Here is a video that goes over all the Xbox 360 Elite will offer. I won’t lie and say that I don’t like the look, but it just doesn’t offer anything new to anyone that already has a Xbox 360 premium system. I think in order to call this system Elite there should be some hardware upgrades, not just an expanded HDD and a sexy black finish. The Elite offers nothing unique except the HDMI support that it should have originally came with originally and some pre-loaded software (demos and movies) on the 120 Gb HDD.

Yesterday I posted about all the questions I still had about the Xbox 360 Elite. Someone with inside sources at Microsoft from AVS Forum actually got a chance to ask all of those questions.

The 360 Elite will support HDMI 1.2, which means no Dolby Digital+ or TrueHD sound. It will support uncompressed Linear PCM, but only 2 channel. That’s some BS right there. That shoots down my idea of buying one.

Of equal or possibly better news, the Xbox 360 Spring Dashboard Update will see some VGA improvements as well. You’ll now be able to select your video level, 7.5 IRE vs. 0, to get true 1080p from the VGA port. This excites me. No longer will we have washed out colors and such from the 360 with the VGA connection.

Overall, now that these issues have been answered, I am severely unimpressed with the Xbox 360 Elite. I don’t see any point in buying one. I don’t need the 120GB hard drive either, since I’m not storing tons and tons of content.

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So I’m debating getting an Xbox 360 Elite for the HMDI connection for true 1080p, but I still have some unanswered questions…

What HDMI version is the 360 Elite going to use? I would assume it’s v1.3, but you know never know with Microsoft.

Will the 360 Elite be able to send uncompressed Linear PCM audio over HDMI from HD-DVD sources? This is the big question for me. If it can’t do this, I’m not buying one. After hearing LPCM audio from my PS3 on Blu-Ray movies and comparing to Dolby Digital, it’s like night and day. I want my HD-DVD’s to sound like this too.

We’ve contacted Microsoft but have not received any official word either way. Hopefully they’ll come out and answer these questions. I’ve seen hundreds of forum posts, comments on official Microsoft blogs, etc. asking these exact same things. My question is, why no answer? To me, the lack of comment from Microsoft on the issue means the only thing the HDMI adapter is going to give you is a single cable connection for digital audio and video, but no next-gen audio signals.

We’ll see what happens…

Looks like GameDaily Biz was right on the money. Microsoft today announced the Xbox 360 Elite, which will launch April 29 in the US for $479. The 120GB hard drive will retail for $179 and go on sale the same day.

Basically, everything that has been speculation is now true. There will be a 120GB hard drive, HDMI port, black everything, and it will include an HDMI cable. Even those pics of the box and such that people thought were fake turned out to be real.

There’s no official word as of yet on whether the current Core and Premium systems will get HDMI ports in the near future. Also, no official word on the 120GB hard drive including a data transfer cable. Looks like I might have to put my XSATA to work again after all.

[Update] Contacting Microsoft, we found that the data transfer cable will in fact be included with the Elite system and standalone 120GB hard drive.

GameDaily Biz is reporting that the Xbox 360 Elite will be formally announced tomorrow by Microsoft. This isn’t that far out of left field, since we’ve seen the production leaks, magazine articles, and stories from Dean Takahashi.

They have an anonymous source in the industry, and they usually are pretty on target with their expectations. Everyone knows it’s been coming, it’s just a matter of time.

From the article:

The black colored console was revealed in the April issue of Game Informer, and while Microsoft has continued to deny its existence, it’s become one of the worst kept secrets in the industry of late. The new model 360 is rumored to come with a 120GB hard drive, an HDMI port and cable, but no HD DVD drive. It’s also not clear whether it will feature the same 90-nanometer chipset or the cheaper to produce, more effective 65-nanometer chip, which Microsoft will likely switch over to soon.

We’ll keep our eyes pealed tomorrow. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this press release come across my desk early tomorrow.

More details have surfaced on the new Xbox 360 Elite, which will have an HDMI port and 120GB hard drive. If you’ve been living in a box, Game Informer had the original details of the new version of Microsoft’s console in their April issue.

Dean Takahashi of The Mercury News, and also from the fame of his book The Xbox 360 Uncloaked, has an article about the release of the new SKU from Microsoft. Dean agrees with the HDMI port, black case, and 120GB hard drive, but also adds IPTV functionality to the list of new features.

The new box will go on sale in limited quantities soon for $479. The details may not be precise here, but I believe it will have an HDMI connector so that you can connect at the highest speed to a high-definition TV. It will come with a 120-gigabyte hard disk drive and will have IPTV capability.

Bill Gates announced in January that the Xbox 360 was capable of serving as a set-top box for IPTV, or Internet Protocol TV, which phone companies such as AT&T are using to offer high-definition movies and scores of channels in competition with TV.

Makes sense to have IPTV functionality in the new box. I would suspect to hear an official announcement from Microsoft in the coming weeks, with release in late April. Like I said before, I’m grabbing one of these as soon as I can. Hopefully the new box has support for uncompressed PCM audio over HDMI.

We all knew it was coming, it was just a matter of time. In Game Informer’s April issue, they confirm that there’s a black Xbox 360 with HDMI and 120gb hard drive coming in “late April”. The new version of the console will retail for $479. The console won’t have a built in HD-DVD drive because “format’s not proven.” The console will also include an HDMI cable.

Kotaku got in touch with Matt Helgeson, senior editor over at Game Informer, who confirmed the story is true, and they don’t include fake “April Fools” stories in their April issue.

No official word from Microsoft, but Game Informer seems fairly certain with this story. They wouldn’t have gone to press with it unless they were, especially with a date and price.

I know I will for sure be picking one of these up. I’ve been wanting good 1080p output and uncompressed audio from my Xbox 360 ever since I got my 1080p set and new receiver. The PS3 does it very well, now the 360 will too. I just wish there was built in HD-DVD so I wouldn’t have to still use the white add-on drive. That, and built in wireless. A guy can dream, can’t he?

So after the debacle that was my surround sound wiring issues, my wonderful fiance decided she would treat me by buying me a Bose Acoustimass 10 system with wireless rear speakers. She’s a good egg. Yeah, people are going to say “It’s Bose. It’s overpriced crap.” I know, I know. Yes, it’s overpriced. Yes, you can get better speakers for the same cost. But no one else offers a viable wireless solution. These actually work, as I’ve heard them a few times as friends’ houses and such. They’re being delivered today. I can’t wait to hook them up and watch some movies and do some gaming in surround sound.

I currently have my 2.1 setup hooked up to my new Onkyo TX-SR604 receiver. I honestly forgot what deep bass sounded like. I put on the trailer for 300 from the Xbox Live Marketplace, and almost jumped off the couch when the bass hit 3-4 times right at the beginning. One of my cats shot into the bedroom and wouldn’t come out from under the bed for an hour. Ahhh the joys of surround sound. I’m looking forward to hearing some uncompressed 5.1 PCM tracks from the PS3’s BluRay over HDMI.

Paul Thurrott, co-host of the popular podcast Windows Weekly with Leo Laporte, mentioned the new 360 in the latest podcast, specifically at time marker 27.55. He clearly states things such as (from article on Xboxic):

• A new 360 will be released in late 2007
• The new 360 is the only way that you can benefit from the upcoming IPTV service
• A bigger Hard Drive will be bundled with the new 360
• The new 360 is pretty likely to be quieter

Now this is sure to piss off a lot of people. They announce this huge IPTV service and you need a new version of the console to use it? Take this as rumor for now, although it should be noted that Thurrott DOES work for Microsoft.

No matter what anyone says, it’s pretty hard to deny that a new version of the Xbox 360 is coming with an HDMI port and a larger hard drive. It’s just a matter of when.

Move over Xbox 360. Move over PS2. The PS3 is the fastest console to sell 1 million units. In the period from launch until last week, Sony sold 1 million PS3’s. In the same time frame, the Xbox 360 sold 600k units last year. I’m honestly shocked at that huge number. Maybe that’s why there’s lots of PS3’s available now, because Sony ramped the every living hell out of production and get them to market.

I’m happy that there’s a glimmer of good news here for Sony, in the midst of all the negative press they’ve been getting. If these sales keep up, and they sell more than Microsoft’s touted 10.4 million in the first year, expect BluRay to win the format war over HD-DVD.

From the press release:

SCEA went to great lengths to help meet demand for PS3, including airlifting systems into North America on a weekly basis to ensure a steady stream of units were available to consumers throughout the holiday season,” said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. “The fact that we were able to reach the one-million mark faster than our top-selling platform, the PS2, further validates the strength of the PlayStation brand and our belief that consumers are ready to experience true high-definition gaming.” … “Reaching the one million mark for PS3 is the first of many major milestones for us as we head into a new year. Even more impressive, is that we were able to accomplish this feat while successfully managing two other gaming platforms-PS2 and PSP,” said Tretton. “With three PlayStation platforms now available to gamers, 2007 will be about software and delivering innovative, new experiences and award-winning franchises to consumers, both through retail and through our online PLAYSTATION Network.