New Xbox Info

Rob Babcock · « **on:** 4 Feb 2004, 09:23 pm »

I just found this link to some news on the new Xbox: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=4264615

There's some interesting stuff (eg. 3 X 64 bit processors!

) but some potentially bad news, too. The article implies that the new 'Box 2 may not have a hard drive nor be backward compatible with current gen games. That would suck the big one on both counts- part of the reason the P2 caught on like wildfire was that you could play your Playstation games on it while you were waiting for a good selection of P2 games to come out.

I would like to take a peek "under the hood" of the new machine, tho.

bubba966 · « **Reply #1 on:** 4 Feb 2004, 09:45 pm »

It says it might not SHIP with a HD. That doesn't mean it won't be an option. The P2 still doesn't ship with a HD here, right? But you can still get a HD for a P2.

I still don't get what's the big deal about backwards compatibility with consoles? If you've got the older systems games, then you've got the older system.

But I can see it being advantageous w/handhelds. The GB line is a good example. You certainly wouldn't want to carry around 3 different GB's (original, color, advance) just so that you could play any GB game you felt like.

Carlman · « **Reply #2 on:** 4 Feb 2004, 10:21 pm »

If I bought a new XBOX to replace my current XBOX and then found out I couldn't play any of my old games, that would definitely make me NOT buy a new XBOX. More stupidity from MS... I expect no less.

bob82274 · « **Reply #3 on:** 5 Feb 2004, 12:53 am »

Ok... HD is speculative at this point. My guess is that they will make it an add-on. The were/are losing money like crazy on every X-Box they sell. Get rid of the HD in the base model and lower your losses.

Now the no backwards compatability part though is most likley true. The first problem is that they went with PowerPC based chips instead of x86. Basically they switched it to be a Mac instead of an Intel machine. Now you can get around this with emulation software. Things will run slower but with the greatly inhanced processing power you can over come this. The real problem is that they went with ATI graphics instead of NVidia. Proper emulation here is near technically impossible. But an even larger road block is that Microsoft and NVidia have had a nasty falling out over the cost of the chips NVidia has supplied for X-Box. So even if there was something that could emulate the old games it wouldn't matter because of political reasons

TheeeChosenOne · « **Reply #4 on:** 5 Feb 2004, 12:57 am »

Quote from: Carlman

If I bought a new XBOX to replace my current XBOX and then found out I couldn't play any of my old games, that would definitely make me NOT buy a new XBOX. More stupidity from MS... I expect no less.

^^

Rob Babcock · « **Reply #5 on:** 5 Feb 2004, 01:07 am »

I picked up on the "ship with" part, but if it's an add-on they may as well not bother. I can't think of any add on in console history that was ever an unqualified success. Honestly, how many HD's did Sony sell for P2? I've never even seen one, nor met anyone who claims to have one. Hell, I didn't even know you could get one in the US. The modem thingie for P2 may sell okay, but the new machines have the modem bundled.

The HD was a huge improvement/innovation; it rocks not having to frell with those stupid memory cards @ $30 a pop. And it kicks ass to be able to rip your own soundtrack music for Xbox games. Still, if you can add your own HD it wouldn't be a disaster, but I wonder if you'd have to crack the case or whether you'd have to use a specific (and more expensive) special HD module. It'd be nice if any off the shelf HD would work, but who knows how they'll do it.

I think backward compatibility is huge. I may not have bought my P2 if it wasn't, or at least I'd have waited. The problem is, machines wear out & get broken. And they get smaller and cheaper as time goes on. I sure as hell didn't want to buy a new 1st Gen PSX, and to this day I play about 50/50 original vs P2 games. Unless you've got a lot more room in your gear rack, who wants all those consoles laying around? And I don't know about you, but I've barely got enough inputs on my HT receiver for the consoles I've already got- I sure won't be able to hook up much else.

At this point I'm more interested in what Sony will come up with for the P3. Hopefully they'll leave the good stuff intact (eg. controller, some degree of backward compatibility, standard TOSLINK output, DVD) and add the stuff they shoulda had from the beginning (HD, cable modem, 4 front controller ports). While they're at it, making it 17" wide and shaped like a regular component would be nice, too.

MaxCast · « **Reply #6 on:** 5 Feb 2004, 12:38 pm »

Do they make wireless controllers?

Rob says they are making it 17" wide...I always wondered why they weren't more like a componet that could sit in the rack and one would just have 2-4 wireless controllers to keep track of. Maybe put a locator "beeper" on the main unit

mcrespo71 · « **Reply #7 on:** 5 Feb 2004, 04:32 pm »

If it's not backward compatible, I will buy a PS3. I love Xbox Live, but not having backwards compatible is just dumb! I want to get rid of my Xbox to make room for the new one on my rack. They better put better DVD drives in the next Xbox

I've been having major problems with my Xbox getting dirty disc errors and I've read it's because I have the craptacular Thomson DVD drive

10,000 Maniacs- In my Tribe

Rob Babcock · « **Reply #8 on:** 6 Feb 2004, 03:15 am »

I'm afraid not, Maxcast. I was just wishing aloud that they would make it 17" wide. Not that they won't, I just haven't heard anything along those lines.

Hopefully they won't axe all the things that make the 'box great.

Woodsea · « **Reply #9 on:** 16 Feb 2004, 04:46 am »

I modded my box because my dvd player crapped out, after countless dirty disc errors, I might add.
I will buy whatever is the best when the xbox2 comes out. Just as I did when the PS2 came out, which I passed on for the X.
Bill does not like to lose. It will be backwards compatible and have a harddrive. With drivers they should be able to run old games on completely different hardware that runs leagues ahead of the old architecture.
Just my humble opinion.

bubba966 · « **Reply #10 on:** 16 Feb 2004, 06:48 am »

Quote from: Woodsea

Bill does not like to lose. It will be backwards compatible and have a harddrive.

I think that's exactly why it won't ship with a HD, because Bill doesn't like to lose.

I'd bet that they've done a bunch of research as to what percentage of the HD is actually used by most gamers. And I'd also bet you good money that most people hardly use any of the HD's capacity. So they could reduce the production cost a good bit by shipping it w/out a HD and using flash memoryfor the save game info. Then have a HD as an add-on for online downloads & whatever else people use the HD for beyond the minimal save game info.

I would only need a HD for online downloads. And I could care less about it being backwards compatible. But that's me.

I'd guess that most people would need it to be backwards compatible, but wouldn't have a use for the HD.

I guess only time will tell...

Woodsea · « **Reply #11 on:** 16 Feb 2004, 02:27 pm »

Brian,
This is why there should be a harddrive-
``I would really like to see a hard disk drive in the box,'' said Tim Sweeney, chief executive officer of Epic Games in Raleigh, N.C., who has made his opinions known to Microsoft. ``For a console to really have a useful online component, it has to have the hard drive to store downloaded maps and other data.''

It should be able to add an external harddrive. At the very least

Woodsea · « **Reply #12 on:** 5 Mar 2004, 11:45 am »

Things maybe not as bleak as they appear, no matter what the outcome may be concering storage.
Read here http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/03/04/news_6090737.html

Bemopti123 · « **Reply #13 on:** 5 Apr 2004, 06:21 pm »

How much and how hard is it to replace this supposedly bad DVD drive of the Xbox? When should I expect it to die out?