Review by paradiselost:

First of all, I’m a PS3 owner and have been nearly since it’s launch. I really love the PS3 and think it’s a great system. I had considered buying a 360 many times but kept passing over it after hearing of all the problems it had and just figured I didn’t want to deal with the chances. Well after seeing this bundle with the new price cut and finding out this bundle is definitely the latest “Jasper” version I went ahead and purchased it. The two included games aren’t exactly *amazing* but they’re still pretty good and it’s definitely a good deal to get both of them included for no added cost.

So far I’ve noticed the system does seem to run a good bit cooler than my brothers original launch model 360. I’m also really enjoy the new menu system for the 360. Or maybe I should say newer, I’m not sure when it came out, but I prefer it over the older “tabbed” style menu previously used. Overall I believe now is a great time to grab a 360. Since it has been out longer than the PS3 you do have access to more titles and more titles that are cheap. Some of the systems best games can easily be picked up for .99 now. The ability to use Netflix on the system is also really amazing. The menu system and the integration to the Xbox menu is top notch, it definitely doesn’t feel like an after thought.

Thus far my only gripe with the system is how Microsoft uses it’s point system for purchasing items. I much prefer just buying a game for say .99 from the Playstation Network than more or less being forced to buy considerably more points than you need to be able to grab one game. For example, you want to purchase a game that’s 1200 points, guess what the smallest you can add is 1000 so you’re then forced to jump up to 4000 points (which I believe equals twenty dollars) to be able to get the game. You’re then left with odd point amounts and it’s really just a pain! It seems pretty deliberate to grab more money out of consumers.

Review by Jason:

I bought the 360 when it came out (stood in a long line and waited and waited to get it).

I’m likely one of the few who never had a problem with his 360 (doesn’t mean I wasn’t paranoid), but I never had a problem. I sold my launch console to grab the HDMI version (the falcon) and still wasn’t that happy with it.

It was hot, made lots of sound, and I was always paranoid thinking (this might be the last game I ever get to play, better rush it).

It got so bad I started buying multi platform games for the ps3 (even though back then the ps3 version was inferior to the 360). Only using the 360 for netflix and forza.

That all changed when M$ came out with this model. It fixes everything.

No sound, (with this large harddrive, be sure to install all your games just to be “extra safe” my cousin’s dvd drive has died twice (2 different consoles), and because of this I always recommend getting the bigger harddrive and installing (now that I have this elite, it’s not a problem).

This guy is quite, does not make the temperature rise in the house, and most important, I can just sit back and play xbox now without the worry and fear that previous consumed me.

I will discuss xbox vs ps3 at the end before my final recommendation.

Pros:

Xbox 360 Elite Holiday – Comes with 2 games (both can be throwaways I did not buy this for those games and never played them, but hey, they are 2 games you get for free).

Black Console (looks better in my room, black tv, black ps3, black tv stand, black speakers, black controller, may as well have a black console (got rid of my wii)).

Big Harddrive (you can go crazy on the marketplace, downloading demos, getting xbl games, and installing the games you get from amazon to HD and ensure they don’t get scratched or spin like crazy making your room hotter (and the box get loud).

Quite (is this thing on?!) No sound, no loud as all fan, just quite, not even near as hot fun 360 gaming.

Cons:

My heat bill may go up this year. Usually I just turn on my 360 and play call of duty, 30 minutes later you can take off your eskimo gear and put on your swimming trunks (even in 0 degree temperature) and still be hot. NOT SO with the new elite ;( Now when I play the temperature doesn’t change! So if you use this instead of buying a heater for your house, buy an older model off the amazon marketplace.

Still no built in wifi (really?)

Comes with stand AV cables (you know, the ones that come with the ARCADE!)

Comes with 2 games you could care less about (last year’s bundle wasn’t much better either).

Xbox 360 VS PS3 (if you can choose only 1)

Xbox 360 PROs

Better Multi Platform Games

Most of the time better graphics (except for first part ps3 exclusives)

Better live interface (the xbox dashboard being far superior to the ps3 dashboard)

Better Remote (Half True) It’s IR (which stinks as you have to be in line of sight) but the lights glow in the dark (you win some you loose some).

360 charge and play kit beats the free usb cable you get with the ps3 (it’s just so small!)

Xbox 360 Cons

Not as good of an exclusive lineup of games (let’s be honest)

Hardware failure rate (that I’m about 90% sure this model fixes)

You have to pay to go online.

You have to pay for everything with the 360 (they pull you in with the “low” price, and then make you pay pay pay. Want to play online? 50 a year, want wifi? 100, want HDMI cable, gimmie 60 and so on and so on (I would bring up the HD-DVD player, but that would be cruel, and yes I did buy that the day it came out!)

PS3 Pros

Better exclusive games (to be honest, the 360 has far more games, but the ps3 exclusives are generally very good and anyone who enjoys games should play them).

Cheaper (you may say they cost the same, but when you factor in what I wrote above (wifi, charge kit, xbox live service, and more) it does get up there (making it the most expensive).

Blu-ray

Built in wifi, no need in buying a battery kit or a plug n play kit

Online is free

Netflix works without having to pay anything (other than your netflix fee) opposed to having to be a “gold” member like you do on xbox.

PS3 Cons

Lackluster multi platform support (on older games, not really the case now)

Not as many games

Bottomline? A 360 you can actually play, buy it and use and be safe in knowing that (it could!) last you a good 5 years or more. Something unheard of previously

Review by Evan:

By the title, I mean no offense to other reviewers, but when I was looking to purchase a new console, there was several questions not answered in the reviews. So, hopefully this can help someone, maybe a parent looking to buy for their child, a new console.

You can glance at my reviews and see that I’m completely lost in the last generation. I’ve held onto my PS2 like it was my security blanket. I’m not completely impressed with the current generation consoles trying to sell me on things that have no interest to me. I don’t care about a DVD player of any kind. Blu-Ray, HD, phooey, I’m here for the games. Don’t care about the online games. I go back to the Sega Dreamcast era of online console gaming. I remember the countless hours spent on dial-up access playing Phantasy Star Online. Of course, we dealt with the Gameshark modders that made weapons ten times better than any of us had found in the game, players who PK’d each other and stole your rare items. So, I have no interest, now in my 30s, to re-visit that frustration again.

I do however like the idea of downloadable content, especially the expansion pack type downloads, like with Grand Theft Auto IV. But, that’s not of my concern for now. Once I saw the price drop below 200, I figured it was time to grab one of these and try it out for myself. The Red of Ring of Death isn’t so much a concern to me either. I went through 6 Sega Dreamcasts and 4 PS2s. It isn’t like this is the first console to have some problems.

Ok, I ordered this, this past week. The console I received has the Jasper in it. For those not in the know, not that I am really, it is just a codename for the chipset. Jasper currently is the newest one and is supposed to be more efficient and less likely to have technical problems.

I was happy to see that Microsoft includes a wireless controller with this budget model. I don’t care about buying batteries. I was already doing that for the PS2 third party Logitech controller. No big deal. They do have a battery pack that can be charged that I will look into in a month or so, but just pop 2 AA batteries (2 Energizers included) in and start playing.

My biggest question was about the hard drive/memory cards. I actually went to a local well-known video game store that has the word stop in it. The guy absolutely baffled me. He was too busy trying to explain to me that the 360 has x amount of failure rate and blah-blah-blah. You must be kidding me? I tried an electronics store, but the lady working pretty much told me that she knew very little about the 360, but could sell me an HDTV to hook it up to.

I finally just bought the console without any understanding of the hard drive/memory card. So, now, I’m going to put it plain English, because I know there is some parent out there that is pulling their hair out trying to wade through the PS3/360 arguments to find out about the hard drive.

This model of the 360 on this very page has 512 internal memory in it. If you’re familiar with the last generation Xbox. This one is similar to it in terms of memory being built in. If not, all it means is that there is pretty much a memory card installed in this console. You don’t get all 512 MB though, memory may not be serving me perfectly here, but it was in the 320 MB free range. I guess they’ve installed something on the rest of it.

To give you an idea of how much memory that is, I only bought one game for now, GTA IV. It has taken up 1 MB. I’m sure other games are much higher, believe someone said the Forza racing game is around 40 MB. But, that is still not knocking a dent in 320. Mainly what I’m saying, I’ll get a hard drive eventually, but you don’t have to have one to get started. Also, when you do go to look for a HDD, check out that well-known auction site. I’ve seen them selling for 60 for 120 GB. But no, you don’t have to have one to get started.

If your intentions are to play online, then it would be recommended to get a hard drive ASAP. I usually play 1-2 games at a time. No rush to beat them, and enjoy them fully, so a hard drive is only needed in my case to get the downloadable content.

The power cord with this particular model uses only 150 watts, which I believe is 30-50 watts less than past versions of the 360. It comes with the basic A/V cables too. No HDMI, but if you’re like me, you’re not playing games on a HDTV, so who cares about the HDMI?

If you get the feeling that I feel pushed into this current generation of games, you’re right! I can only play God of War so many times. And not to worry immature ones, I have one of those slim PS3s pre-ordered, so this is hardly a biased review.

My thoughts so far on this console. I was shocked at how good the graphics are. I really didn’t think there was a big difference between last generation and the current generation, but I can see now that there is. One of my neighbors brought over the NCAA 10, and the difference between it and my PS2 NCAA 10 is like night and day. I’m one of the strange ones that prefers the 360 controller. I have big hands, it fits well, and I like the layout of their analog controllers better than the Sony controllers, though I guess is isn’t a big difference. The controller is nice though. Hardly no noise level and no heating up. So, so far, the Jasper must be doing its job. Overall, I’m very pleased with it and at least feel positive about this generation of consoles, as can be seen by pre-ordering the PS3 slim.

I just wish Sony and Microsoft would stop worrying about everything beyond games. We’ve got a Blu-Ray DVD player, three computers that are used on the internet. Just focus on those games! Hopefully this review will help those like me that can’t wade through the arguments, and helps someone out there.

Review by Stanton M. Daries:

::EDIT; Even though this is still recorded for me as the version I purchased, and it has the “Newest” sticker, the descriptor no longer includes the 512MB line on it. I don’t know if this means Amazon is recycling the older units in now for this order set, if they are doing that then that means my review cannot be relied upon and you may end up with a older chip. If they stick that 512MB label back on though then you are good to go.::

***

I am not going to go into the merits of a 360 ownership on this review. Rather this is geared for the gamer who has a orphaned HDD at home looking for a new 360 to be connected to, but they are afraid until they know they are going to get a Jasper.

After my fourth 360 died, this time out of warranty, I promised myself that I would never buy another one again while glaring hatefully at the number of games coming out in the next few months.

Friends had mentioned the mythical Jasper chip to me but due to the sentiment being that you are pretty much having a crap shoot on whether you would get one or not, no matter what SKU you ordered, I sat quietly and pined for a new form of entertainment.

Then I saw this product and knew everything would be safe for me to purchase it. Despite what some others are saying the 360 Arcade 512 MB version is always going to be a Jasper. Previous models had a smaller internal memory and you are stuck hoping that the model in the box was made after the Jasper date. With a 512 MB you are always getting a Jasper as that is what they are built with, there is no backlog.

One note , something that caused me to cry out in my office in fear as I opened the brown Amazon shipping box, is that the actual 360 packaging still says 256 MB on it. I am pretty sure I need to invoice them for a gray hair on that one.

Sure enough the inside held a lovely 512 MB unit. After a few days it seems to be working fine, of course my last one worked fine until a month out of warranty so who knows.

I am sticking with 4 stars on my review though as even though I love my 360 and the entertainment it has brought me, and even though all 5 consoles combined are still cheaper than any gaming PC I would of built, this is still my FIFTH 360.

I honestly question my sanity in buying this one and can’t help but have a small twinge of fear every time I go to power it on that it will glare back at me with a red eye.

Review by J. Gable:

To start off, I’d like to say that XBox Live is amazing and worth every penny. Online gaming is incredibly fun and a quite good way to pass time.

That aside, there are downsides to XBox Live that can be avoided through prepaid cards. Number one, you always run the risk that unwarranted transactions will be made if your credit card information is stored on your XBox 360 system. It may not happen all that often, but it’s best to avoid it all together.

The biggest reason to buy prepaid Xbox Live card is the renewal process that happens when you don’t use one. If you order XBox Live through your system, it’ll renew everytime your subscription runs out. This wouldn’t be a problem except that it’s not that easy to cancel. Instead of cancelling through your system, you have to go through the hassle of actually calling XBox Live support. Even then, depending on the representative you get, you may be hassled to keep your subscription because they really don’t want you to cancel it. I’m guessing that’s part of their job to convince you to keep it, but it still is frustrating to the person that is trying to cancel it.

You’ll have to go through this process everytime you want to cancel if you don’t use a prepaid card. Is that hassle really worth it? I don’t think so. Therefore, avoid all of the problems by simply buying a prepaid card. You won’t be sorry.

Review by S. taylor:

From what I can find this is the cheapest cost per month option available for a live gold subscription. .3325 per month. What I don’t get is why this credit card sized subscription card comes in such wasteful packaging. It comes in a rather large plastic packaging, which requires it to be shipped in a box. You get free shipping, but how wasteful. Why doesn’t amazon just offer the code online and not eat the cost of shipping and at the same time be a little greener?

Review by J. Fabisch:

360 is in the basement, router is on the 2nd floor. My main reason for upgrading was because while watching streaming netflix movies, it would stop and downgrade the quality to keep up with the streaming movie. This doesn’t happen on my pc or when I moved the 360 one floor closer to the router.

The package comes with an instruction manual, installation cd and the adapter. The CD sleeve tells you to put it in first before connecting the adapter. I put it into my 360 and it just stared at me. Probably because I had already downloaded the latest 360 update through Live. The instructions were not clear on this but I feel it is for people that have never updated their 360 and need the WPA2 configuration installed to run wireless n. To clarify, to use wireless N you must use WPA or WPA2. You cannot use WEP encryption. If you do not change it on your router configuration, this adapter will run in ABG only. NOT N. You must also have a wireless N compatible router to run at wireless n speeds (duh).

I already had the older MS ABG adapter wirelessly connected to my 360 and linked to my router, so I just shut it down, unplugged the usb cable and plugged this one in instead. Rebooted and ran “test connection” and it kept the old configuration memory of the connection settings (MAC and ip addresses, passwords, WPA2, etc), except it connected full “4 bars” strong and stated the connection type was n instead of g. I checked this on the router as well through my pc. Connection speeds had varied from 28 to 54 mb/s but now jumped to 52 to 108 mb/s. Tested the unit thoroughly with MW2. No hiccups in voice or connection problems with server during multiplayer or spec ops. Also tested netflix streaming. No problems here either. Watched a full movie with no recalibration/interuption. This has never happened before even on a good day.

The adapter comes with little fold out feet on the bottom so you can stand it remotely if you buy a usb extension cable. Very handy feature if your 360 is buried in an entertainment rack.

Offnote complaint: Router is DLink DGL4500 GamerLounge ABGN, non-firmware updated (which has been known to cause problems). People have complained that this router is not simultaneous dual band. I was on xbox live playing a game in wireless n and using my iphone (wireless g only) to look up info on the net at the same time. I believe the “simultaneous” complaint refers to wireless n devices not being able to see wireless g devices on the same server. Does not affect my configuration.

Conclusion:

Does everyone need this? No. But if you don’t want or can’t run cable through your house and want the fastest connection speed possible, this is a great trouble free solution. When choosing between the older version and the newer one, the price differences between the two MS supplied adapters is minimal enough that this should be your purchase choice unless you NEVER plan to upgrade past g or your 360 is pretty much in line of site of your router.

I do not work for MS, own a PS3, have red ringed my 360, and still recommend this product.

Pro’s: speed, pain free installation, speed, remotely locatable, speed, 2 antennae, did I mention speed???

Con’s: clamshell packing, price, vague installation instructions, fragile antennae only pivot left/right, not forward/back or rotateable, same with old one. But since it can be located remotely, not really an issue.

GT: Jinx32

Review by Michael Baran:

Can’t route Cat-5 cable? This latest A/B/G & N Wireless Adapter, from Microsoft, is the next best bet. Emphasis on the “N.”

Do you use the Apple Airport Express or the Apple Airport Extreme as your router? No worries, there are no compatibility issues; nor are there any NAT issues that interrupt game play, an issue that plagues certain routers on the market.

If you do not have an 802.11n capable router, but can spare the extra money, spring for this latest A/B/G & N wireless adapter. The Xbox 360 wireless adapter conforms to all four current wireless network standards and will work with any devices that support such.

Concerned about the color of the adapter not matching the color of your console? Regardless of how you display your console, horizontally or vertically, the adapter (if plugged into the rear of your console) is hidden and all that is visible are the grey antennae.

This newest adapter shares the same, almost plug-and-play, installation as the previous A/B/G generation wireless adapter. Simply plug the adapter into the back of your console and power the console on. If you are not already online, navigate to the system area of the Dashboard. Within the system area, enter in your network settings, test the settings, then log into Xbox Live and you are ready to go.

I was able to tell the difference in speed immediately, even when testing the Xbox Live connection in the network settings. Gone are the issues with streaming, and Netflix looks amazing in high definition. And most importantly, I am gaming multi-player lag free!

Things to consider: If you use wireless controllers with your system, you may get better performance using the 5-GHz band for your network connection, since the wireless controllers operate in the 2.4-GHz band. This also holds true with other common household devices such as cordless telephones and microwave ovens. Also, your 802.11n network only operates as fast as your slowest connected device. Therefore, if you want best performance it is suggested to switch to 5-GHz 802.11n only when gaming. Or, better, have a dual-band router dedicating feeds to the appropriate devices.

Review by M. Levesque:

I bought this refurbished item just over a year ago, and it is still working perfectly. I have since begun to use it more and more, and it has not given me any problems or issues whatsoever. I would reccomend the refurbished product to anyone trying to get into an xbox and not needing more than a 20g harddrive. If you feel that you would need more storage space, the amount of memory would be the only thing holding someone back from being on this system 24/7. The item came with everything listed, reliable purchase, I’m very glad with my purchase.

Review by DaOtter:

Even though this is a refurbished unit, I haven’t seen any problems with it in the first week. I am glad I bought it via Amazon where I could get a certified refurb, though, rather than taking my chances on a cheaper Ebay model or something. These units do have a bad reputation, and the warranty is just more peace of mind on my part.

Review by William Daniels III:

Whenever anyone comes over to play, this is perfect. Give him the pink controller, and don’t let him forget who’s in charge.

Review by Lisa Shea:

If you’ve got an XBox 360, you really need to get your hand on one or two wireless controllers. These controllers are GREAT for keeping your gaming area free of clutter. To start with, the controller is much smaller than the standard XBox controller was.

For control items, you start with the standard blue X, yellow Y, red B and green A buttons. There are two thumbsticks, one on the upper left and one in the center right. There is also a directional (d-pad) in the lower left.

Next, you have a pair of shoulder buttons at the “top” of the unit, up above the other buttons. You also have a pair of triggers below those shoulder buttons.

Finally, you have a center X button that can be used to turn the console on and off, plus a “start” and “back” tiny white buttons on either side of it.

The unit has a rechargeable battery unit inside it, the size of two AA batteries. You have to buy a recharger set SEPARATELY that lets you charge up while you play. In essence you plug the charger into the back of the controller – and the other end into the USB port in the front of the XBox 360 unit. So you play with the controller “wired” as it charges up. When it’s fully charged again, you just pop off the wire and keep playing.

The range of the wireless unit is 30′, which is probably much further than anybody is really going to even try playing a game at. The wireless is much easier on your hand – no cable holding you down – plus it’s a great help in keeping your gaming area organized. You can easily pass the controller from person to person, and visitors can come and go without tripping over wires.

The documentation says you can get 40 hours of gameplay between charges, but if you have features such as vibration on, that sucks the time down to maybe 8-10 hours. It’s up to you of course – I personally like having vibration on because it is often important for gameplay to get those warning signals.

Still, even if I have to plug the cables in every 10 hours or so to give it a juice boost, I still love wireless!! Highly recommended.