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Who's scrapping their old 360 for the new, big, bad, black not-so-rumored one? photo

Every gaming site under the sun has been buzzing today with what appears to be quasi-final confirmation of the HDMI-sexied black "Xbox 360 Elite".  Without making much fuss, here are the facts Engadget dug up from a variety of "trusted sources" about the Emperor's new clothes:

  • * The Elite will be limited quantities only; that may be as much or as little as a couple hundred thousand.

  • * The case, controller, and Live headset will all be black. It will have all new packaging.

  • * Elite will cost $479, and will be a 3rd SKU; it will be sold alongside Premium and Core packs.

  • * Eventually Elite hardware (in white plastics) will take the role of the Xbox Premium. That is to say, after the Elite is launched and sold out, future Xbox Premiums will have 120GB / HDMI.

  • * We do not yet know exactly when 120GB / HDMI will become the standard for Premium, but it is loosely estimated to be late summer or fall.

  • * Elite models run cooler than normal 360s, but they are not yet confirmed to have 65nm chips.

  • * Prices may remain the same with the 120GB / HDMI hardware upgrade in the Premium Xbox, but we may still see a price cut on the line when 65nm chips start shipping.

  • * The HD DVD drive will not be internal or bundled -- Microsoft never did or nor does not currently have plans to put an HD DVD drive in the 360.

  • * There are no current plans to integrate WiFi into the Elite or future Premiums (although that can always change).

My question is ... how many of you are making the jump? Is this offering important to you as a current Xbox 360 owner?  I'm interested in how people are reacting to the news.  If you weigh in, please specify whether or not you have an HDMI-capable TV and the premium Xbox package already.

Also, does anyone else think it looks kinda (gasp) ugly in black? I'm full of all kinds of unpopular thoughts today, folks. Of course, it could all just be an elaborate April fool's joke.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in.]


Continue: More Xbox 360 stories





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108 comments | showing # 1 to 50

blueskies's Avatar
blueskies at 03/20/2007 15:52
Maybe. But it's looking like PAX is my moneybomb this year.
ZeroTolo's Avatar
ZeroTolo at 03/20/2007 15:53
damn... now I really have to make sure that I save that Gamestop credit now. once summer rolls around and I've got the cash I'll be all over it.
-D-'s Avatar
-D- at 03/20/2007 15:55
Not interested. Don't need the extra bells and whistles and I think the system looks infintely more svelte in white.
Jambo's Avatar
Jambo at 03/20/2007 15:57
Erm old rope anyone?
bhive01's Avatar
bhive01 at 03/20/2007 15:57
I've been waiting to get one, but damn. $480??? No. I'll be getting a reduced price premium.
ScarCeLLe13's Avatar
ScarCeLLe13 at 03/20/2007 15:57
wow!
all i can say
Odysseus's Avatar
Odysseus at 03/20/2007 15:58
Is it me or is the system in that picture Dark (Hunter) Green and not black?
Jordan Grim Devore's Avatar
Jordan Grim Devore at 03/20/2007 15:58
Lol I'm still putting off calling customer support to fix my 360. I hate having to spell out my name, address, and everything else letter by letter to them.
Professor Oak's Avatar
Professor Oak at 03/20/2007 15:58
this smells of 'well, sony can do it, so we can too' but I'm game. It's not necessarily 'important', but if the bitch runs cooler/has bigger HD/HDMI then it sounds good to me. IF my current system blows up, (and it very well could), then that will be a nice excuse to get this one.

I truly don't understand why they are 'limited quan.' I almost don't believe that it will be.
Niero's Avatar
Niero at 03/20/2007 15:59
Old ropes are the best! Much less callus risk
Gemsi's Avatar
Gemsi at 03/20/2007 16:01
Damn it's going to cost even more if/when it reaches the UK, but it does look kinda cheap and nasty in black compared to the standard white
JLanphear's Avatar
JLanphear at 03/20/2007 16:02
Me. *raises hand* I'm also switching my Wii to a black one once that is released. It shouldn't be too much longer for new Wii colors I hope. I want all black consoles. :)
Bob Arctor's Avatar
Bob Arctor at 03/20/2007 16:03
I think it looks good in black but i didnt trade in my white ds lite for the black and i really wanted that.
I will wait for the white premium to come down in price because the HDMI is really tempting and a good enough reason to upgrade
I dont care if my baby is black or white
HDD I dont really need though, I dont download enough
Volcanon's Avatar
Volcanon at 03/20/2007 16:03
Hmmm...I'd buy it. I would definately like the larger hard drive and HDMI output, and I think the black looks sweet.

I already have a 360 though, so I'm not going to pay $480+ just for a few (black) bells and whistles.
DJDuffy 's Avatar
DJDuffy at 03/20/2007 16:03
I'd only get it if my current 360 bit the dust. It doesn't really look that great in black to be honest, and HDMI and a bigger hard drive is a nice touch, but the fact that it might not come with the 65nm chip is a bummer. If I was to get another 360 I think I would wait for the Premium Edition to sport HDMI/120gb HD and the 65nm chipset.
relik's Avatar
relik at 03/20/2007 16:04
No way...

The creamy white 360 sits next to my Dreamcast and they look happy together.
BFeld13's Avatar
BFeld13 at 03/20/2007 16:05
Not me. I don't have an HDMI tv and the hard drive will also retail separately.

Plus, I like the white version more. It goes with my Wii.
wintermute's Avatar
wintermute at 03/20/2007 16:05
I was hoping to get a 360 for my birthday, in about 4 months, but it seems unwise to jump in immediately before a new SKU is released. To be honest I've been putting off buying one since last year, because of all the Zephyr rumours. I wish MS would just clarify what's going on officially.

I'll wait for the white version, because I honestly prefer how it looks and second line of hardware is hopefully gonna be less faulty.

Larger HDD is nice, but I probably don't need it. Cooler and quieter is a major advantage. As for the HDMI, i don't need it right now, but I'm hoping to do a major monitor upgrade next year. I'll probably get a 24" BenQ monitor, when it comes down in price a little, and it has an HDMI port so that would be optimal.
BahamutZero's Avatar
BahamutZero at 03/20/2007 16:07
I've been holding off until they announced it, now I bet they'll be all sold out. and come on NO WIFI? that is ridonculous. wifi would cost an extra $5 to add
velcroman's Avatar
velcroman at 03/20/2007 16:07
if they sell the black controller seperate, i'd buy one, but I have no TVs with HDMI and i still have space on my harddrive. when the 360 IPTV is launched, i'll pick up a 120 gigger.
J03yyz's Avatar
J03yyz at 03/20/2007 16:07
i bought my xbox 360 premium a month ago
fuck.
galagabug 's Avatar
galagabug at 03/20/2007 16:07
the black and chrome color scheme is really nice. buuut... i ain't buyin another one.

i hope the homebrew scene comes up with a DIY solution to the increased HDD space.
velcroman's Avatar
velcroman at 03/20/2007 16:09
Bahamut_Zero, $5 x 1,000,000s
Matthew Mac's Avatar
Matthew Mac at 03/20/2007 16:09
I'll believe it when MS sends out an anouncement. Until then, firmly filed under "rumors."
Bob Arctor's Avatar
Bob Arctor at 03/20/2007 16:10
The wifi adapter for the 360 is outrageous. I am pissed off that it cost me nearly half as much as it cost me to buy a wii (which is wireless) as it did to make my 360 wireless
Fenris's Avatar
Fenris at 03/20/2007 16:11
This bitch will be mine.
neveranything's Avatar
neveranything at 03/20/2007 16:12
Don't need HDMI, I could paint my 360 case any time I want to, all I'd LIKE to have would be the 120gig HDD, which I could get seperately, so I think I'll pass on this "Elite" system.
demonelite's Avatar
demonelite at 03/20/2007 16:15
I would like to get it for the HDMI port and for the 120GB HDD, but I will wait till it goes down in price a bit, or if my 360 blows up.
Lewis's Avatar
Lewis at 03/20/2007 16:18
once my current 360 dies i will upgrade
Niero's Avatar
Niero at 03/20/2007 16:18
Just saw something Fronz posted -- could this be an April fool's joke?
wintermute's Avatar
wintermute at 03/20/2007 16:19
@Bob Arctor: (nice name btw, that book rocks) How come you bought the WiFi adaptor? Is there some reason you can't run a cable to your gaming setup?

Wired is faster, more reliable and a reel of Cat5 cable costs pretty much nothing. I don't understand why people shell out for the WiFi adaptor. WiFi is all well and good for mlaptops and handhelds. But why do you need it for something that never moves?
Vesty's Avatar
Vesty at 03/20/2007 16:19
I'm more interested in a price cut for the core/premium when this replaces the current premium. Though I do have to say the black is nice
HarassmentPanda's Avatar
HarassmentPanda at 03/20/2007 16:24
I have two TVs with two HDMI inputs each, but that isn't a good enough reason for me to purchase this system. My two current 360s look great with VGA cables and I can't tell the difference between that and HDMI anyway.

I would LIKE the bigger hard drive, but unless a really compelling reason surfaces for the extra 100 gigs, I'll stick with what I've got.
Resarf's Avatar
Resarf at 03/20/2007 16:26
"Eventually Elite hardware (in white plastics) will take the role of the Xbox Premium. That is to say, after the Elite is launched and sold out, future Xbox Premiums will have 120GB / HDMI."

That is when my current 360 is going to have a little 'accident'.
fatsarmstrong's Avatar
fatsarmstrong at 03/20/2007 16:27
I might pick it up. I like the new look and I have a TV that can do HDMI. Currently I have the Xbox 360 premium with the HD DVD add on. I have 2 other HDTV's but they are only 720p so I am not going to be watching HD movies on those. A second Xbox 360 would be nice, but if I have to wait in line to get it I won't have one because I won't wait in line. So in short, if I am walking through the store and I happen to see it and I am in a good mood, I might just buy it.
Hipple's Avatar
Hipple at 03/20/2007 16:28
I'm assuming the Black 360's run faster?
iRaf 's Avatar
iRaf at 03/20/2007 16:28
"if they sell the black controller seperate, i'd buy one, but I have no TVs with HDMI and i still have space on my harddrive. when the 360 IPTV is launched, i'll pick up a 120 gigger."

probaly what im doing if i dont get sucked into microsoft land.
thefoshe's Avatar
thefoshe at 03/20/2007 16:29
My tv doesnt have a hdmi input. I'm just going to buy the normal premium edition, then if I want/need the bigger hard drive I'll buy it separately. I'm thinking about just getting a vga cable but I dont know.
Hipple's Avatar
Hipple at 03/20/2007 16:30
I did want the extra 100 gigs, but that I've got my laptop set up to stream all of my music and videos to my 360, I can't really say that I need it...
angry_poster's Avatar
angry_poster at 03/20/2007 16:32
i think it looks better in black, hell damn near EVERYTHING (electronic) looks better in black.
lostalaska's Avatar
lostalaska at 03/20/2007 16:32
I'm betting on it being a hoax.

If it isn't I'd still probably not go for it. I have a HDTV with HDMI (only supports up to 1080i though), but the VGA cable I'm using now looks great, and I picked up a 500GB WD MyBook Pro which is storing all my music and videos so I just plug that in to the USB and I'm all set. As for the Hard Drive I read on another site that a replacement 120 GB drive will be available for current 360 owners, it also stated that the 120GB drive would be under $200... Ouch, I only spent $210 for my WD 500GB MyBook Pro drive.
iLink's Avatar
iLink at 03/20/2007 16:32
Now ill be picking up a 360 deffinately
velcroman's Avatar
velcroman at 03/20/2007 16:38
this is an elaborate hoax then. lots of organizations with good names have been talking about this forever. and video game magazine april fools jokes are usually something like "oh look i photoshopped sonic into super smash bros. tehehehe"
icarus's Avatar
icarus at 03/20/2007 16:40
Damn that thing will cost me almost a weeks pay, but it's sooooo purdy. Now all I need is a preorder date. Although if they are going to lower the price from $479 to say $399 once they do the Elite-becomes-Premium switch then I might wait, suck it up, and get a white case, but if it gonna cost the same, then you might as well shoot for the black.

The only thing that really bothers me is:

* "Elite models run cooler than normal 360s, but they are not yet confirmed to have 65nm chips."

If it runs cooler but isn't the 65nm chip then it means they might just be sticking "better" (aka louder) fans to cool it which would be a major strike against this. Of course it may just have a slightly more efficient/cooler 90nm chip, but still if it's "elite" then it should have the best.
Namelessted's Avatar
Namelessted at 03/20/2007 16:45
nobody should buy this at the $480 price point. its not worth it.
BluDesign's Avatar
BluDesign at 03/20/2007 16:46
I don't give a crap about the color or the fans, I have come to terms with the loud. I want that drive. Now.
ghnvt's Avatar
ghnvt at 03/20/2007 16:52
I will buy one of the origional ones, especially when there is a price drop so that I can play Mass Effect and Halo 3. Who cares about HDMI, when the component cables work fine. The bigger hard drive might be nice, but it doesn't warrant the extra cash. I like it white also, it matches my Wii.
robotplague's Avatar
robotplague at 03/20/2007 16:52
I will definitely be on board. I don't own a 360 and have been wanting one for quite sometime. At first I was waiting for killer games, then after a while I just kept on pushing it back for one reason or another. The longer and longer I've waited the more I realize I should continue waiting until the next version comes out. I just recently purchased an HDTV and currently have no use for the HDMI port on it. So in every way possible I'm the exact target demographic they're after. I don't plan on picking a 360 before this launches.

I could give a rats ass about the black version, the white to me is much more appealing.
deanhatescoffee's Avatar
deanhatescoffee at 03/20/2007 16:55
HDMI = good
120GB drive = meh
black = yuck
synce's Avatar
synce at 03/20/2007 16:56
APRIL FOOL'S!
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