xbox

Taking the measure of the computer warranty scam

Credit Microsoft for moving fast to try and recover from its Xbox stumble. Truth be told, management didn't really have an alternative but to pledge to fix the faulty consoles immediately. But I'm not about to strain my throat singing hosannas.

U.S. customers used to be covered by a one-year warranty (!), while European Xbox owners had two-year coverage. Now every Xbox owner in the world will be protected for three years. What do I think? As former New Jersey Nets forward Derrick Coleman once put it during a particularly touching moment with the press, "Well, whoopty … Read more

Microsoft to 'Bring it Home' again at E3 '07

During last year's E3, Microsoft allowed Xbox 360 owners to download exclusive content from the show as a part of "Bringing it Home"--a campaign designed to get gamers as close as possible to E3 without actually being there. A great deal of buzz was generated from the huge Lost Planet demo that allowed gamers to play two near-finished levels of the game.

Sticking with what works, Microsoft has wisely decided to continue offering E3 content from this year's expo in the form of downloadable goodies. The Gamerscore Blog reports that beginning July 10 and running … Read more

Xbox 360 shipments fail to reach target

Microsoft acknowledged on Thursday that, in addition to experiencing an unacceptably high rate of hardware failures with the Xbox 360, the game console has also failed to reach its sales target.

The company had said it would sell 12 million of the consoles by June 30. Instead, it has shipped a total of 11.6 million units, Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell said on a conference call

"That is slightly shy" of its projections, Liddell said, but added "we're happy with that number."

Earlier Thursday, Microsoft said it was extending the warranty on the console … Read more

Microsoft to expand Xbox 360 warranty

Microsoft said on Thursday that it will expand its warranty on the Xbox to three years for certain hardware failures after an investigation showed the game console can be vulnerable to problems.

"As a result of what Microsoft views as an unacceptable number of repairs to Xbox 360 consoles, the company conducted extensive investigations into potential sources of general hardware failures," Microsoft said in a statement. "Having identified a number of factors which can cause general hardware failures indicated by three red flashing lights on the console, Microsoft has made improvements to the console and is enhancing … Read more

'Missile Command' gets new look on Xbox 360

In case you missed it--or don't own an Xbox 360--Missile Command is now available for download as an Xbox Live Arcade game (the full version is $5). The game includes both the old-school and the modern, "completely restylized version featuring evolved graphics and the newly introduced Throttle Monkey mode." If that Monkey Mode isn't enough for you, there's always a little wide-screen HD and Dolby Digital surround sound to amp up the action.

Get ready to rock this week on CNET Live!

On this week's CNET Live, there will be an extra special musical guest...The Guitar Zeros! Based in San Francisco, The Guitar Zeros is a band inspired by the hit game, Guitar Hero. The catch is, these guys have modded the game controllers to mimic a real guitar. Tom Merritt is going to have a jam session with the video game rockstars, and see how their technology works.

Last week, Brian turned the tables--he asked the audience a question. Every time he smacked his mouse on the table, his PC went buggy. Don't worry, Brian has been enrolled … Read more

PS3 is tops in Australia and a failure in the US

Michael Ephraim, managing director of Sony Australia, has officially announced that the Playstation 3 is the console war king - in Australia. According to Ephraim, sales figures in the Land Down Under have shown the "PS3...outselling Wii and Xbox 360 every week, except for last week."

The recent stories like this one out of the Sony camp are becoming pathetic at best. The company who formerly touted its dominance over the video game industry is left touting a 50,000 unit sale for March and a sales lead "for every week, except for the last week.&… Read more

Wii Controls Gaming Market: Surprise of the Year?

At this very moment, I am looking at a paused Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess game while an Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 are perched alongside the Wii collecting dust. Does that mean the 360 and Playstation 3 are inferior to the Wii or provide a less gratifying experience? No way. But what it does mean is that Sony and Microsoft underestimated Nintendo as well as the consumer base they try so hard to impress. The Wii's success may not have been a surprise to Nintendo fanboys out there, but it becomes more apparent that the Wii's success … Read more

Toshiba gets jolt of HD DVD reality

You've heard the expression "underpromise, overdeliver." Well, Toshiba execs are getting a little taste of "overpromise, underdeliver" when it comes to sales of HD DVD players.

According to a Reuters report today, "The Japanese electronics group now expects to sell 1 million next-generation optical disc players and recorders in North America by the end of calendar 2007, down 44 percent from its previous estimate of 1.8 million unit sales." Toshiba's also pulling back on its projection of selling 3 million units of HD DVD players and recorders worldwide by the end … Read more

CNET Live: Get annihilated by the Frag Dolls

Around the set of CNET Live, there isn't much estrogen. Well, except for behind the scenes (the ladies rock the control room). This week, we not only get some more women but ones who know how to kick some major gaming tail!

Team captain Rhoulette and her cohort Seppuku of the Frag Dolls are going to be giving strategy tips and tricks to Tom while playing Rainbow Six: Vegas on the Xbox 360. They also are going to show that women can game harder and look better doing it than any guy out there!

Also in this edition, Tom … Read more