From the stories I've heard from just about everyone else in the entire world the XBox 360 has a habit of bursting into flames and hurling itself from the roof of your apartment complex. I've had my 360 for over a year now, I use it regularly, and it only once gave me any kind of trouble. And I should point out that the only time it froze up was when I was playing a game that (prior to patching) was so glitchy that I was amazed the disc didn't try to eat its way out of the console.

So do the rest of you use your XBox as a football? Do you let your dog chew on it? Or am I just the only person in all of creation to luck out and get an XBox 360 that isn't a lemon?

I've had mine since Christmas and it's never gone wrong. I think you hear so many horror stories because the people who have broken Xboxes complain. What are the rest of us gonna do, post a blog saying "My Xbox still works fine" every day?

I treated my first 360 like a newborn baby and it still crapped out after a few months. The second one has been going for a good year or so now, so fingers crossed.
The 360 destroyed my faith in the durability of consoles. I can't take having my heart broken like that.

J'aen:
I've had mine since Christmas and it's never gone wrong. I think you hear so many horror stories because the people who have broken Xboxes complain. What are the rest of us gonna do, post a blog saying "My Xbox still works fine" every day?

You've just given me an incredibly stupid idea which I plan to act on immediately!

http://360trooper.blogspot.com/

Nah, but as any MMO forum will teach you, it's only the people who have problems who post.

Seriously, go hit the WoW forums for a bit and try to find a thread where they say, "Man am I ever happy with what I have. Thank god Blizzard made this game." Go on, I'll wait.

Still waiting...

That said, the 360 did have some *heavy* problems at launch. Not on all units, but on enough to seriously hurt. Nowadays you're pretty much safe buying a new one, and the warranty extension should cover all the old units, but the damage is done at this point. It was a really bad, rushed launch.

But then, that's Microsoft.

- J

Nope, my 360 has been running strong for about 2 years now. I love the little guy and would be heartbroken if anything happened to him!

Well, after 4 xbox 360's, I finally have one that works...

...for now...

Mine was perfectly fine. I've had it since September and it only stopped working a few weeks ago. I think it was my own fault, because I carried it to and from my friend's house. Something loosened up in the component cables attachment area.

My XB360 lasted 1 year, 1 month before finally suffering the RRoD, and is now in its Cardboard Coffin waiting to be sent off for repairs in the morning.

I've had my 360 going on a year or so now. Never had so much as a hick-up other than when it's the game it-self's fault.

Contrary to that my housemate decided with his January student loan to buy one and it crapped out on him within a week (wouldn't read games) so he returned it the store... only for his new one to red ring 3 weeks later... whilst mine was running smoothly... and i've kicked mine at least once.

Had mine since release day. Have to turn it on it's side to play dvd's for some reason, but other than that it's right as rain. I was a little irked when I learned they'd released that quieter version. But I've gotten used to it's rumbling hum I guess.

....yes quite simply you are the only one who's has not broken, and I strongly surgest you knock on wood immediately that it stays that way.

tiredinnuendo:
That said, the 360 did have some *heavy* problems at launch. Not on all units, but on enough to seriously hurt. Nowadays you're pretty much safe buying a new one, and the warranty extension should cover all the old units, but the damage is done at this point. It was a really bad, rushed launch.

The problems have been lessened but not fixed. The first 2 drives used (Samsung & Hitatchi) had problems. The current BenQ is much better but it can still wear out and stop working or start grinding discs.

The 360 bakes it's self and there is hot much that can be done at this point. The Falcon chipset (65nm CPU and screws instead of X clamps) helps. Until the Jasper (65nm GPU and 65nm memory) comes out there will still be burn outs.

I'm on my second and that's only because I never bothered to open and play it. My nephew is on his 8th.

Finally the warranty is only 3 years on the RRoD everything else is 1 year. And once this warranty runs out you have to pay up to MS for repairs. In 5 years all of my consoles including my NES will still be working just fine but not my 360.

I heard that depending on manufacturing date and Xbox 360 model they can last longer than others.
I heard that the Xbox 360 Elite is the most durable version of them all, but don't quote me on that however.

Also I've heard that with the smaller nanometer GPU chipset the latter editions of Xbox 360 the motherboard warping is less likely to happen.

Ive noticed that the arcade and basic seem to suffer the most breakdowns. At the shop one guy is on his 5th Arcade since christmas, a load of other customers have had similar problems. We have only (so far) had one premium and two elites come back over the past year.
Im not sure why its works this way, since it should be the same hardware, it just seems to be the way it happens.

I think it's not so much how many people have problems, but how many people EXPECT problems.

Ask me about any console I own, or my friends own, and I'll reply "it works fine."

The exception to this is my PS2, which is "it struggles to read a few disks," and anyone I know who ones an X-Box, to which I will answer "It works, for now."

I know two people who have gone over to the Dark Side and use the X-Box as their main console. So far, one of them has had to get it repaired due to Red Ring of Death.

I work at a Gamestop, so I get tons of horror stories about 360's blowing up and hurling shrapnel into the faces of others, but the 360 I just recently sold has been around for years, never had a single issue. Plus, all the ones I've had before them have never had a single issue either...it's almost kinda strange.

So far my 360 is holding up better than my PS3, I need to spend the next year trying to brick it so I can have it replaced before my warrenty expires.

I've only traded in my 360 once, and that was only because some idiot friend of my brother's banged the table it stands on and made it fall over, breaking one of the cooling fans.

I'll tell all the people who keep breaking theirs, if you get RRoD it's better to trade for a new one. And a 360 is not a simple DVD player, it's a high powered computer and should be treated as such. Give proper ventilation and stand it upright if you plan to leave it on for more than an hour at a time.

My first 360 lasted 10 months before bombing out just before Christmas. (Yay.) This one, a refurb shipped back to me gratis by the repair depot,. (in exactly one week, which was impressive over the holiday) is working fine so far.

-- Steve

@ CyberAkuma & Unkillable Cat

It doesn't matter whether it's an Arcade, Core, Pro, or Elite. What matters is the chipset. The original non-HDMI version is the Xenon model (I had one, it broke), the Zypher model is the same inside only it has HDMI (my family has had many break). The Falcon is the current version that uses less power and isn't as hot. The easiest way to tell if you have a Falcon is if the sticker on the back says it uses around 175 watts. If it says 200watts you have a Zypher.

EDIT, I will note that Xenon & Zypher models that are sent to MS for repair get a new heat sink to replace the old version. But the chip size/power consumption/heat output stays the same.

I've had my xbox since mid-2007 and it RROD'd on me once, the letter I got after repair said that it wasn't overheating, it was the disc-drive that was broken. Haven't had problems since. I do however take every precaution so it doesn't overheats. It stands 30 cm from a window that is almost aways (halfway) open, so it's not in 'dead air'. I also keep the powerbrick next to the same window, for maximum cooling. There's also at least 10 cm of free space on all sides of the console. On a positive note to Microsoft: I was only 10 days 'xbox-less' during repairs, so it didn't hurt at all. :D

Only had mine a few days. I don't have any problems with it but i find I am not playing for more then 4 hours at a time out of fear of the processor overheating.

people i must have the worlds best luck when it comes to xbox 360 units. i preorderded mine in 05 and picked it up launch day in november 05, the 21st i think and its worked perfect every day since, almost 3 years!!!!!! i play my xbox a lot and not once have i had the hint of a problem. i sometimes feel like i must have gotten the only launch console in north america that didnt have quality issues.

Mine still works and I have had since release. Although it did make me nervous when it got kind of choppy while I was play bioshock but that only lasted for a little bit. Also I would like to note my cousin's 360 crapped out on him and my friend's broke, twice. Which makes me feel even more nervous.

Other than it sounds like a 747 taking off when I fire it up and the odd freezing issue (more likely disc than console problem) I have had mine for close to a year. And it isn't uncommon for me to play for 5-8 hours at a time.

Wulf Legend:
Mine was perfectly fine. I've had it since September and it only stopped working a few weeks ago. I think it was my own fault, because I carried it to and from my friend's house. Something loosened up in the component cables attachment area.

Wait a minute, your fault for carrying it to other houses? Last time I checked that was the premium feature of consoles, the ability to move them around and take them on trips!

What kind of a world do we live in where people can't even carry their consoles around? Oh well, at least the Gamecube had a cool handle to do just that with it.

I've had mine since late 2006 and aside from a random loud start up, it hasn't failed me. I've actually never had a serious problem with a console. I actually hooked up my original NES after being in my parents attic for about 12 years (I've been using emulators), it worked fine. Kinda surprised me. What I found more funny was having an NES plugged into a 52" plasma TV, that just seems like major overkill.

greygelgoog:

J'aen:
I've had mine since Christmas and it's never gone wrong. I think you hear so many horror stories because the people who have broken Xboxes complain. What are the rest of us gonna do, post a blog saying "My Xbox still works fine" every day?

You've just given me an incredibly stupid idea which I plan to act on immediately!

http://360trooper.blogspot.com/

That is great. It's a good thing my co-workers all went out to lunch today, because I would have just gottena funny look from laughing so much.

yes, yes you are. congradulations.

I've had mine since Christmas and its never even froze up once, let alone burst into flames and fling itself off of my roof.

greygelgoog:
From the stories I've heard from just about everyone else in the entire world the XBox 360 has a habit of bursting into flames and hurling itself from the roof of your apartment complex. I've had my 360 for over a year now, I use it regularly, and it only once gave me any kind of trouble. And I should point out that the only time it froze up was when I was playing a game that (prior to patching) was so glitchy that I was amazed the disc didn't try to eat its way out of the console.

So do the rest of you use your XBox as a football? Do you let your dog chew on it? Or am I just the only person in all of creation to luck out and get an XBox 360 that isn't a lemon?

Yeah mine went for 18 months without a single problem until the graphics knackered up one day. Much to my disappointment because I was the only one of my friends who had not had to send mine back for repair (even though I eventually didn't, got rid of it for a PS3 then traded that back for another 360, indecisive as ever as you can tell). Hope your console lasts and you don't have any problems with it mate, but I thought the same as you until it happened to mine aswell.