Posts with tag 120 gb
Save some cash, use your own 120GB HDD
The hard drive prophecy has come true. Xbox-Scene is reporting that the new version of HDDHackr has been released allowing the use of an unlicensed 120GB hard drive for your 360 storage. The HDDHackr program uses the newly found 120GB signature and will allow anyone to use a specific 120GB WD HDD for their 360 storage saving roughly $100 over Microsoft's official Xbox 360 120GB HDD. Though, you'll need to be somewhat familiar with hacking programs and PC hardware setup to get the drive up and running. But, if that's your thing, you can save big bucks and up your Xbox 360 hard drive capacity to 120GB the l33t way. So, is anyone up for the challenge?
120GB 360 HDD worth only $100
Perhaps you've heard of the brand new, super fancy Xbox 360 Elite. You know, it's black, has HDMI and a 120GB hard drive, and it's super cool. You may have heard that the Elite has been utterly gutted, all of its vitals exposed to the world. It just so happens the 120GB hard drive was part of this dismantling process. With the drive cracked open and exposed, we can finally see the wondrous, ultra high-tech hard drive that justifies Microsoft's $179 price tag. Or can we?It turns out that the drive inside the plastic case is in fact a Fujitsu MHW2120BH 2.5" laptop drive. Shindakun.net did some Google searching and discovered that these drives generally cost around $100. Not long ago, Aaron Greenberg stated that the drive in the Xbox 360 is comparable to a self-powered external hard drive for a PC. Alright, so there must be some sort of additional work that justifies an $80 increase above retail, right? The thing is, according to Shindakun, the 360 drive isn't self powered. You have to shut down the console to install it, because it's just an SATA drive with a proprietary connector. So, where does the extra cost come from? The plastic casing isn't that nice. Granted, there are R&D costs to consider, but $80 extra per unit seems a little steep. Without a direct explanation of the costs from Microsoft, we can make only one conclusion: we're getting ripped off.
Buyer beware.
MS defends the $179 120GB HDD
Most people, outside of those planning to buy an Xbox 360 Elite, are understandably miffed that the 120GB hard drive will debut at a wallet draining $179. As such, Microsoft has received quite a bit of flack for the pricing of the unit. Major Nelson himself got an earful from us on the subject during the latest Fancast. Aaron Greenberg, group product manager at Microsoft, recently defended the 120GB HDD price in an interview with GameTheory. Greenberg noted a few reasons for Microsoft's pricing decision, among them that Microsoft requires stringent specifications for drive performance. In other words, they have to perform at specific speeds to provide an optimal gaming experience, and they must provide a certain level of security. Greenberg also notes that the 120 gig HDD price is comparable to other self-powered external hard drives on the market. Greenberg's statements are in line with what we heard from Major Nelson.Additionally, Greenberg notes that the pricing structure is consistent with the rest of the Xbox line. As he puts it, the $299 core becomes the $399 premium by adding a $99 hard drive. By adding a $179 hard drive to the core, you get the $479 price of the Xbox 360 Elite.
Sure, there are some expensive external hard drives out there, but we don't buy that Microsoft can't find comparable drives at lower prices. There are plenty of 120GB drives out there for much less than $179. Are we to believe that all of them fail to meet Microsoft's specifications?
[Via Joystiq]
Preloaded content revealed for 120GB HDD
Over at TeamXbox they got the dish on what content will be preloaded on the newly announced Xbox 360 120GB HDD. First off, all the preloaded content will be available on both the Xbox 360 Elite hard drive and the seperate retail version. As far as content goes, everything that's preloaded on the 20GB model will be included on the new 120GB drive. We kind of expected this since the new drive is huge ... uber huge. This 120GB behemoth will also come preloaded with a bunch of other content not available on the 20GB drive including demos like Lost Planet, Street Fighter II, and Call of Duty 3. You'll also see more trailers, gamer pictures, and themes, all of which you can delete instantly or savor for the long run. A full list of the 120GB HDD's preloaded content can be found after the break.[Thanks, Derka]
120GB HDD transfer limited to one 20GB HDD
Aside from HDMI, the biggest feature of the Xbox 360 Elite is undoubtedly the 120 gigabyte hard drive. Much to the relief of 360 owners everywhere, we now know that the 120GB drive will come with a transfer cable allowing users to transfer data from the 20GB drive to the 120GB drive. Sounds great, right? Don't answer that yet, because Joystiq has uncovered a few caveats to Microsoft's transfer solution. Do you have two 20GB hard drives? You'd better pick a favorite then, because the transfer software allows only one 20GB drive to be transferred to the 120GB drive. Maybe you have data on your 120 GB drive you'd like to stick on the 20GB. Too bad, because you can only transfer from the 20GB to the 120GB. Any other combination -- transferring 20GB to 20GB for example -- won't work.As if all that wasn't bad enough, transferring data automatically deletes any data already stored on the 120GB drive, and all files transfered will be deleted from the 20GB. Finally, data cannot be transfered back to the 20GB from which it originally came. Of course, some of these issues can be nullified by purchasing a memory card -- a financial fact of which we're sure Microsoft is aware -- but the data transfer cable seems unnecessarily restrictive. Essentially, it will only be useful one time, unless you really want to format your 120GB HDD for some reason.
[Via Joystiq]
Gamestop's accidental 120GB HDD preorder
Getting sick of the Xbox 360 Elite or the 120GB HDD rumors yet? Didn't think so. Today, TheDiggMan posted a screenshot from his online Gamestop searching where he stumbled upon the rumored 120GB Xbox 360 hard drive. Soon, after TheDiggMan found the listed 120GB HDD the item was taken down from the website, pulled by the Gamestop webmaster gnomes.
We're 97.4% sure that a 120GB HDD will be releasing soon, but what's interesting about this screenshot is the ship date and price information. $150 isn't a horrible price point seeing that it's $50 more than the 20GB HDD, but it's still a darn expensive peripheral. And if the April 1st pre-release date is correct we'll be putting all this HDD and Elite speculation to rest, because Microsoft should be making an announcement soon. Fanboys, if you're looking for more hard drive space, will you be purchasing the new Xbox 360 Elite or the seperate 120GB HDD add on? You know, that is if they are real.
[Via Digg]
