Buying advise for an Xbox (1 Viewer)

[Nelson Au]

Hi guys, here I am exactly 2 years later after I posted a similarly titled thread for advice on buying a Playstation 3. Which I'm happy to say is still working, though it hasn't been played with too much recently. Too busy with work.
However, my friend who got me into the PS world over 10 years ago just got an Xbox with Forza 4. We were both into Gran Turismo on the PS 2 and then got the PS3 when GT5 finally came out. I had fun with the Uncharted game that came with my PS3.
So I got to see and played Forza at my friend's house Friday. it's was pretty fun and the graphics surprised me that they were better then the GT5's efforts. ( from what I just read in looking at reviews of GT5 verses Forza, Sony apparently had some issues with hardware at the time and resolution is compromised on the PS3. )
So I'm now curious to get one. I know nothing about Microsft's Xbox and I feel a little dirty looking into them as I'm a loyal Sony Playstation guy and Apple user! But I can see the advantages that many of you guys are enjoying having both platforms. Exclusive games to each platform seems to force this issue.
From what I can gather, the most popular configuration out there is the Xbox 360 with a 250gb drive. It also is bundled with Kinects and one bundle even includes Forza for $250.00.
Like my Sony PS3 questions and answers thread, being a casual gamer, the 250gb drive sounds more then adequate. I don't download music or use the PS3 as media server, so the Xbox will similarly be used only as a game console. Not sure I'll use the Kinects feature, but it's a nice to have for future potential game purchases.
Any other advise anyone can impart to a noob to the Xbox world? Also could be fun to finally see what the fuss was about with Halo. I see the Call to Duty series is also available on PS3, thought it was an Xbox exclusive.
Seeing its the holiday season, maybe better deals are coming. But like what was mentioned in the PS3 thread, the game consoles are tightly managed and pricing is similar at all retailers, so perhaps the same holds true for the Xbox.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I believe Best Buy and a few other retailers are going to have amazing deals on new consoles, so keep an eye out for those.

 

[DaveF]

Originally Posted by Nelson Au /t/325124/buying-advise-for-an-xbox#post_4000165
Hi guys, here I am exactly 2 years later after I posted a similarly titled thread for advice on buying a Playstation 3. Which I'm happy to say is still working, though it hasn't been played with too much recently. Too busy with work.
However, my friend who got me into the PS world over 10 years ago just got an Xbox with Forza 4. We were both into Gran Turismo on the PS 2 and then got the PS3 when GT5 finally came out. I had fun with the Uncharted game that came with my PS3.
So I got to see and played Forza at my friend's house Friday. it's was pretty fun and the graphics surprised me that they were better then the GT5's efforts. ( from what I just read in looking at reviews of GT5 verses Forza, Sony apparently had some issues with hardware at the time and resolution is compromised on the PS3. )
So I'm now curious to get one. I know nothing about Microsft's Xbox and I feel a little dirty looking into them as I'm a loyal Sony Playstation guy and Apple user! But I can see the advantages that many of you guys are enjoying having both platforms. Exclusive games to each platform seems to force this issue.
From what I can gather, the most popular configuration out there is the Xbox 360 with a 250gb drive. It also is bundled with Kinects and one bundle even includes Forza for $250.00.
Like my Sony PS3 questions and answers thread, being a casual gamer, the 250gb drive sounds more then adequate. I don't download music or use the PS3 as media server, so the Xbox will similarly be used only as a game console. Not sure I'll use the Kinects feature, but it's a nice to have for future potential game purchases.
Any other advise anyone can impart to a noob to the Xbox world? Also could be fun to finally see what the fuss was about with Halo. I see the Call to Duty series is also available on PS3, thought it was an Xbox exclusive.
Seeing its the holiday season, maybe better deals are coming. But like what was mentioned in the PS3 thread, the game consoles are tightly managed and pricing is similar at all retailers, so perhaps the same holds true for the Xbox.

I'm a (very) casual gamer, and my 60 GB Xbox has been plenty for four years, even with the copy-game-to-drive feature (for faster loading). 250GB will be plenty.

I suggest browsing the Xbox Live downloadable games. Since you've got a PS3, you may find interesting games specific to the Xbox.

From this side, I wish I could get a cheap PS3, so I could play Journey and Uncharted.

 

[Nelson Au]

Thanks Morgan and Dave!
So what is the HD nomenclature in the Xbox? Is that simply what the current models are called, or some higher resolution ability?
As Morgan suggested, I'll wait and look for Black Friday deals. Doing a very quick look, Target has a Black Friday bundle for $199.00! But not sure if that includes the HD thing or not.
Dave, in that search, I found that the PS3 was $199.00 and has a 250gb drive at Target on Black Friday. Or actually, Thursday night, Thanksgiving night.

 

[DaveF]

Of the current lineup, I think it's the no-hard drive model (4 GB flash memory) or with a 250 GB drive. At first pass, I wouldn't recommend buying the 4GB model, because the copy-game-to-drive feature has been nice. Though, for $100 savings on a secondary game system, I see that shouldn't be ruled out as an option.

I don't know anything about Kinect...but if I were Black Friday shopping, for a second system to do what the PS3 can't, that seems like a feature to consider.

Any PS3 for me will have to wait for bargain basement prices with the PS3 comes out. I've got so many games on the 360 and iPad, my wife would kill me if a new game console showed up!

 

[Sam Posten]

This without Kinect:
http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Holiday-Bundle-Amazon-exclusive/dp/B002I0JE66/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1352690319&sr=8-2&keywords=360+console
This With:
http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-250GB-Kinect-Holiday-Bundle/dp/B009759F5A/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1352690319&sr=8-10&keywords=360+console
Get Forza used for cheap.
Or wait till CES and see if they announce the next xbox hehe

 

[Nelson Au]

Thanks Sam. Isn't the next Xbox the 720 and isn't that not expected till a year from now at the least?
The bundle with the 250gb drive and Kinect is something like $250 on sale at Best Buy now with Forza and another game too. That seemed like a good deal. But I can wait a few more weeks as we get closer to Thanksgiving. GameStop is near me, I could look for Forza used too, good idea.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

That's a great deal Nelson. You won't regret it. I don't have, nor do I have much use, for the Kinect.

 

[Nelson Au]

Hi Lou,
I just double checked the Best Buy site, I was mistaken. At least I'm not clear, but it appears the Kinect is not included in that bundle. Shoot, I was confused about the bundles as I get up to speed with the new bits that are part of the Xbox.
I appreciate you saying I won't regret having an Xbox!

 

[Greg_S_H]

I'm not an expert on the Kinect, but it seems to be a bit of a bust. At Fry's, the Kinect-specific games are in their own little one rack section, and the selection doesn't look that interesting.

 

[Nelson Au]

The Kinect isn't too interesting to me. But part of me thought it might be a nice to have thing. I saw it in action at another friend's house when the kids there were playing games with it and it looked like a good thing for them.

 

[DennisBassi]

Don't know how it will affect you, but you should know that an xBox live account is needed for almost everything and is at added cost. I have both consoles, but I do much more with PS3 because I do not need a monthly subscription.

 

[Nelson Au]

Dennis, that's good to know. I did not know that. I would have thought Xbox Live was optional. I'll read up on that.

 

[Greg_S_H]

It is optional, but you need a gold subscription to play multiplayer and to download some demos. I subscribe to MLB.tv and was looking forward to watching games via my Xbox, but I wasn't willing to pay for a gold subscription (which turned out to be required).

 

[Nelson Au]

Thanks Greg. A subscription is not something I am interested in. Too bad they can't be more like Sony and allow multiplayer for free! Not that I do that now, but its nice to have if I do.

 

[Sam Posten]

Looks like Black Friday is your best bet:
http://slickdeals.net/f/5513508-XBOX-Black-Friday-deals

Best Buy [bestbuy.com], Fred Meyer [fredmeyer.com], Fry’s [frys.com] and Newegg [newegg.com] will carry the Xbox 360 250GB console with “Skyrim” and “Forza 4: Essentials Edition” for $199.99 USD (ERP).

 

[Nelson Au]

Thank you Sam! The 250gb drive option without Kinects looks like a great deal, if one can get it on time with the mad rush! I've read a Best Buy review of that bundle and the only complaint is the Forza game is a not a complete version. I think the rest of the game is downloadable, but might be at a cost.
Just out of curiosity, if one were to get a 4gb model, is it possible to swap out the flash for a hard drive sometime down the line?

 

[Sam Posten]

The 4gb of flash is built onto the MB, it's not in the drive bay. Once you add the hard disk version on top of that you get 3 choices of where you want to store stuff, the flash, the hd, the cloud. And you can plug in external USB drives too.
The consoles sold with the Hard disk bundle omit the 4gb on board, but you never miss it.
My opinion: The Arcade versions are a sucker bet. For $199 that Skyrim pack is an amazing deal.
If anyone gets one of these packs and doesn't need the Skyrim code I'll gladly pay a few bucks for it! I need 2!

 

[DaveF]

Is Skyrim on sale? I don't know what t s, but the comments are always positive!

 

[Sam Posten]

It's included as a pack in on Black Friday. It's beautiful and a lot of fun!