Xbox 360 Elite force strikes back

Microsoft just announced that they will start delivering an upgraded version of their gaming console, the Xbox 360, starting from April 29. It will be first available only in USA and Canada, for a price of 480$. Although not having a HD-DVD optic drive, the new Xbox360, called Elite, will benefit from a bigger HDD (120 GB) and a HDMI port.

Considering that the current model of Microsoft’s console has only a 20 GB hard drive, the new version was more than a need. Thus the Xbox 360 Elite now has a storage space twice as big as its main competitor the Sony PlayStation 3. The Nintendo Wii, as you know, lacks an internal HDD. The basic Xbox 360 model is sold for 400$, so the Elite is now a better option, as it’s not a lot more expensive. The 120 GB HDD will also be sold as an external device, for around 180$.

A couple of accessories were also launched today, like the black case for the Xbox (the previous ones were only white) with the matching black wireless controller and the hi-def cable.

Microsoft brings the Xbox 360 Elite with new functions and looks

The HDMI port tries to meet the ever growing hunger of the public for high definition content, especially movies and TV shows. The big hard-disk is a key asset, allowing the customers to store many hours of this kind of materials, downloading them  from the company’s Xbox LIVE online service.

The Xbox 360 Elite still lacks the HD optical drive, and this might be a concern, as not all the people have the adequate Internet connections to get what they want from the Internet. Using movies stored on HD-DVDs might have been an option, but it hasn’t been taken into consideration by Microsoft yet. Perhaps on the Xbox 360 Elite 2…

Source: Reuters (via Gadgetreview)