A few days ago, I bought an Xbox 360 from Gamestop, and about 5 games. First of all, the packaging is very nice, with the box easy to open without destroying it and the contents protected, but not in a clamshell or sealed plastic bag.
Anyway, clams aside, the system is easy to set up. If you have your TV near your router, you’re in luck. The Xbox 360 has a networking cable included, but no built-in wifi; you have to buy that for another $60-$100 depending on where you go. It is straightforward to set up offline, and if you decide to go online, Xbox LIVE is around $10 per month if you pay monthly, and $50 for 13 months. Payment methods are credit cards and Xbox LIVE cards sold at most stores that sell video games. Online is mostly lag-free if you have a decent broadband connection. The games are great, the system is powerful, the Xbox Live party system is awesome, and with the exception of few (lot) of idiots on XBL, very fun to play. It works with Windows vista and 7 for the HD video and music streaming over the network. On the XBL Marketplace you can buy games, movies, music, videos, expansion packs, and a bunch of other stuff for relatively low prices using a credit card or Microsoft points, which are about 1.2 cent each, so its $20 for 1600 points. XBL is the main selling point here, because the PS3 is more powerful, but lots of new things are coming out all the time, like Project Natal, which is basically the Wii with better graphics and no controller.
I’m looking forward to Call of Duty:Modern Warfare 2, as are who knows how many other people. The games I recommend right now, though, are Halo 3, COD4, Burnout paradise, and (if you’re into RPGs) Fallout 3.
The XB360 is a great system, and Microsoft recently dropped the price on the Elite (the black one) to $300, the Pro to $250, and the Arcade (which has only 1 controller and no hard drive) to $200, which is what it was at before. If you’re looking to upgrade from that old Xbox or PS2 without waiting for the next generation consoles, the Xbox 360 is a good option. Also, Microsoft released windows 7 today.
