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Xbox (console)

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Xbox
File:Xbox (logo1).jpg
File:Xbox console.jpg
ManufacturerMicrosoft
TypeVideo game console
GenerationSixth generation era
LifespanNovember 15, 2001
MediaDVD
Online servicesXbox Live
Best-selling gameHalo 2

The Microsoft Xbox is a sixth generation era video game console first released on November 15, 2001 in North America, then released on February 22, 2002 in Japan, and later on March 14, 2002 in Europe. The Xbox was Microsoft's first independent venture into the video game console arena, after having developed the operating system and development tools for the MSX, and having collaborated with Sega in porting Windows CE to the Sega Dreamcast console. Notable launch titles for the console include Amped, Dead or Alive 3, Halo: Combat Evolved, Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee, and Project Gotham Racing.

History

Development

The Xbox was initially developed within Microsoft by a small team which included Seamus Blackley, a game developer and high energy physicist. The rumors of a video game console being developed by Microsoft first emerged at the end of 1999 following interviews of Bill Gates. Gates said that a gaming/multimedia device was essential for multimedia convergence in the new times of digital entertainment. In May 2000 the "Xbox Project" was officially confirmed by Microsoft.

Some see the Xbox as a way to capitalize on the growing video game market, noting that the PC market growth was stagnating after the dot-com bust. According to the book Smartbomb, by Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby, the remarkable success of the upstart Sony PlayStation worried Microsoft in late 1990s. The growing video game market seemed to threaten the PC market which Microsoft had dominated and relied upon for most of its revenues. As well, a venture into the gaming console market would also diversify Microsoft's product line, which up to that time had been heavily concentrated into software.

The authors concluded that the Xbox project as a direct response to the upcoming PlayStation 2. Being based upon Windows and standard PC hardware, the Xbox was more familiar to developers and as a result was significantly easier to develop for in contrast to PlayStation 2's proprietary processor and operating system. The Xbox also presented a standardized alternative to the near-endless variety of end-user configurations on the PC. The Xbox even brought high-end gaming technology to the mainstream, sporting a top of the line GeForce 3 equivalent graphics processor, a built-in Ethernet adapter, and Dolby Digital 5.1 sound.

  • Ruby, A., Chaplin, H. (2005) Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution. ISBN 1565123468.

Software

File:Full9 11.jpg
The Xbox was featured on the cover of the November 2001 issue of Wired magazine.

The Xbox launched in North America on November 15, 2001. The greatest success of the Xbox's launch games was Halo: Combat Evolved, which was critically well-received [1] and one of the best-selling games of the year. Halo still remains the console's standout title. Other successful launch titles included NFL Fever 2002, Project Gotham Racing[2] and Dead or Alive 3 [3]). However, the failure of several first-party games (including Fuzion Frenzy [4] and Azurik: Rise of Perathia [5]) damaged the initial public reputation of the Xbox.

Although it enjoyed strong third-party support from its inception, many early Xbox games did not take full advantage of its powerful hardware, with few additional features or graphical improvements to distinguish themselves from the PS2 version, and this negated one of the Xbox's main selling points. Lastly, Sony countered the Xbox by making exclusivity deals for highly anticipated games such as the Grand Theft Auto series and Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty.

In 2002 and 2003, several releases helped the Xbox to gain momentum and distinguish itself from the PS2. The Xbox Live online service was launched with a strong lineup including MotoGP 2, MechAssault and Ghost Recon. Several best-selling and critically-acclaimed titles for the Xbox were published, such as Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, Ninja Gaiden, and Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Take-Two Interactive's exclusivity deal with Sony was amended to allow Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and its sequels to be published on the Xbox. In addition, many other publishers got into the trend of releasing the the Xbox version alongside the PS2 version, instead of delaying it for months.

In 2004, Halo 2 set records as highest grossing release in entertainment history [6] as well as being a successful killer app for the online service. That year, Microsoft and Electronic Arts reached a deal which would see the latter's popular titles enabled on Xbox Live. In 2005, the long-awaited Xbox-exclusive Doom 3, Half-Life 2, and Far Cry Instincts were released.

Xbox Live

In November 2002 Microsoft released the Xbox Live online gaming service, allowing subscribers to play online Xbox games with (or against) other subscribers all around the world and download new content for their games to the hard drive. This online service works exclusively with broadband. 250,000 subscribers had signed on in 2 months since Live was launched [7]. In July 2004, Microsoft announced that Xbox Live reached 1 million subscribers, and announced in July 2005 that Live had reached 2 million.

Market share

Some critics were initially concerned that the Xbox would allow Microsoft to extend its dominance of the PC software market to consoles. However, as of February 2005, estimates show the Xbox's share of the worldwide console market is only moderately ahead of the Nintendo GameCube and far behind the PlayStation 2. According to company documents, Microsoft has shipped 22 million consoles to retailers worldwide[8]. Although ahead of the GameCube's 18.5 million, this was far behind the PlayStation 2's 90 million (the GameCube and PlayStation 2 have since reached 19.8 million[9] and 100 million[10], respectively). The Xbox has enjoyed its greatest success in North America, where an estimated 13.5 million units have been sold and where it managed for a time to outsell the PS2[11]. In Europe, the Xbox's market share is currently ahead of the GameCube, but is still behind the PlayStation 2.

The Xbox has sold poorly in Japan mainly because Microsoft was unable to enlist enough local developers to cater to Japanese interests. The large size of the hardware itself did not endear itself to the many size-sensitive Japanese consumers.

Internal documents show that the Xbox division had invested $4 billion from 2000 to 2005. [12] In particular, the Xbox hardware itself is a loss leader, since the console was sold at a loss even at its debut price. The losses deepened when sales of the Xbox increased and when the price was reduced successive times to compete with PlayStation 2 [13]. Microsoft predicted that it would not make a profit on the Xbox for at least three years. This prediction turned out to be correct; Microsoft Game Studios, Microsoft's game division in charge of Xbox development, had its first profitable quarter reported in January 2005 [14].

Hardware

The Xbox was designed to take advantage of a slowdown in the saturated PC gaming market and incorporates a built-in Ethernet adapter. At the time of its introduction, the Xbox was the only game console to do so. Also, the console cost as much as the high-end GeForce 3 video card alone in 2001, while having comparable graphics processing power (the Xbox's NV2A graphics chipset is a derivative of the GeForce 3). Nonetheless, most of these features were not fully exploited in its first year of launch, notably the lack of Xbox Live online multiplayer.

The Xbox was the first console to incorporate a hard disk drive, used primarily for storing game saves (eliminating the need for separate memory cards) and content downloaded from Xbox Live. Most of the games also use it as a disk cache, for faster game loading times. Some games support "Custom soundtracks," another particularly unusual feature allowed by the hard drive. An Xbox owner can rip music from standard Audio CDs to the hard drive so players can use their custom soundtrack in addition to the original soundtrack of Xbox games that support such feature.

Although the Xbox is based on commodity PC hardware and runs a stripped-down version of the Windows 2000 kernel using APIs based largely on DirectX 8.1, it incorporates changes optimized for gaming uses as well as restrictions designed to prevent uses not approved by Microsoft. That is why Xbox is running on Real Mode and not Protected Mode as seen on Windows 2000. Therefore if the Xbox crashes, the only way to recover is to reboot the console as there is no multitasking support on Real Mode. The Xbox does not use Windows CE due to Microsoft internal politics at the time, as well as limited support in Windows CE for DirectX.

The Xbox itself is much larger and heavier than its contemporaries. This is largely due to a bulky tray-loading DVD-ROM drive and the standard-size 3.5" hard drive. Because of this, the Xbox has found itself a target of mild derision, as gamers poke fun at it for things like a warning in the Xbox manual that a falling Xbox "could cause serious injury" to a small child or pet. However, the Xbox has also pioneered safety features, such as breakaway cables for the controllers to prevent the console from being yanked from the shelf.

The original game controller design, which was particularly large, was similarly often criticized since it was ill-suited to those with small hands. In response to these criticisms, a smaller controller was introduced for the Japanese Xbox launch. This Japanese controller (which was briefly imported by even mainstream video game store chains, such as GameStop) was subsequently released in other markets as the "Xbox Controller S", and currently all Xbox consoles come with a "Controller S", while the original controller (known as Controller "0" or "The Duke") was quietly discontinued.

Several internal hardware revisions have been made in an ongoing battle to discourage modding (hackers continually updated modchip designs in attempt to defeat them), cut manufacturing costs, and to provide a more reliable DVD-ROM drive (some of the early units' drives gave Disc Reading Errors). Microsoft extended the warranty on those first generation Xboxes that came with faulty drives and fixed them for free, unlike Sony and their first generation PS2s.

Detailed specifications

  • CPU: 32 Bit Integer but with 64 Bit Floating Point Micro PGA2 733 MHz Intel Coppermine Core, soldered in, with a 133 MHz FSB. It shares the same cache size and S-Spec number as a Celeron but it has a higher FSB and architecture like the Pentium III.
    • 128 kB L2 cache. 8-way associative unlike 4-way on Celeron.
    • 368 double precision MIPS (Whetstone) per CPU
    • 605 integer MIPS (Dhrystone) per CPU
  • Graphics Processor: 233 MHz custom chip named the NV2A, developed by Microsoft and nVIDIA (based on of the GeForce 3 but with 2 vertex shaders to the GeForce 3's single vertex shader)
  • Total (shared) Memory: 64 MB DDR SDRAM running at 200 MHz, supplied by Hynix or Samsung depending on manufacture date and location
  • Memory Bandwidth: 6.4 GB/s
  • Polygon Performance: 125 million flat-shaded polys/second
  • Sustained Polygon Performance: 100+ M/s (transformed and lit polygons per second)
  • Micropolygons/particles per second: 125 M/s
  • Particle Performance: 125 M/s
  • Simultaneous Textures: 4
  • Pixel Fill Rate - No Texture: 4.0 G/s (anti-aliased)
  • Pixel Fill Rate - 1 Texture: 4.0 G/s anti-aliased
  • Compressed Textures: Yes (6:1 through DDS)
  • Full Scene Anti-Aliasing: Yes
  • Micro Polygon Support: Yes
  • Storage Medium: 2-5x DVD (XFAT), 8 gigabyte hard disk (new consoles contain a 10GB physical hard drive, though it is formatted to only use 8GB, uses XFAT), optional 8MB memory card for savegame transfer
  • I/O: 2-5x IDE DVD, 8 or 10GB IDE hard disk, USB memory card (flash)
  • Audio Processor : nVIDIA MCPX
  • Audio Channels: 64 3D channels (up to 256 stereo voices)
  • 3D Audio Support: Yes, 5.1
  • MIDI DLS2 Support: Yes
  • AC3 (Dolby Digital) Encoded Game Audio: Yes (via TOSLINK)
  • Broadband Enabled: Yes (10/100base-T ethernet)
  • DVD Movie Playback: Yes (separate DVD Playback Kit/Remote required or by modding the Xbox and run homebrew sofwares that can playback DVD Movie)
  • Maximum Resolution (2x32bpp frame buffers +Z): 1920(vert.)x1080(horiz)
    • Note: NTSC (Non-HD) TV's have less than 500 horizontal lines. PAL TV's have less than 600 horizontal lines.
  • EDTV and HDTV Support: 480p/720p/1080i (see game boxes for supported resolutions).
  • Controller Ports: 4 proprietary USB ports
  • Weight: 3.86 kg
  • Dimensions: 320 × 100 × 260 mm (12.5 × 4 × 10.5 inches)

Manufacturing photos can be found here.

Special Limited Editions

Clear Black Limited Edition

In 2001, a Clear Black Limited Edition Xbox was released in Japan to commemorate the Xbox's Japanese release. The system had a limited manufacturing run of 50,000 units, and originally retailed for ¥35'800 yen. Included with the Clear Black console was a matching Clear Black Controller S, an Xbox Component AV pack, and a key chain that had Bill Gates's signature and the console's serial number engraved in it.

Panzer Dragoon Orta Special Edition

On December 19, 2002, a Panzer Dragoon Orta Special Edition Xbox was released in Japan to commemorate the release of Panzer Dragoon Orta on the Xbox. This quickly became the most sought-after Xbox to date. This Special Edition had a limited production of 999 units; however, it is rumored that there are actually 1,049 units in total. The console's special features included a white case with the Panzer Dragoon Orta logo in top's the lower left hand corner, as well as some artwork from Orta surrounding the Xbox jewel. The Panzer Dragoon Orta Special Edition was priced at ¥35'800 ($358) and could only be pre-ordered on November 1, 2002 through Sega Direct. Included with the Special Edition console was a matching white Controller S, an Xbox Component A/V cable, an Xbox Component AV pack, a copy of Panzer Dragoon Orta with its soundtrack CD, and a dragon head necklace.

File:Xbox halo system.jpg
The Halo Special Edition Xbox released in March 2004.
Green Limited Edition

On May 2, 2003 a Translucent Green Limited Edition Xbox was released in Europe to celebrate Xbox's one-year European birthday. The console came with two matching Controller S and retailed for €229/£149. The styling of the Translucent Green Xbox is identical to Debug Units used in game development; of course, the retail versions lacked the words "Debug Unit" on the front of the case. The green Controller S was also sold separately.

Pure White Limited Edition
File:Pure White Limited Xbox.jpg
The Pure White Limited Xbox was released in Japan in February 2004.

On February 22, 2004, a Pure White Limited Xbox Console was released in Japan, to commemorate the console's two-year anniversary in that country. The system had a limited manufacturing run of 1,000 units and allowed purchasers to personalize their console with up to twenty letters (Japanese characters not allowed) engraved on the case. The words "Limited Edition 2004" were also carved into the jewel of the console, and into the exclusive Controller S (right below the Xbox name). The original retail price for the Pure White Limited Xbox was ¥19'800 yen ($186) and was only available for purchase online at the Official Xbox Japan website between the dates of January 30 and February 6, 2004. Included with the Pure White console was a matching Controller S, a DVD Playback Kit, and an Xbox Live Starter Kit with a free one-year membership and voice communicator.

Crystal Limited Edition

On March 14, 2004, the Crystal Limited Edition Xbox was released in Europe to celebrate the Xbox's European birthday. With a price tag of €199/£139, the Crystal Limited Edition came with a transparent console and two matching Crystal Controller S. It is unknown how many Crystal Limited Editions were produced, however; later bundles were released pairing a re-released Crystal Xbox with different Xbox games and Xbox Live subscriptions. The Crystal console was re-released on October 8, 2004 in a new bundle (but with only one controller) at the normal Xbox price of €149/£99. A Crystal Controller S was also availible separately.

Halo Special Edition

On March 14, 2004, Microsoft released a special version of the Xbox in the United States, Australia and New Zealand. This version was translucent green and came with a copy of Halo: Combat Evolved and a matching translucent green Controller S. The console case featured the Halo logo and the words "Special Edition"; the controller had a jewel that had the Halo logo in place of the normal Xbox logo. The version of Halo that came with this bundle was identical to other versions of Halo, with the exception of a "NOT FOR RESALE" notice placed on the front of the game case. 200,000 of these Xboxes were produced.

Kasumi-chan Blue Edition

On March 25, 2004, a Kasumi-chan Blue Xbox console was released in Japan. The system had a limited manufacturing run of 5,000 units, and was released simultaneously with Tecmo's fighting game, Dead or Alive Online. The translucent blue case was based on the costume of Dead or Alive's main character, Kasumi, and had "Dead or Alive Online" written in white lettering in the lower left corner of the top of the case. The original retail price was ¥22'800 yen ($215), and included the translucent blue console with a matching Controller S, a DVD Playback Kit, an Xbox Live Starter Kit with a free one-year membership, a copy of Dead or Alive Online, and a five-foot-long Kasumi body pillow.

Halo 2 Limited Edition (Blue)

On March 18, 2005, an Ice Blue Halo 2 Limited Edition Xbox was released in Canada and Asia. The console was translucent blue and retailed for approximately $249. Included with the Ice Blue console was a matching Controller S, and a copy of Halo 2.

Mountain Dew Limited Edition

The Mountain Dew Limited Edition Xbox was only available through a Mountain Dew sweepstakes requiring loyal Dew-drinking Xbox fans to amass 550 points in order to "buy" the Limited Edition Xbox. The sweepstakes spanned 5 months – from April to August – in 2004. Production numbers are unknown. The Mountain Dew Limited Edition Xbox was neon-green colored and had a special jewel atop the Xbox that had the words "Limited Edition" and the Mt. Dew logo under the Xbox name. Included with the neon green console was one of two games: Project Gotham Racing 2 or Amped 2.

Hello Kitty Crystal Edition

The Hello Kitty Crystal Xbox was released with Sanrio in Singapore, to commemorate the release of Hello Kitty Mission Rescue on the Xbox. The special edition console was translucent with a pink and orange Hello Kitty picture covering the X on top of the case. A limited production run of 550 units was sold at a retail price of S$99 (US$61), if you purchase selected Samsung LCD TVs during a promotion. Included with the Hello Kitty Crystal console was a matching Crystal Controller S and a copy of Hello Kitty Mission Rescue.

Official Xbox accessories

Audio/video connectors

  • Standard AV Cable: Provides composite video and monaural or stereo audio to TVs equipped with RCA inputs. Comes with the system. European systems come with a RCA jack to SCART converter block in addition to the cable.
  • RF Adapter: Provides a combined audio and video signal on an RF connector.
  • Advanced AV Pack: A breakout box that provides S-Video and TOSLINK audio in addition to the RCA composite video and stereo audio of the Standard AV Cable.
  • High Definition AV Pack: A breakout box, intended for HDTVs, that provides a YPrPb component video signal over three RCA connectors. Also provides analog RCA and digital TOSLINK audio outputs.
  • Advanced SCART Cable: The European equivalent to the Advanced AV Pack, providing a full RGB video SCART connection in place of S-Video, RCA composite and stereo audio connections (composite video and stereo are still provided by the cable, through the SCART connector, in addition to the RGB signal), while retaining the TOSLINK audio connector. As Europe has no HDTV standard, no High Definition cable is currently provided in those markets.

Numerous unofficial third-party cables and breakout boxes exist that provide combinations of outputs not found in these official video packages; however, with the exception of a few component-to-VGA transcoders and custom-built VGA boxes, the four official video packages represent all of the Xbox's possible outputs. This output selectivity is made possible by the Xbox's SCART-like AVIP port.

Networking

  • Ethernet (Xbox Live) Cable: A Cat 5 cable for connecting the Xbox to a broadband modem or router. Note that while there is an "official" Xbox 'System Link' cable (a crossover cat5e cable), any PC ethernet cable can be used in the normal way treating the xbox as an NIC, eg an Xbox-Xbox connection requires a crossover cable, whereas an xbox-switch connection requires a straight-through cable.
  • Xbox Wireless Adapter: a wireless bridge which converts data running through an ethernet cable to a wireless (802.11b or 802.11g) signal to connect to a wireless LAN. While the official Wireless Adapter guarantees compatibility with the Xbox, almost any wireless bridge can be used.
  • Xbox Live Starter Kit: A subscription and installation pack for the Xbox Live service, as well as a headset (with monaural earpiece and microphone) that connects to a control box that plugs into the top expansion slot of a controller. The headset can in fact be replaced with most standard earpiece-and-microphone headsets; headset specialist Plantronics produce various officially-licensed headsets, including a special-edition headset for Halo 2.
  • System Link Cable: A Cat 5 crossover cable for connecting together two consoles or a Cat 5 straight through cable used in conjunction with an ethernet hub for connecting up to four consoles, for up to 16 total players. This functionality is similar to Sega's DirectLink for Sega Saturn.

Multimedia

  • Xbox Media Center Extender: A kit that allows Xbox to act as a Media Center Extender to stream content from a Windows XP Media Center Edition PC. It can also be used for DVD playback.
  • DVD Playback Kit: Required in order to play DVD movies, the kit includes an infrared remote control and receiver. DVD playback was not included as a standard feature of the Xbox due to licensing issues with the DVD format that would have added extra cost to the console's base price. By selling a DVD remote separately, Microsoft was able to bundle the cost of the DVD licensing fee with it. Although there is nothing to prevent the Xbox from acting as a progressive-scan DVD player, Microsoft chose not to enable this feature in the Xbox DVD kit in order to avoid royalty payments to the patent-holder of progressive scan DVD playback. Later, as the price of the Xbox dropped, the DVD remote was bundled.
  • Xbox Music Mixer: A utility software bundled with a microphone that connects to an adapter that plugs into the top expansion slot of a controller. Provides a music player with 2D/3D visualizations as well as basic karaoke functions. It also allows users to upload pictures in JPG format (to create slide shows) as well as audio in WMA and MP3 format (for karaoke or a game's Custom Soundtracks feature) from a Windows XP machine running the Xbox Music Mixer PC Tool.

Controllers and removable storage

  • The Xbox controller features two analog sticks, a digital pad, two analog triggers, a Back button, a Start button, two accessory slots, and six 8-bit analog action buttons (ABXY, Black, and White). The precise layout of the controls differs between the two variations of controller.
    Standard Xbox Controller (AKA "Controller O" or "The Duke"): Originally the normal Xbox controller for all territories except Japan, this has since been quietly discontinued and replaced in Xbox packs by the Controller S. It is considered to be bulky. The black and white buttons are located above the ABXY buttons, and the Back/Start buttons are located between and below the d-pad and right thumbstick.
    Controller S: A smaller, lighter Xbox controller. Once the standard Xbox controller in Japan, it was released in other territories by popular demand, and eventually replaced the standard controller in the retail pack for the Xbox console. The white and black buttons are located below the ABXY buttons, and the Back/Select buttons are similarly placed below the left thumbstick.
  • Memory Unit: An 8 MB removable solid-state memory card onto which game saves can either be copied from the hard drive when in the Xbox Dashboard's memory manager or saved during a game. Note that some recent games (e.g. Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball) do not support this accessory as a cheat prevention measure. This system has been defeated by the Xbox hacking community, who have developed tools to modify gamesaves to work in a different console, though some unique technical information concerning the recipient Xbox must be known.
  • Logitech 2.4 GHz wireless controller. Approved by Microsoft for wireless gameplay with Xbox.

Screenshots

Xbox and DirectX

Microsoft's set of low-level APIs for game development and multimedia purposes, DirectX, was used as a basis for the Xbox's hardware programming. The Xbox API is similar to DirectX version 8.1, but is non-updateable just like other console technologies.

Modding the Xbox

The recent popularity of the Xbox has inspired efforts to circumvent the built-in hardware and software security mechanisms (sometimes in order to use the Xbox as a low cost web server), as well as to add customized design touches to the console's case (similar to PC case modding). Hardware modding can involve anything from simply replacing the console's green decorative "jewel" with a custom-designed one to opening up the case and installing a modchip.

In July 2005, a 22 year old Cambridge University graduate was convicted under the EU Copyright Directive for modifying Xboxes and selling them with an upgraded 200 GB hard drive, which was pre-loaded with 80 games. This was the first conviction of its kind in the UK. (The Directive makes it illegal to circumvent copy protection systems on hardware including video game consoles). It is the first conviction since the Directive was enacted in October 2003 in the UK. He was sentenced to 140 hours community service, ordered to pay £750 costs at a court in Caerphilly, Wales, and his computer equipment was confiscated. [15][16]

Software modding is much less intrusive, and only involves running software exploits to trick the Xbox into running unsigned program code. This allows running an alternate dashboard such as [UIX], Avalaunch, Evolution-X or UnleashX and in turn makes playing original (free) homebrew games or various older games through arcade and console game emulators possible. This is especially attractive as the Xbox is designed to output to TVs, and high-quality controllers and arcade sticks are available for it.

The original hard drive can be replaced with a larger one. Then Xbox games can be copied from the DVD to the hard disk with programs such as DVD2Xbox and PxHDDLoader, and then played directly from the hard drive. This allows the user to spare game disks from scratching and allows for faster load times. This process does require a modded Xbox using one of the alternative dashboards, and is used by scrupulous users to eliminate load times or leave their games in storage, and by unscrupulous users to play illegally copied games.

Beyond gaming, a modded Xbox can be used as a media center with the Xbox Media Center software (XBMC) allowing the playing of DVDs without the DVD dongle/remote and streaming of music and video files from the hard drive or from another computer over a network. A modded Xbox can even be configured into a computer running Linux, FreeBSD, or Microsoft Windows CE operating systems.

Modding an Xbox may require opening the Xbox case, and would certainly void the Xbox's warranty. Also, most internal hardware modifications will render an Xbox unable to participate in Xbox Live, which has forced many modders to use a switch that turns on and off their modifications. As of November 2004, Microsoft has been taking new actions for banning Xboxes with hard drive modifications from the Xbox Live service. One such successful use of Live to discourage modding was when the hit game Halo 2 was released, and many owners of modded consoles found out that they were permanently banned from the Xbox Live service, but was retaliated with On-Off switchable Modchips (or add-ons) and XBOX Live friendly softmods from XBOX hackers community.

Probably the most legal way of modding the Xbox is replacing the whole motherboard so that you can install Linux or any other operating system designed for PC without having to hack anything. There are now sites that offer to modify the software on your Xbox for free. Modding your Xbox in this manner will definitely void your warranty, since it requires you to disassemble the console.

Price history

North America 

*US$179 (May 14, (2003)

Europe

Oceania

  • AU$699 AUD (26 April, 2002, Launch Price) (Quickly dropped to $399 to compete with launch of Nintendo GameCube)
  • AU$399 AUD (2004)
  • AU$299 AUD (2005)
  • NZ$499 NZD (3 October, 2002, Launch Price)
  • AU$349 (2003)
  • NZ$399 (2003)
  • AU$299 (2004)
  • NZ$349 (2004)
  • AU$249 (2004, 2005)
  • NZ$299 (2004 Q2)
  • NZ$249 (2004 Q4, 2005)

Of note is the high European launch price. As with many games consoles (for example, the PlayStation series), the Xbox was launched with a price in GBP equal to its US price in USD (in this case, $/£299), and this price then converted for the rest of Europe. Obviously, ignoring the GBP-USD exchange rate in the way gives the impression of a 100% mark-up for Europe.

With a price-dropped PlayStation 2 and a comparatively inexpensive GameCube as competition, many users were naturally reluctant to invest in the console. Microsoft countered with a £100 price drop (and its equivalent in the rest of Europe) some scant months after launch. To avoid frustrating early adopters, they offered a bundle containing two games and one controller for free to any purchaser who could provide a sales receipt showing the original higher price.

Xbox 360

Main article: Xbox 360
File:Xballlogo.jpg

Microsoft's next generation Xbox, the Xbox 360, was released on November 22, 2005. NVIDIA ceased production of the Xbox's GPU in August of that year, which almost certainly marks the end of Xbox production and the quick release of the Xbox 360 featuring a new GPU from NVIDIA's rival ATI. [17]

When equipped with a removable hard drive add-on, the Xbox 360 supports a limited subset of the Xbox's library (more than 200 games at US launch) through emulation. (Games in emulation add support for the Xbox 360's higher screen resolution and anti-aliasing abilities.) These emulators are periodically updated to add compatibility for older games; these updates are available for free on Xbox Live for those with the hard drive. As the architectures are entirely different between Xbox and Xbox 360, unlike other backward compatible consoles such as the PlayStation 2, software emulation is the only viable option for compatibility.

Programming for Xbox

Due to the similarity in hardware compared to a PC, many programmers can create applications and games using the Xbox Development Kit (XDK) without a major learning curve. The XDK is a software development kit which includes libraries for C/C++. Using the XDK requires a license and distributing binaries compiled using the XDK without permission is illegal. OpenXDK is an open-source alternative, but Xbox applications made with OpenXDK do not have any signed codes required by original Xbox dashboard, therefore modded Xbox is needed to run them. [18]

See also

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Xbox_(console)&oldid=36897894"