The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles.
A prominent feature of the Xbox 360 is its integrated Xbox Live service that allows players to compete online and download content such as arcade games, game demos, trailers, TV shows, and movies. Major features of the console include its Windows Media Center multimedia capabilities, mandatory support of high definition in all games, movie rentals and game downloads from its online marketplace and the ability to watch HD DVD movies with an add-on drive.
The Xbox 360 was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detailed launch and game information divulged later that month at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). The console sold out completely upon release in all regions except in Japan, and, as of October, 2009, over 34 million units have been sold worldwide. The Xbox 360 is currently available in two configurations—the “Arcade” and the “Elite”—and each has its own selection of accessories.
Development
Known during development as Xenon, Xbox 2, Xbox FS, Xbox Next, or NextBox, the Xbox 360 was conceived in early 2003. In February 2003, planning for the Xenon software platform began, and was headed by Microsoft’s Vice President J Allard. That month, Microsoft held an event for 400 developers in Bellevue, Washington to recruit support for the system. Also that month, Peter Moore, former president of Sega of America, joined Microsoft. On August 12, 2003, ATI signed on to produce the graphic processing unit for the new console, a deal which was publicly announced two days later. Before the launch of the Xbox 360, several alpha development kits were spotted using Apple’s Power Mac G5 hardware. This was due to the system’s PowerPC 970 processor running the same PowerPC architecture that the Xbox 360 would eventually run under IBM’s Xenon processor. The cores of the Xenon processor were developed using a slightly-modified version of the PlayStation 3’s Cell Processor PPE architecture. According to David Shippy and Mickie Phipps, the IBM employees were “hiding their work from Sony and Toshiba.”
Launch
The Xbox 360 was released on November 22, 2005, in the United States, Mexico and Canada; December 2, 2005, in Europe and December 10, 2005, in Japan. It was later launched in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, and Russia. In its first year on the market, the system launched in 36 countries, more countries than any console has launched in a single year.
Retail configurations
The Xbox 360 is available in two standard variants; the “Xbox 360 Arcade” and the “Xbox 360 Elite.” A discontinued SKU, the “Xbox 360 Core,” was replaced by the “Xbox 360 Arcade” in October 2007. The 60 GB version of the Xbox 360 Pro was released on August 1, 2008. At launch, the Xbox 360 was available in two configurations: the “Xbox 360″
package, priced at US$399 or GB£280 , and the “Xbox 360 Core,” priced at US$299 and GB£199. The original shipment of the Xbox 360 version included a cut-down version of the Media Remote as a promotion. The Elite package was launched later at US$479. The Pro package will be marked down to US$249 on August 28, 2009 and will be sold until supplies last, and the Elite will be marked down in price to US$299.
• The Xbox 360 Core was an entry level Xbox 360. The “Core” is no longer produced, having been replaced by the Xbox 360 Arcade. It was not originally available in Japan, but was later released on November 2, 2006. The Core system came bundled with composite video cables, capable of only SDTV resolutions. The Core may output HD signals up to 1080i when connected to separately sold Component or VGA cables. It may also utilize a separately sold 20, 60 or 120 GB hard drive. Unlike all other SKUs, it shipped with a wired version of the Xbox 360 controller, instead of the wireless version found in other SKUs.
• The Xbox 360 Arcade is the entry level for the Xbox 360. On October 23, 2007, it replaced the “Xbox 360 Core” and maintained the price of $279.99.[ It was publicly revealed (though it was available in stores far earlier) by Microsoft’s president of Entertainment Devices division Robbie Bach to the Financial Times on October 18, 2007,
and officially announced on October 22, 2007. It includes a wireless controller, composite AV cable, HDMI 1.2 output, an internal 256 MB memory chip (units released prior to fall 2008 included a 256 MB memory unit), and 5 Xbox Live Arcade titles: Boom Boom Rocket, Feeding Frenzy, Luxor 2, Pac-Man Championship Edition, and Uno on a single disk, which also includes a “Welcome Video” and several game trailers/demos. Holiday 2008 consoles were bundled with Sega Superstars Tennis. With the September 4, 2008 price cuts, the Arcade fell from $279 to $199.. In Europe, with the 2009 Elite price drop and discontinuation of the “Premium” Pro bundle, the Arcade price rose to £159.99 from
£129.99
• The Xbox 360 Pro (sometimes referred to as Premium and packaged as simply Xbox 360 with the subheading “Go Pro”) includes all the features of the Xbox 360 Arcade and includes a hybrid composite and component cable with optional optical out instead of a composite cable. This model also includes a detachable 60 GB Hard Disk Drive (previously a 20 GB HDD) to store downloaded content, provide compatibility with original Xbox games, and store game data. The included hard drive comes with game demos, video clips and a free Live Arcade game, Hexic HD. In July 2007, this version of the Xbox 360 began appearing with the Zephyr motherboard (the motherboard used in the Elite) which features HDMI 1.2 output and an improved GPU heatsink. Although this package does include an HDMI 1.2 output, it does not come with HDMI 1.2 cables. Starting at the end of September 2007, the newest systems were shipped with the new “Falcon” motherboard. This motherboard includes the new 65-nm CPUs, making them quieter and cooler than the older systems. On August 1, 2008, the 20 GB Xbox 360 was discontinued and was replaced by a 60 GB HDD model at the same price. Holiday 2008 consoles were bundled with Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures and Kung Fu Panda. Price cuts that took effect on September 4, 2008 reduced the price from $349 to $299.
• The Xbox 360 Elite is the second most expensive variation of the console. It includes a 120 GB hard drive and a matte black finish. The Elite retail package also includes a controller and headset that match the system’s black finish. The initial release price was US$479.99, C$549.99, £299.99, and AU$729.95. The Elite was released in Europe on August 24, 2007, and Australia on August 30, 2007. Early Elite models shipped using the Zephyr motherboard, though later models used the Falcon 65 nm chipset instead. These Elites (and other Xbox 360 models using the Falcon) can be identified from earlier versions by a re-designed power connector and a power supply that runs at 175w. As of
2009 Elite models using the Jasper chipset have become available; these are identified by a 12.1V power supply. Holiday 2008 consoles were bundled with Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures and Kung Fu Panda. The Elite’s price tag was cut from $449 to $399 on September 4, 2008.
• The Xbox 360 Elite has also been configured with a 250GB hard disk drive and 2 wireless controllers on special limited editions of the console. The 250GB Elite will retail at US$399.99, UK£249.99 and AU$599.00 on 10 November 2009. A Modern Warfare 2 bundle includes a special limited edition console design and a flat black finish. The other bundle will include a standard Elite finish and the game Forza Motorsport 3.
Hardware
The main unit of the Xbox 360 itself has slight double concavity in matte white or black. The official color of the white model is Arctic Chill. It features a port on the top when vertical (left side when horizontal) to which a custom-housed hard drive unit can be attached in sizes of either 20, 60 (August 2008 onward) or 120 GB. Inside, the Xbox 360 uses the triple-core IBM designed Xenon as its CPU, with each core capable of simultaneously processing two threads, and can therefore operate on up to six threads at once. Graphics processing is handled by the ATI Xenos, which has 10 MB of eDRAM. Its main memory pool is 512 MB in size.
Accessories
Many accessories are available for the console, including both wired and wireless controllers, faceplates for customization, headsets for chatting, a webcam for video chatting, dance mats and Gamercize for exercise, three sizes of memory cards, and three sizes of hard drives (120GB, 60GB, and 20GB), among other items, all of which are styled to match the console.
source from wikipedia
