Finally, 360

so ive finally decided on getting a 360. after being very stubborn, greatly disliking the Xbox, and being with nintendo my whole life, it is finally time. ive decided to get the basic 360 (its the cheapest right?) along with Halo 3, Rainbow Six Las Vegas, and the online service. So with all this i have a few questions, anything you guys can tell me is very appreciated:

1. where do you think i could find the cheapest deal? ive been mostly looking for box sets that come with a prepaid online time.

2. i can only think of 5 games that interest me and since i havent been keeping up with xbox, can you guys fill me in? here they are, multiplayer and online is very important to me: Halo 3, Gears of War(maybe), Rainbow Six Vegas, GRAW2, and Lost Planet.

3.do you guys suggest i get anything else? i want to be able to get a good running xbox with atleast 1 game off the bat and be able to set up online asap. and how much do you guys think it will cost me?

i dont have nearly enough money atm but im working hard at it and id like to get the most for my money. once again i appreciate all the help. maybe soon you guys will see me on the net :)

the hard drive or memory unit should only be bought if you plan on going with the basic or core system

Just check out some store websites like BestBuy.com and the like. They'll get you price info. Also, the cheapest 360 is kind of a rip-off since there's no HDD or Mem card in the box. You're better off spending the extra whatever for the one with the Hard Drive. I can never remember which one is Core and which one is Pro, but it's the one in the white box that you'll want to get, not the one in the green box.

And you seem to know what you want with games, but let me say that Dead Rising is something you should consider trying. It's a great game.

well im a nub to the 360, i dont really know what i need. i didnt even know the 360 had 2 different systems.riseneclipse

• You need a broadband internet service to use LIVE
• Router and cables to hook it up
• XboX Live subscription at $50/year
• The machine (duh, right)
• A mem card or HDD is needed for LIVE (obviously HDD is the way to go)
• Halo3
• Dead Rising (yeah, I'm pimping my favorite game... OK!)

Routers and cabling can be bought online way cheaper than in a store. There are sites that sell the stuff just over cost which is usually at least half what they cost in stores, you just have to look around and spend some Google time.

k cool, thx for the answers. so it looks like im looking at $350 for the system plus harddrive. $50 for the Live, and $60? for Halo 3. wow, thats a lot. another thing, i dont have an HDTV, i realize i wont be able to get all of the 360's benefits without one but that game will still run fine and clear enough to play correct? oh and i have cable internet, that wont work online will it? =/

From personal experience, DON'T buy the core system.

From the FIRST day you use it, you will realize you need a hard drive.

Microsoft is DUMB. Doesn't mean you have to be the dumb consumer.

Get the Pro System in the White box, maybe wait for the holiday edition with the game?

All prices U.S.>

Core system = $280 You can not save games. Again, out of the box, YOU CAN NOT SAVE YOUR GAMES IN PROGRESS.

Mem card sm = $40 Not big enough to hold Down Loadable Content (DLC)

Mem card lg = $80 Twice the size but still not even a Gig of space - DUMB CHOICE

Hard drive sm = $ 100 Very necessary if you enjoy SAVING YOUR GAME, your xbox profile, and want to see new demos and game videos FOR FREE

Pro System = $350 Comes with the small 20gig hard drive, 30 days free of Xbox live gold membership, WIRELESS controller, and the compenent out capable video cable.

The math is pretty easy. The pro system is only $70 dollars more. But it comes with more then $120 dollars worth of NECESSARY items that the core system doesn't include.

The best deal in my opinion, is the Elite. I save lots of Demos and Videos. That 120 gigs of mine is about half full now with the fall winter game videos filling up a ton of space.

On the other hand, can anyone suggest a reason to buy a core system, that can not save your games?

bump

like i said guys, im a nub at this. i dont understand what these abbreviations are or if they are needed to do what i want. i dont know if i can get rid of some of these for a cheaper deal or not. also im still not sure about online. do i have to have broadband? or could i connect it up to my internet, i have cable. and i also dont have to have an HDTV for it right? heres a link to what i was considering getting if its fine, could ya commnent on it?

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-Console-20GB-Hard-Drive/dp/B000B43OY4/ref=pd_bbs_2/103-2230123-1607815?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1190930595&sr=8-2

That appears to be an older or used Xbox 360. I strongly urge you not buy a used system. Some Xboxes were opened and voided the warranty, then sold as used. No warranty. Ask anyone, Xbox 360 is not regarded as a reliable piece of equipment.

Here is the link to the newest system, as you can see it has the HDMI. I would bet that it has less of the problems of the first model. But the price is the same so you can't lose really.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000UQAUWW/ref=amb_link_5350082_1/103-8858722-1875018?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=special-offers-1&pf_rd_r=0X9XCWG15C5QM7M6P31A&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=304088501&pf_rd_i=B000B43OY4

The Xbox 359 has a network adapter built in. All you need is to plug in the xbox to a router. Its a standard network cable. You get one month free of XBOX Live. Just sign in and decline to upgrade. It then says, Well, try it for one month anyways!!

Lastly I strongly advise people to get the 2 year easy exchange warranty from your store. Its undoubted you will be dissappointed if your Xbox doesn't last you until Xmas 2008, through no fault of your own, and you have to wait the whole month for Microsoft to get a refurb unit back in your hands.

With that being said, the games on the Xbox 359 are awesome to the nth. Unless you are now waiting for Microshaft to attend to the repair of your Xbox ATM.