The much anticipated Xbox 360 Slim is now available in stores for $299.99 (July 9th for $NZD499.99 in New Zealand), but a plethora of concerned gamers are wondering if the upgrade is truly worth the purchase?
Just a few hours ago, the Xbox 360 Slim landed on my doorstep. Honestly, I wasn’t really thrilled by this system since there’s really nothing new it offers except that it’s 10-15% smaller than the original XBOX. With the Xbox 360 being “incomplete” when it was launched in 2006 I am sure that a lot of consumers have already purchased the necessary accessories to make their Xbox 360 “complete” and ready for the optimum gaming experience.
What’s really so good about the Xbox 360 Slim?
The only different thing that I found on the Xbox 360 Slim is its design. The exhaust fan has been moved and takes away the heat inside the console is no longer at the back of the unit. it has relocated to the top. From the three USB ports in the original model, the Xbox 360 Slim has now five; two in front and three at the back. Since the Xbox 360 Slim already has a built-in Wireless Network N adapter, you no longer need to stress about connecting an Ethernet cable to your modem or spend the extra cash on the external Wireless Network N adapter for previous Xbox 360 iterations.
Does the Xbox 360 Slim run any quieter?
Compared to the original Xbox 360, the Slim model runs very quiet. You will not hear the fan or the disc spinning. The fan runs very quiet but I’m not sure if it drains enough heat because when I touch the vent, it’s damn hot.
Is the Xbox 360 Slim’s hard drive replaceable?
Microsoft hasn’t announced any hard drives that can be attached on the Xbox 360. However, the 250GB Hard Drive that is installed on the system can be removed and can be replaced.
I already own an Xbox 360 with 120GB Hard Drive and a Wifi Adapter. Is it still worth getting?
If you have the above accessories on a working Xbox 360, there is no need to purchase the Slim one. However, if you believe that your old Xbox 360 is on the verge of getting the Red Rings of Death but you don’t have a Wireless Network Adapter N or a big hard drive, I highly suggest to sell that system, and consider an upgrade. If your Xbox 360 is the only problem, get the arcade version, it’s cheap and there will be no need for a Slim.
Is it possible to transfer my old hard drive content to the Slim ones?
Yes, it’s possible. However, that will cost you another $20 as you will need to purchase an Xbox 360 Migration Kit.
enz1
June 18, 2010 at 10:32 PMIm not the type of person to post comments on any articles that surfaces about a product but,i like reading what people have to say.Mark,this is the second time i read an article about the new xbox slim that you have posted and both of them tend to be on a negativity.First,you were comparing the product if it is indeed slim enough against the original and the ps3 slim.Now,this article comes up about either to buy or not to buy the new xbox slim.Now,just to inform you,I am not a fanboy for I have both xbox 360 and ps3 slim.I had 2 xbox 360s die on me and the original ps3 did the same thing.With two articles that tends to sound a bit negative coming from you makes you sound like a fanboy of a certain brand.Please dont get upset with my comment about you or your article for this is just my observation coz’ after all were all just kids at heart and after working two jobs and supporting a family,we all just need to relax and unwind :)peace
Mark Fajardo
June 18, 2010 at 11:05 PMHi enz1,
Thanks for the concern! I’m not a fanboy at all as I have all the systems, and I get to play all of the games I want. The purpose of the articles I posted about the Xbox 360 Slim is not to bash it but to inform the consumers and gamers as to what they can expect if they decide to purchase a Xbox 360.
If you think about it and put yourself in a position where you have all of the things that the Xbox 360 Slim has (working Xbox 360, a 250GB hard drive, and a Wireless Network adapter), will you consider yourself to trade those in for something you already have? Besides you can’t straight up trade it in for a 360 Slim. You have to add $ to it. I can see a person doing that IF they just want to look cool and have all of the latest gadget.
If a gamer doesn’t have a Xbox 360, I HIGHLY suggest for them to get the Slim. BUT if they they think they’re not going to use the big space, and wireless adapter, why not just buy an arcade for $149.99. How is that being a fanboy?
Cheers-
enz1
June 18, 2010 at 11:37 PMThanx for clearing things up.Im glad people can still talk or even email each other w/o resulting on insulting each others like fanboys.Again,thank you so much and do take care.enz1
Johnny B
June 19, 2010 at 12:59 AMI think you left out that the 360 slim is quieter. Personally, I feel the biggest question that needs to be answered before buying a slim, is did they fix the RRoD problem? I know MS already claims it’s fixed in Jasper, but who believes them? Certainly not me. 360s have the reputation of being absolute crap, so this is a chance to shed that perception. Only time will tell.
NamelessTed
June 19, 2010 at 1:42 AMI just want to point out that you don’t need a transfer cable to get all of your content onto the new hard drive. You can use most any USB drive up to 16GB to transfer content over. This is the best way to transfer over save files and your profile. For any DLC, Games on Demand or anything else you may have downloaded, you can just go online and re-download everything again. That is $20 saved.
I do think that if you have already spent the money on the large HDD and have the wireless adapter and everything then the only reason for you to get the new model is if you just really want it. It doesn’t have much else outside of being quieter. If you have a smaller HDD and find yourself deleting games to make room for new ones then this new model might be one to get if you can afford it.
If you are also looking forward to Kinect and don’t want any extra cables the new model is the way to go. One of the USB ports on the back has extra power which allows the Kinect to run. If you have a current model of the Xbox you have to plug the Kinect unit into a power outlet. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t much of an inconvenience. But, for the person that wants the simplest and sleekest set-up, the new Xbox is the way to go.
HarrIs17
June 19, 2010 at 11:10 AMI would like to add that if someone bought the wireless N adapter for the 360 you are getting a 5 ghz n adapter compared to the 2.4 ghz n adapter that comes with the new slim. Now I am not knocking the slim because I bought onefor my business and I have the re5 edition as well with the wireless n adapter, and when you put them side by side it is a toss up for a winner. I guess someones purchase will be based on preference. Do you want quieter and more hard drive with built in wireless or do you want something easy to hack potentially faster downloading and more customizations options?
Ferrato
June 21, 2010 at 4:00 AMI just got done talking to some buddies of mine about their new 360 Slims they had recently purchased and not to bash cuz I’m a fan of the 360 but they weren’t happy. Well, they were happy with everything except with how lousy they say the cooling system was. They say that the console gets searing hot and in the wii hours of the night you can catch the sickly smell of burnt plastic. I’m a fan and these friends of mine are trustworthy so thats a depressing little detail I think you may have missed.
Michael
July 6, 2010 at 1:50 PMI Don’t know if i should get this, but i am leaning more towards getting it for a couple of reasons. 1st my xbox has a 20 GB hard drive and i have 8 GBs left. 2nd it’s fan is crazy loud, i’ve played xbox at my other friends houses and theirs is way quieter than mine. 3rd my xbox freezes on a lot of little things like a loading screen in batman arkham asylum or even in the smallest room in fallout 3. 4th i have a wire to connect to my modem not a wireless adapter. and 5th i’m planning to get very highly visual and very big games like crysis 2 and assassins creed brotherhood which i think my xbox could handle, but with very loud fan and maybe a few freezes. Should i get it?
aat
July 10, 2010 at 1:47 AMThe air is hot because the fan and heatsink are doing their job. It is expelling that air from the vent. The rest of the box is nice and cool. The system doesn’t get hot since all the heat is expelled right above the die that houses the CPU, GPU and eDRAM. By having all those on one chip it only needs the one fan and heatsink to expel the hot air. Unlike the earlier 360 models.
lil ben
July 22, 2010 at 1:23 AMWould it be worth buying the 360 slim if i have a 360 with 20 gig hard drive and a wireless N adapter? I already had a 360 die on me and got a new one from MS.
DJ
August 18, 2010 at 9:04 AMHi i was looking to buy a 360 but when i was about to buy the elite the slim came out. Is the slim really worth the extra 100 dollars?
eagles
October 2, 2010 at 11:56 PMyes the slim is worth i it is sleek quiete bigger hard drive and impossible to get RROD because if the system gets way too hot it will send you a message saying it will shut the sytem off till it cools down
FANBOILOLJK
October 9, 2010 at 12:25 PMalso it supposedly it uses like half the energy of the original
ANXIOUS117
December 3, 2010 at 11:58 AM@HarrIs17 – you may be slightly misinformed a Wireless 802.11n network adapter is backwards-compatible with 802.11g and 802.11b, has a bandwidth of 540 Mbps and uses the 5 Ghz frequency or the 2.4 Ghz frequency. The wireless NIC inside of the slim supports 802.11n
Fool
January 2, 2011 at 2:14 PM@Anxious117 – I don’t think you read Harris17’s comment. He said nothing about backward compatibility with 802.11g or 802.11b.
The problem he mentioned is that the 802.11n add-on adapter supports the 5GHz band, whereas the 802.11n adapter included in the new Xbox 360 Slim only supports the 2.4GHz band. This means that, even though the Slim is using 802.11n, it can’t take advantage of the benefits (such as speed) offered by the 5GHz band. A step backwards, really.
RODRIGUEZ95
January 13, 2011 at 4:27 PMK well, after reading all the comments i was wondering i have the original xbox with a cord going into my modem( i cant spell so bare with me please). but the new slim looks pretty kewl, if you guys had to recomend one which would it be?
RaPiDz
January 19, 2011 at 6:31 AMi see someone commented on the xbox getting real hot and the fan not being able to do its job properly, which is why its so quiet?… in actual fact the fan keeps it at optimal temperature.. and if u slowly overheat your xbox, the fan will increase speed to cool the xbox down… atleast it did for me
Matt
February 11, 2011 at 9:56 PMI created a video answering this question…hope it helps!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2FGg7T-XvA
tony
August 4, 2011 at 1:21 AMok ihave a xbox 360 pro with a 60gb hardrive it runs great never freezes and ive had it for 3 years and i can either get a kinect or a xbox 360 slim 250gb model which would be the better buy
Robert Young
May 29, 2012 at 6:19 PMWell, it is already May, 2012. What is the verdict? Is the 360 slim worth it? Does it die after long hours of play? Mine does not so far, and it is my 3rd 360. My 1st one which was a launch version, and my 2nd one which was halo 3 version, all rdod’d twice. Good thing I bought a warranty for each. Is the 360 slim a fluke that a lot of people predicted? From other websites, I dont remember where, it “supposedly” is below the 4% failure rate. The same rate goes for the the ps3 slim. And judging by the numbers bought last chistmas 2011, a lot of people by the millions trusted in the new xbox 360 slim. Numbers dont lie, and for the 16th consecutive month, the xbox 360 is the best selling console in North America. I guess all of us 360 fans deserved a little reward(the new 360 slim) for sticking it out with microsoft.
Matthew
July 2, 2012 at 10:58 AMHi, I have read most of the comments on this article and find them as good information. Now my situation is that my friend is going to buy a 360 Slim and will have the chance to buy his 360 Elite for practically no money at all but i still wonder. Cuz when we played Halo on this 360 Elite that I soon will own a tree was messed up in the texture, i asked about it and he was honest and told me that the xbox is to old to handle the newest games, but that the Slim version can handle graphics much better? is this true? i know it can process loading and boot ups faster but graphics too? this makes me doubt the old 360… would be very glad if someone could help me with this issue :)
Matthew
Master Cheif
October 9, 2012 at 10:44 PM@Matthew
In short, No. The old 360 may take a few seconds (or so) longer to generate the textures, save and boot, but when it comes to the final product, it delivers exactly the same thing as the new Slim.
What you were experiencing in Halo was a rare texture generation glitch, liable to happen on any model 360 and to be honest, has happened to me several times on my original xbox and even PC.
I’ve noticed especially with Halo Anniversary, some textures begin to jump, most notably on Assault on the Control Room and The Silent Cartographer which then crashes the game or sometimes just results in their failure to generate properly.
Also problems with the pinata skull somehow ended with grenades falling from the sky at times.