Xbox 360 Accessories

Xbox 360 Accessories

Just like a car, Microsoft XBox consoles also have accessories. If you search for it online, there is an additional tax for shipping and delivery rate. You can get your Xbox accessories on www.amazon.com or even on www.ebay.com.

However, the XBox enthusiasts get theirs at toy stores. Besides, it is cheaper. Here is a list of the available accessories for the Microsoft XBox.

1. XBox Controllers

These are standard accessories, meaning they are made available when you buy the system. But some gamers tened to overuse their controller that they soon need a new one.

It is interesting to note that there is an array of XBox controllers available on the market. Like there are wireless controllers, XBox Eclipse controller, XBox Afterglow controller and so much more. It is all up to the gamer which one to get.



2. XBox Arcade Sticks

There are some games available for the XBox that can be controlled by arcade sticks for better game play. As opposed to the controller, arcade sticks can allow the gamers to flick their wrists more, therefore, there’s better control.

Best example where the XBox Arcade Sticks are compatible are the fighting games for the console.



3. XBox Steering Wheels

If there are fighting games, there are also driving games. Thanks to XBox Steering Wheels, the gamer can sit right in front of the TV set and drive away.






4. XBox Memory Cards

Memory cards aren't included when you buy an XBox console. This is because it isn't an essential accessory since the XBox has an 8 GB harddisk build-in. This can let the player save all his game information.

An XBox memory card is used when transferring a saved game from one XBox console to another. Some serious gamers also prefer that they back up their games, especially when it is a valued endeavor.

XBox memory cards are perfect for hardcore gamers. It is inserted in the console and plugged into the sockets on its two memory card slots.


5. XBox Headset With Communicator

The most successful game in the entire XBox franchise is “Halo”. Released in 2004, it is still as popular as ever. A headset with a communicator lets the gamer interact with the other players of “Halo” making it more real. Read More..

Life After Xbox Mods

Life After Xbox Mods


If you’re a novice gamer and you’ve decided to start out your gaming experience with an Xbox, you’ll probably have lots of people suggesting you to subject your Xbox to modding. Whether this is the right choice to do or not depends entirely up to you.

What Is Xbox Modding?

Modding is a technically illegal practice that makes use of various techniques and methods to get around security measures and other restrictions programmed by the manufacturer. Just a few months after the release of the Xbox 360 to the global market, the Internet had spawned a number of modding methods to allow players to get around signature checking and advertising and permit use of game backups and other add-ons.

What Xbox Has To Say About Modding

If and when you do allow the use of mods on your Xbox, this will automatically nullify your warranty contract with Microsoft, the maker of Xbox, because several mods require dismantling your gaming unit. It will also ban you from making full use of the Xbox Live Marketplace unless you’re able to install a mod whose sole purpose is concealing the use of mods.

Four Ways For Installing Xbox Mods

Modchip

? When you install this particular mod on your Xbox, you will have to hire a technician to disassemble your unit in order to insert the chip unless you believe you have the necessary technical skills to do it yourself. One little mistake can cause the whole unit to break down completely so care and precision must be exercised when installing this chip.

Upon installation, a modchip will allow you to play games and other add-ons that are presently considered unacceptable.

TSOP Flashing

? TSOP stands for thin small-outline package and this particular mod allows you to make the motherboard of your gaming unit writable. Be aware that TSOP flashing is only applicable for Xbox units V1.0 to V1.5

Softmod

? Unlike a modchip, softmods are any modification which is implemented through a software program. When softmod is installed, players are able to gain access to previously restricted parts of the game. If multibooting is implemented, softmods won’t affect your access to the Xbox Live Marketplace. Keep in mind however that softmods don’t always work.

Hot Swap

? Lastly, with hot swaps, you can use your very own desktop to change a particular set of information inside your Xbox’s hard disk drive.

Many things can go right…or wrong when you install Xbox mods so do be sure about what you want before taking any action. Read More..

Nintendo Wii Hardware Reviewed

Nintendos seventh generation gaming console was code named Revolution. It sought to becoming futuristic and including all conveniences like a wireless controller and Wii remote which has three dimensional functions. The Nintendo Wii also has Wii Connect 24 which can receive messages from the World Wide Web.

Slated for release in the US in mid Nov 2006, the Ninetendo Wii won the Game Critics Award for Best of Show and Best Hardware at the E3 2006. The hardware of the gaming console is state-of-art with the unit being the smallest measuring just 157 mm in height :
• The loading slot is in the front and accepts 12cm optical discs and 8 cms discs from Nintendo's older console.

• The console will have two USB ports and one SD card slot.

• In Japan the console will have DVD -Video capabilities. A Sonic Solutions Cine Player CE DVD Navigator software engine will be used in consoles to be released in 2007 with DVD-Video functions.

• The Wii remote has accelerometers and infrared detection that enables positioning in 3D space. This means gamers can participate in the game using hand gestures as well as buttons. The controller connects to the Wii console through Bluetooth technology. There are umpteen functions like connectivity to other devices, 4KB non volatile memory and an accelerometer, analog stick and trigger buttons.

• The Wii has a sensor bar that can be positioned such that the Wii remote can be used as an accurate pointing device from a distance of 5 meters. However the sensor bar is sensitive to halogen lights and sunlight affecting its functions.

• The Wii CPU has a processor known as Broadway with a 90nm SOI CMOS process. The Memory of the Wii is 1T-SRAM.

• The Nintendo Wii has 512 MB built-in flash memory that can be expanded using an SD card.

• The Wii has four remote controller slots; one SD memory slot; two USB ports; one sensor bar port ;four Nintendo game cube controller ports; two Nintendo game cube memory card ports; WiFi 802.11.b/g wireless built in ports.

• The Wii can connect to the World Wide Web through the WiFi and USB to Ethernet adaptor.

The CNET editors have rated the Nintendo Wii as an 8 /10. According to experts at CNET the positive is the futuristic controller design with motion-sensitive gameplay options and the Wi-Fi is all set to extend free online services and game play. The Nintendo Wii is the most affordable of all GenX gaming systems. The negative in the Wii is short battery life, no advanced HD graphics or surround sound and inability to play CDs or DVDs.

What Nintendo Wii brings to gaming is an affordable console with motion sensitive controllers and a focus on fun filled gaming.

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XBox 360 Overheating Issues

XBox 360 Overheating Issues



Since the new XBox 360s came out, there has been lots of talk about overheating issues. According to Microsoft, this accounts for just a tiny percent of all their machines, but there are an awfully lot of overheating stories out there. Lots of XBox fans aren't happy with the way they're dealing with the problem.

Here's what usually happens: In the middle of a hot game your console freezes up. This happens a few more times, and then you see the Red Rings Of Death. The RR of D is not a feature of XBox, nor a foe in a fantasy game. The RR of D means that you're machine is overheating. Some people have reported seeing an orange screen flashing as well. The Rings shut down your machine and you lose your unsaved data. What it means is that it's overheated.

Some machines overheat after hours of play, but some do in as quickly as 10 minutes. Either way, the machine is defective and something has to be done about it.

Now, you can either send the machine in for repairs, or you can fix it yourself. Lots of gamers have been peeved at Microsoft's slow response to their overheating woes. They say that Microsoft is slow to repair the units. Often, they will offer a refurbished unit instead. Refurbished machines are as good as new, so it sounds pretty good, but there are tons of stories online of defective replacement machines. Some XBox owners have gone through 3 or 4 machines, all of which overheated!

It's a pretty sad state of affairs. Overheat sufferers claim that the company's customer service is less than helpful, and that they fail to adequately take responsibility for their faulty machines.

There are a few things you can do on your own to deal with overheating. Just like any other electronics, try to keep the back of the console clear so that the hot air can escape. With a well-made machine, this shouldn't be a problem, but if you have it all the way back against the wall, it might be a factor in why it overheats.

Supposedly, the root of the overheating problem in XBox 360s is that they tried to cut corners by using cheaply made, slow fans. There are 2 fans on either side, and they are really important for cooling the console. You can always reach back there and feel if the unit feels very cold or super hot. If one of the fans is not turning, or if it is going too slowly, you might want to replace the fan yourself. Of course, it shouldn't be YOUR responsibility to do that, but considering all the headaches customers have had with Microsoft's replacement machines, it just might save you some trouble.

If you send the machine in for a new fan, they may try to gouge you for it. If you look on the web (check eBay), you can find the exact same fans that are used in the XBox 360 for as low as $10. It isn't too difficult to replace the fan yourself, and you can find schematics and tutorials online to help you.

Another minor repair you can do yourself is to put some Arctic Silver 5 on the heatsink. This is a cooling compound that you can buy online. If you apply it on the heatsink, which is located just between the CPU and the fans, it will cool down the components. People who have used Arctic Silver report great results. It seems to keep the unit from ever overheating again.

Remember also that your XBox 360 has a year long warrantee. The original warrantees were six months, but they've since extended it, and it's retroactive. That means if you bought yours within the last year, it still should be covered.

If you would like to save time and money you can fix your Xbox 360 yourself today using simple step by step VIDEO instructions and you could be playing your games again in 30 minutes starting from now!

NEW! You can get all the information and tools you need to make backup copies of virtually every video game you own with nothing more than a CD burner or DVD burner and your home computer. PLUS learn how to play all of your favorite games on your PC, no console, or mod chip needed! Read More..

How to Burn Or Copy XBox 360 Games

You can burn and copy your XBox 360 games, but it takes a little doing. It's not as easy as plopping it in and hitting "start."

There are 2 ways to copy games: you can copy games to your XBox hard drive, or you can use a PC. If you want to burn a copy of your games, you have to use a PC, and the process is a little more complicated. I'll probably say it again later, but you have to have a modded XBox to play copied games. The system is designed so that it won't play copied games, so if you plan on doing this, make sure your XBox has a mod chip first. Otherwise it won't work!

Copying Games To Your XBox Hard Drive

Copying games this way is pretty easy. You'll need one bit of software which is called DVD2XBOX. This is a totally legal piece of software that allows you to back up games, and you can get it for free online. Do a web search and you can find it. You might also want to make sure your XBox has plenty of hard drive space for the backed up games. If you plan to do this, I recommend upgrading your XBox hard drive first, so you have plenty of memory.

Once you have DVD2XBOX on your XBox, it will show up on the dashboard under "applications." If you open this software, it will walk you through step by step on copying and saving the games. It's pretty user friendly, but if you are unsure, there are some easy-to-follow tutorials on the web.

Copying Games To Your PC

This is a lot more complex, but it's the only way to burn your games to disk. You'll need more gear for this. You have to at least have an Ethernet cable, software for converting games to .ISO file, software for burning DVDs or CD-ROMs, and a mod chip in your XBox to play the copied games.

Here's how you do it: First, connect your XBox to your computer with the Ethernet cable. With the Ethernet cable, you can FTP the files and back them up on your hard drive. You'll need to do this in order to copy them. Once you're hooked up, load the games onto your computer using FTP.

The next step is to turn those games into .ISO files. To do this, you'll need some software like Qwix or ISO. Users have reported that both work pretty well, and you can download either one free on the web. They'll need to be in .ISO format in order to be burned onto DVDs.

Next, you'll need some kind of software for burning the files to DVD. Probably the most used software for burning XBox games is Nero's Burning Rom. It's easy to use and makes discs that are compatible with the XBox. Alcohol 120 is also pretty popular. If you want to use another software, just make sure that the discs it burns are XBox compatible. The specs should tell you this.

The best discs to use are recordable DVDs like DVD-R, DVD-RW, or CD-RW's. Before you start burning a bunch of stuff, you should do a test run. Burn one and make sure it works on your XBox before you go totally crazy and burn a bunch.

Now, just burn those .ISO files with Nero or Alcohol 120, and you're good to go. I can't stress it enough: Mod chips are expensive and hard to install, but if you plan to play burned games, you need one. Also, keep in mind that a mod chip voids your warrantee, and you can't do XBox Live with a mod chip.

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