07-17-2008, 08:41 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 23,595
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Felix Torres
You do know they're dropping prices on the standalone drives in sept/oct (before the update comes out), right?...detailing the intro of a "Starter Pack" with a 60GB drive and sundries for $99 and the 120GB drive dropping to (woweee!  ) $149. |
That's a start, but look, if Microsoft really wants people to use their Xbox as a digital entertainment hub, they need to either allow external USB hard drives to be read (so people can put their videos on there) or they need to release some big capacity, cheap drives for the Xbox.
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07-18-2008, 03:28 AM
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Mystic
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,781
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I assume you mean they should allow *marketplace* videos to be placed on USB drives. A good idea.
It would help.
So would a bring-your-own-drive add-on.
Or letting you archive content on Windows Home Server.
Or selling bigger, cheaper USB-connected drives.
Lots of ways to go about it.
They need to do *something*, other than sell a 120GB drive in a caddy, if they really want to sell significant amounts of digital content.
Even with perpetual DL rights for videos, 120GB won't get you very far these days...
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07-18-2008, 04:44 AM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 1,030
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I get the frustration, but I also understand Microsoft's position. By specifying the hard drive, and the data protocols, and the physical connection interface, they can control the end user experience. Use their drive, get fast, reliable downloads and playback (relatively speaking).
However, allow users to use any USB drive (flash or magnetic media) and all bets are off. The bad press generated by poor user experiences could kill the platform. I dont' think Microsoft can afford to take that risk.
That being said, yes, the prices seem a bit out of whack.
And Jason, I don't know where you're buying your hard drives from, but 250 GB for $100? I just bought a 500 GB drive for my desktop for $75 from NewEgg!
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07-18-2008, 06:45 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Felix Torres
I assume you mean they should allow *marketplace* videos to be placed on USB drives. A good idea.
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No, I mean any videos - Marketplace, DVDs I've ripped...whatever. Or can I already play back videos from USB-attached hard drives? I don't do much media stuff with my Xbox 360 any more.
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07-18-2008, 07:01 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jeremy Charette
And Jason, I don't know where you're buying your hard drives from, but 250 GB for $100? I just bought a 500 GB drive for my desktop for $75 from NewEgg!
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Microsoft uses 2.5" drives in their hard drive enclosure, so that's the price I was quoting. 
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07-19-2008, 02:36 AM
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Mystic
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 1,781
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason Dunn
No, I mean any videos - Marketplace, DVDs I've ripped...whatever. Or can I already play back videos from USB-attached hard drives? I don't do much media stuff with my Xbox 360 any more.
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Yup! Anything you can stream off a PC you can play off an optical disk or a USB-connected drive. It has its uses. 
At this point, USB-connected storage is treated as read-only media; you can't copy stuff to it or even *off* it. I'd settle for being able to copy stuff off them although it *would* be nice to use them to archive marketplace content... |
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