The Xbox 360 was the first of the "next-gen" videogame consoles to hit the market in the fall of 2005. By the time the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii hit stores--a full year later--the 360 had not only established itself as a top-tier game console, it was well on its way to becoming a full-service digital...
The Xbox 360 was the first of the "next-gen" videogame consoles to hit the market in the fall of 2005. By the time the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii hit stores--a full year later--the 360 had not only established itself as a top-tier game console, it was well on its way to becoming a full-service digital entertainment media hub for the living room, with built-in support for high-def TV and movie downloads as well as Vista-friendly media streaming. While Sony and Nintendo struggled with their respective launch issues--just as Microsoft had toiled 12 months earlier--the Xbox 360 has cruised to the No. 1 spot on the home console charts, with more than 10 million units sold worldwide. So what does Microsoft do for an encore? Release a slightly upgraded Xbox 360, of course. The $480 Xbox 360 Elite is black instead of white, includes a 120GB hard drive (six times as capacious as the previous 360's, twice as big as the PS3's), and sports an HDMI output for easier hookups to HDTVs. The question for current and prospective gamers: Is the Elite worth the extra $80? For anyone who owns the existing Xbox 360, the answer is probably no--the HDMI connector is more a convenience than a necessity, and the larger snap-on hard drive will be available to existing 360 users as a standalone $180 accessory. Moreover, there's certainly a tinge of disappointment that the Elite's higher price tag doesn't deliver a few more bundled features in the box--the Wi-Fi adapter and the HD DVD drive still need to be purchased separately, for instance. In other words, the Xbox 360 Elite is just a warmed-over version of the previous model that doesn't deliver any groundbreaking, PS3-killing features. That said, the Xbox 360 currently has a larger and more impressive library of games, and until the PS3 can offer some compelling alternatives--and I have no doubt that eventually, it will--the Xbox 360 remains the better option. And if you're going with the 360 for the first time, you might as well spend that extra $80 and get the Elite. Except for its black finish and HDMI port, the Xbox 360 Elite is cosmetically identical to the Xbox 360 Premium. When laid horizontally, the 8.8-pound console is 12.15 inches wide, 3.27 inches high, and 10.15 inches deep. Like the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii, the Xbox 360 can also be propped up in a vertical position and can be customized with interchangeable faceplates that cost as much as $20. The 360 is neither as slick as the glossy PS3 nor as cute as the diminutive Wii, but the Elite's matte-black finish is certainly a big step up from the "iPod white" color scheme of the earlier Xbox 360s. While the Elite blends in with the other black components in your A/V rack, however, it may not match all your accessories--you may need to mix and match some white 360 accessories, as not all accoutrements will immediately be available in black. The back panel of the 360 Elite includes an HDMI port (one of the big selling points), an A/V connector, a single USB port, and an Ethernet jack...
