Who here as an XBOX 360? Is it worth it right "now"?

[MissKat]

Ive been considering one, but been told its not worth the steep price right "now" and would be more value if you wait till better games come out, while the system being cheaper. I did the math, for the premium, the 3 games I want, and extra controller - with tax it comes to a whopping $800CDN. Good lord! That definitely turned me off, considering Im a lite gamer and wouldnt be using it that often anyways. Some say its overpriced, am I the only one who kinda agrees? I think it should drop $100 and it would be better.

[Kjesse]

I'm on my second XBox 360. While it hasn't been cheap (my first one died a couple weeks ago, and I didn't have the extended warranty) it's been worth it.

Make sure you buy the extended warranty -- I know one guy who's on his 4th 360 --- there's a hardware problem with it (not quite as bad as the PS2 when it first came out --- remember all the drive failures?). The $50.00 insurance is well worth it.

When I got the first one on launch day I was really impressed with the improved graphics. I have a 50" HD wide screen and the 360's games really look great on it. It really has nice graphics.

I'm also a "lite" gamer but this thing is like a mini media station. I used to have a modded Xbox to stream mp3's from my computer to the home theater, but now the 360 does all that unmodded. It also lets you download demos and lots of other things so an internet connection is essential.

There are quite a few great games available now. See the 360 thread on this forum about the games. Right now my favorite is Battlefield 2, its lots of fun.

Whether its worth the $800.00 to you is totally subjective. I see no reason to wait for the PS3 or the Wii, though I'm likely to pick up a Wii when it comes out too. The PS3 is gonna rock but it'll probably be another year before you see top-notch PS3 games that really use its (greater) power.

[MissKat]

Originally Posted by Delgar

I'm on my second XBox 360. While it hasn't been cheap (my first one died a couple weeks ago, and I didn't have the extended warranty) it's been worth it.

Make sure you buy the extended warranty -- I know one guy who's on his 4th 360 --- there's a hardware problem with it (not quite as bad as the PS2 when it first came out --- remember all the drive failures?). The $50.00 insurance is well worth it.

When I got the first one on launch day I was really impressed with the improved graphics. I have a 50" HD wide screen and the 360's games really look great on it. It really has nice graphics.

I'm also a "lite" gamer but this thing is like a mini media station. I used to have a modded Xbox to stream mp3's from my computer to the home theater, but now the 360 does all that unmodded. It also lets you download demos and lots of other things so an internet connection is essential.

There are quite a few great games available now. See the 360 thread on this forum about the games. Right now my favorite is Battlefield 2, its lots of fun.

Whether its worth the $800.00 to you is totally subjective. I see no reason to wait for the PS3 or the Wii, though I'm likely to pick up a Wii when it comes out too. The PS3 is gonna rock but it'll probably be another year before you see top-notch PS3 games that really use its (greater)
power.

Thanks for your input mate.

I will indeed get the ext. warranty just not sure where. $50, are you talking the EB games one? The bad thing with theirs is that its a one time thing. So you pay your $50, and if you have to change it, well your warranty is toast and have to pay again - which I think is stupid. MS warranty is only $26 for one year and the good thing is it starts after the original 90 days, so basically you get 1.25yrs warranty. The only downfall is, if theres anything wrong there is a 2 week turnaround time without your 360 as you have to send it in. But they send you a box so you dont have to pay any shipping'.

this is why I never bought one at launch, until they had the hardware problems fixed and I was told they should be by now. I know a few people who bought one recently and havent had any problems. So Im hoping I should be alright.

What warranty do you have?

[Calgary Flames]

I had one that had disk read errors, took it back and haven't had any issues since and am loving the system.

[Coelah]

I've had one since launch day, well a little before launch actually. Never had a problem with it. I've done some pretty heavy gaming on it too, 3-4 hour sessions. Played movies through it, played audio discs, streamed my iPod and played arcade games from the hard drive on Live. Just make sure it is well ventilated (the 360 unit and the power block) and is sitting horizontally. I've heard it can scratch discs if it's standing vertically.

If you're a lite gamer, you'll want to check out the Xbox Live Arcade. You can download, for a small fee, a bunch of old school games like Robotron, Joust. Or puzzle games like Hexic HD. Some pretty fun ones on there.

[GreenTeaFrapp]

Originally Posted by Delgar

Make sure you buy the extended warranty -- I know one guy who's on his 4th 360 --- there's a hardware problem with it (not quite as bad as the PS2 when it first came out --- remember all the drive failures?). The $50.00 insurance is well worth it.

Get it at Costco instead. Lifetime warranty at no extra cost.

[MissKat]

Originally Posted by GreenTeaFrapp

Get it at Costco instead. Lifetime warranty at no extra cost.

yip, too bad i dont have costco memb.

If I do get it, I might just settle with the $26 warranty through MS. If anything goes wrong, sure ill be without it for 2 weeks but no biggie. :baby: The EB games one is nice, knowing I can just change it on the spot but $50 for a one time thing is stupid.

[TheContact]

Yep, I've had one since before launch, and it's been fine. I can't say the launch titles were great, but there are plenty of good games for it now, even for "lite" gamers - XBox Live Arcade is a lite-gamer's paradise, especially with stuff like Geometry Wars right now, and Lumines Live coming eventually.

Plus, games like Fight Night Round 3, Oblivion, DoA4, etc. are quite good. I'm quite addicted to Fight Night, not having been hooked on a boxing game since Mike Tyson's Punch Out. The system can be a real time sink, if you're not careful

Also, as an added bonus, it's fully sync'd up to my playlists on iTunes via a wireless connection (unmodded), which is slick, imo.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by GreenTeaFrapp

Get it at Costco instead. Lifetime warranty at no extra cost.

Really? Please explain this to me. Are you saying that you can return any electronics there at any time and get another????

[MissKat]

Eb games warranty is a rip.

[LockedOut]

Are these consoles still coming with only a 90 day warranty? That's pretty weak IMO when other electronics are typically one year warranty.

[MissKat]

Originally Posted by LockedOut

Are these consoles still coming with only a 90 day warranty? That's pretty weak IMO when other electronics are typically one year warranty.

I heard MS bumped it up to 6 months (180 days), but I agree 90 days is weak. Especially when its involving a Microsoft product :baby:

[metallicat]

Originally Posted by Delgar

Really? Please explain this to me. Are you saying that you can return any electronics there at any time and get another????

I'm just going to assume this is because Costco lets you return ANYTHING.

I have a 360, but never bought an extended warranty. Can I still do so nearly 7 months after I purchased it?

[Skyceman]

I just bought one this weekend at Best Buy. It's almost scary how the "non-commisioned" sales people push the warranty on them. As I was heading for the till, this sales guy I was speaking with for about 20 minutes, appeared out of nowhere and was waiting to again sell me on the warranty. You can't tell me they are not getting a cut somewhere from these warranties.

Anyways I refused but this thread is casting some doubt on that decision. I may sign on with Microsoft's Service contract. $650.00 is enough to justify some kind of coverage on a new release console.

EDIT: BTW I'm pretty amazed at the system and it's well worth getting one. I plan to pick up Fight Night Round 3 today - it looks pretty sweet. Can't wait to see what they do with hockey in the Fall.

[Calgary Flames]

I'd highly recommend the replacement plan... I got the EB one. I can pretty much step on it in a year and get a brand new one.

[MissKat]

Originally Posted by Calgary Flames

I'd highly recommend the replacement plan... I got the EB one. I can pretty much step on it in a year and get a brand new one.

Yes you can, and its over the counter, but then once you do it you have to pay another $50 to renew it. And to me, that kills the deal right there. What a joke EB warrantt is, otherwise I would get it, plus its convenient as I have an EB 2 mins from my place.

Also, the warr. through MS when you ship it out, they dont even fix it, they give you a brand new one. its same thing, half the cost, and its not a one time thing like EB. so if you get 3 lemons, I only had to pay the $26 and I STILL have my warranty after its all done. EB - have fun paying $50, $50, $50. I dont know about you, but with EB youre basically paying $50 everytime just to change it...I dont know what the heck kind of warranty that is other than pure bologne.

Besides, im sure most of us can live with a 1-2 week turnaround time, its not suicide. But if I was made of money, I wouldnt mind dishing out $50 everytime.

[jroc]

Originally Posted by Skyceman

I just bought one this weekend at Best Buy. It's almost scary how the "non-commisioned" sales people push the warranty on them. As I was heading for the till, this sales guy I was speaking with for about 20 minutes, appeared out of nowhere and was waiting to again sell me on the warranty. You can't tell me they are not getting a cut somewhere from these warranties..

believe it or not they actually dont get any sort of cut at all... they push it so hard on you because their managers will give them sh*t if they dont get it...

[GreenTeaFrapp]

Originally Posted by Delgar

Really? Please explain this to me. Are you saying that you can return any electronics there at any time and get another????

The only exception is laptops, I believe. You only have, I think, 6 months to return a laptop if it is defective.

I returned a vacuum cleaner there that was over three years old with no problem.

[StoneCole]

Originally Posted by Delgar

I'm on my second XBox 360. While it hasn't been cheap (my first one died a couple weeks ago, and I didn't have the extended warranty) it's been worth it.

Make sure you buy the extended warranty -- I know one guy who's on his 4th 360 --- there's a hardware problem with it (not quite as bad as the PS2 when it first came out --- remember all the drive failures?). The $50.00 insurance is well worth it.

Did you try sending it to Microsoft directly? Sure the 90 day warranty or whatever might have been up, but some companies actually still give a shat about customer service; Microsoft is one of them.

My buddy had problems with his original XBox (drive not reading disks) beyond the initial 90 days. He sent it in to Microsoft...not only did they replace it, they payed for all shipping and customs charges attached to it.

[MissKat]

any one want to comment on the EB games warranty?