Xbox 360 "S" News!

UPDATE: I have now obtained my own 360S and have included pictures. Picture links will be embedded within the original story and it has been cleaned up with some better information.

ORIGINAL: We had previously reported back on Monday about the unveiling of the Xbox 360 "slim" model. Officially this new Xbox is called the 360S. 360S is not nearly as fun as calling it the Slim. I will use the terms interchangeably throughout the story.

All the information in this story comes from research with the new Slim model. It also now includes my own photos.

Unboxing!

First, you may rejoice -- the Slim cannot get the Red Rings of Death. It will never happen! The console is immune to them! Microsoft actually made it physically impossible to get the 3 blinking red lights of doom. According to Joystiq the Slim is manufactured only with the green lights behind the ring. There are no red lights behind the on button.

Please note, as a public service announcement from this wonderful Trusted Source, I want you know that I am by no means making claims that the 360 "S" hardware cannot fail, I am stating that it is impossible to get the RROD. There is a difference, and the above paragraph was overly sarcastic. yes that sweet sweet sarcasm!

The light ring is smaller and dimmer than the original Xbox. It's more of a sexual glow now. There is also a sticker on the front of the 360S that warns you to not move the console while it is use. It will devour your discs as im sure many have found out with the current 360. You have been duly warned, but come on use common sense!


Speaking of the on button, it and the open disc tray button are now touch sensitive buttons. When you touched these buttons you will hear a little "chime" sound to confirm their activation. Slid your finger over it and the disc tray will pop out in the same familiar fashion we are used to (pictures in the external link).

The new 360S only provides the "chime" sound when you use the touch sensitive buttons. If you turn on the console with the controller, it provides no sound effect. There are two different sound effects, one of the on button and the other for the disc tray.

I did note that while the system is on, it is whisper quiet. I can confirm, it is indeed whisper quiet. In fact, it is as quiet as the PS3 (I have both). If I turned around I would not be able to tell if it was on or off. The re-design of its fan cooling has allowed for a quieter Xbox. No more angry neighbors for your loud gaming. The disc tray does make it's familiar jet take off, but if you install the game to your new 250 GB HDD, you can avoid that potential downfall.

As I mentioned, the new Slim model comes with a 250 GB HDD built in. That's right, they ditched the proprietary HDDs and just installed one into the console itself. The HDD can be removed from the console by removing a top plate, and pulling out the internal HDD, so it is possible to see further hardware price gouging when you'll need to upgrade. The huge concern is how do you get all your data into that new fangled system you just purchased! There are three methods.

1. Microsoft now sells at retailers the data transfer cable, that used to be bundled with new HDD purchases, for $20. If you have purchased a hard drive upgrade (like I have) and you kept your data transfer cable (like I did!) then you are fine. You can use the old data transfer cables to make the move of information.

2. You can do the USB stick method. Copy 8G portions of your HDD onto a USB stick and make the transfer in pieces. This could be time consuming, but it is a free way to accomplish your goals.

3. Recover your gamertag on your new Slim, transfer all the certificates to the Slim and re-download everything. Free, but time consuming.

Along with a built-in harddrive, the new Slim has built in wireless as well. The Slim has 802.11n Wi-Fi capabilities. Those are the fastest adapters out there.

The back of new Slim is completely redesigned as well (who would have guessed!). It contains five USB ports (three in back, two in front), a custom port for the Kinect (Note: The Kinect requires a power source if you use it on the older Xbox models. This custom port also acts as a power supply for the Kinect), optical audio, A/V, built-in HDMI, and ethernet port. Joystiq notes that their Slim came only bundled with the same A/V cables the current models are bundled with, that means you'll need to purchase an HDMI cable separate.

The most striking change is from the white colored 360s to now the glossy black (which is standard). The air vents on this glossy, and sexy, machine are placed both on the side and bottom of the console to allow optimal air flow. This design choice is prevent overheating if you prefer to have your console vertical. The breathing holes also allow you to see some of the internals of the 360. It is a similar fashion the PC users like to include a side panel window to show of its guts, the slim also allows a bit of a glimpse at its internals too.

The Slim is 17% smaller than its predecessor. The original 360 is 310mm(W) x 80mm(H) x 260mm(D), while the Slim is 270mm(W) x 75mm(H) x 264mm(D). The new Slim is also lighter (2.9 kg) than the previous 360 (3.5 kg).

There is an IR port, so those with remote controllers are not forgotten! Rejoice! The IR sensor is between the touch sensitive on button and the door for the front USB ports. It blends in so well, I thought they had forgotten it.

Oh yes! I almost forgot! The power brick! It is similar to the same behemoth you use right now. It is no longer ribbed and slightly smaller than the power brick you are currently employing. The new power brick will only consume 1W of power rather than 2W while in stand-by mode, Al Gore would be so overjoyed with this news!

The new Xbox also includes the new updated headset for Live usage. The new 360S also includes a digital copy of Hexic HD.

A final note -- all previous wireless hardware (controllers, guitars, etc) will be compatible with the new model. I can confirm this as well.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the thread.

Pictures!





The new Xbox 360 "slim" should be hitting stores by the end of this week and will retail at the same price as an Elite console ($299), and in stores in the UK July 16th.

Note: It is still possible to get errors on the Xbox 360S

It may be immune to the red lights, but its not immune to hardware failure!