Microsoft Xbox 360 Halo 3 Special Edition - 20 GB Spartan green and gold

The Xbox 360 is all about High Definition (HD). All games designed for the Xbox360 are required to be developed for 720p and 1080i resolutions. They are also optimized for 16:9 widescreen formatted displays. This doesn’t mean that you absolutely need an HDTV to run the Xbox 360, although your games and multimedia will look far better if you do have one.
Picture 022 (Small).jpg The Xbox 360 has a detachable 20GB hard drive component placed on top of the console. You don’t need the hard drive to play Xbox 360 games but you won’t be able to save content onto your console without one. You also won’t be able to play legacy Xbox games on the 360 console without the hard drive since software emulators need to be downloaded to support the legacy games.

The console has three USB ports designed to allow you to easily connect a wide range of accessories and devices including portable music players. This currently includes the Apple iPod and the Sony PSP – at least until either company decides to not make the devices compatible with the 360. What this means is – you can stream music and photos from these portable devices directly to your 360 via the USB port.

The flavors of Xbox 360

Initially, the Xbox 360 will come in two different packages - the Xbox 360 and the Xbox 360 Core System. The Core system is exactly that – what you need at a bare minimum to enjoy the Xbox 360 console (or so they say!). This includes:
# Console
# Wired Controller
# Composite AV Cable

The Xbox 360 package (otherwise known as the Premium package by some) comes with:
# Console with Chrome Finish
# Hard Drive
# Wireless Controller
# Xbox Live headset
# Component HD AV Cable
# Ethernet Cable

Initially, the Xbox 360 package will also include a media remote control which is ok at best but not the ideal solution for a full blown home theater setup.

Which package should you purchase? If you do the math on the costs of the extra components, the Xbox360 package is the clear winner. If you even want to even consider playing any of the original Xbox games, you’ll need the hard drive which means you might as well go for the Xbox 360 package. I could see the core system being an option if you want a second or third 360 system at home for networked environments or for streaming content from one room to another. More on this later on.

A look at the 360
We’ll focus the rest of the review on the Xbox 360 package. It’s important to note that the package reviewed here was actually purchased at the Zero Hour event. These packages included a media remote control which is available for only a limited time apparently. #

Setting up the Xbox 360
The Xbox360 setup is very straight forward although the documentation is unfortunately skimpy. If you’re familiar with electronics then installing the 360 will be a cinch otherwise it might take you some time.

Installing the 360 involves the following steps:
# Connect the AV cable from the Xbox 360 to your television set or to your A/V receiver
# Connect the Ethernet cable to the Xbox 360
# Connect the power supply to the Xbox 360
# Press power and off you go

There are a couple of things to note. If you have an HDTV, you’ll need to flip a switch on the AV cable that switches the display ratio format from 4:3 to 16:9 otherwise you’ll only see 4:3 ratios on your widescreen display. This seems a bit old school but OK.
Overall Rating- 10 out of 10