. It would appear that this development signals Remond's concession that these problems are not "routine" (a stance it has been lacking as of late), and happily demonstrates that they will do more than just add a few heatsinks to the troubled console. With the recent news that the Xbox 360 has a reported 33 percent failure rate, this should be welcome relief for literally scores of gamers.Update - read the official statement from Microsoft here, and listen to this interview with Peter Moore on the decision.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Towel wrap curing Xbox 360 red ring of doom? Nah, not really.
Red ring of doom? Wrap that sucker in towel (actually, don't). Several Xbox 360 owners have reported that the simple practice of wrapping their broken consoles (displaying the 'red ring of doom,' a.k.a. 'red ring of death') in cotton towels, and then running the systems for 10 minutes, restored the units to working order (at least for a few hours). The consoles would work again, if and when the "trick" was repeated.What sounds like urban myth, might actually be steeped in truth. Wrapping a 360 in a towel may mimic the affects of the heat gun fix. That is, apparently the red ring of doom is frequently an indication of a faulty ball grid array (BGA), used to solder the GPU chip. The towel wrap holds in the console's excess heat, likely melting the BGA and re-establishing a temporary connection between the GPU and circuit board. Of course, the heat will also damage numerous plastic parts within the console. Not recommended.[Via Engadget]
