Xbox 360

Measuring 10.6 by 10.4 by 2.9 inches (HWD) and weighing 6 pounds, the new Xbox 360 is noticeably smaller than the 12-by-10-by-3-inch, 7.7-pound Xbox 360 Elite. Microsoft was able to reduce the system's size almost 17 percent by combining the CPU and GPU onto one chipset, and moving the swappable 250GB hard drive to the interior of the unit. The matte casing that has been associated with previous Xbox 360 consoles is no more; in its place is a glossy, piano-black enclosure that's very easy on the eyes. That is, until you touch it—the new Xbox is a fingerprint (and dust) magnet. The power brick is smaller too; it's about half as thick as those from older Xbox 360 consoles.

The primary fan and air vent that once wicked heat away through the back of the system now resides on the top of the console as a trapezoid-shaped grill. The fan is a bit quieter this time around, and the system is near-silent (except for when a disc is spinning inside). And vents along the left and right sides of the system manage to keep the console relatively cool. After playing UFC Undisputed 2010 for an hour on the new Xbox 360, the console maintained a cool 75 degrees, except in the vent areas where the escaping hot air pushed temperatures over 100 degrees. It remains to be seen if this new cooling setup helps prevent, or lowers the rate of overheating and system failure.

The Power button looks the same as on previous Xboxes, expect that it no longer flashes the infamous "red ring of death." This isn't because Microsoft has solved the problem; the red LED has simply been removed. The disc-eject button now resides to the upper left; previously it was to the immediate left, and designed to appear as part of the system tray itself. The new button is overly sensitive; I accidentally ejected the tray several times when repositioning the console on a desk, or lightly dusting it. The USB 2.0 port chamber that was previously aligned vertically, to the right of the power button, is now horizontal, which makes it a bit easier to attach USB devices as you no longer have to stack the connectors.

The rear panel reveals three more USB 2.0 ports, HDMI, S/PDIF, and composite A/V ports, an input for the power supply, and a single custom auxiliary jack that will let you hook up the camera for the forthcoming Kinect motion-based controller. Microsoft has also added an internal 802.11n Wi-Fi radio, so you no longer have to shell out for a wireless adapter to get your Xbox connected to your network wirelessly.

In the box you'll find a headset (for smack-talking on Xbox Live), composite cables, and one wireless controller loaded with rechargeable AA batteries. It doesn't feel quite as solid as the previous controller, but we were able to play without issue. You'll have to supply your own HDMI cable.

Source: WWW.EXTREMETECH.COM