New Xbox 360 Elite – big new disk drive, no new CPU, still noisy

Microsoft's new Xbox 360 Elite has notable improvements, but several enhancements that enthusiasts had been hoping for are not present, analysts have confirmed.

The revamped video games console boasts a large 120GB hard drive as well as clear and sharp HDMI output. However, as expected, the console's CPU is not the new low-temperature 65 nanometer part, which is now predicted to arrive this fall.

Despite rumors to the contrary, the main sources of noise that had bothered some users do not yet appear to have been addressed.

CPU sliced

Engineers at research firm Semiconductor Insights (SI) went to the extreme of slicing one Xbox Elite CPU open and examining it under a microscope to confirm that it was built using the older 90nm manufacturing process, says SI's Greg Quirk

Other than the new hard drive, “the new video interface chip which handles HDMI scaling is the only other major difference between the original Xbox 360 and the Elite,” says SI's Rob Hilkes

CPUs built using finer manufacturing process can generally run at lower voltages than their predecessors, and therefore generate less heat. Overheating in the Xbox 360 has been blamed for both reliability problems, and noise – the latter due to the fans required to cool it.

Noisy optical drive

Microsoft apparently has chosen not to address the noise issues with this version of the console, as another key noise source, the console's optical drive, remains unchanged.

“Many people have complained about the loud noise coming from their systems,” noted Hilkes.

“Considering the lengths that Microsoft went to in enhancing the Xbox 360, we found it interesting that they used the same Hitachi LG drive that had been used in other models instead of going with a quieter solution.”

What's new?

The Xbox 360's 120Gb disk drive is the largest ever in a video games console, and now challenges those in popular PVR systems. By allowing users to store large amounts of content, it will help Microsoft further its goal of making the console a true home entertainment center, says Quirk. The larger drive also lets Microsoft ship more pre-installed demos and other content with the game – these can be erased by the user.

The HDMI v1.2 output is an example of the kind of the features that Microsoft had to leave out in order to reach its goal of shipping the Xbox 360 one year ahead of the competition from Sony's PS3 and Nintendo's Wii. Once again, the higher resolutions offered by the new HDMI connection make the console more attractive as a media center, by simply offering better picture quality in games and high definition movies.

While pushing the console onto the market as fast as possible meant that some corners had to be cut, it appears to have given  Microsoft a valuable head start in the race for market share with Sony, whose powerful, feature-rich Playstation 3 was released late, amidst cost overruns and reports of slower-than-expected sales. The long ramp up period also means that manufacturing problems have been ironed our and Microsoft has Xbox 360s on store shelves to tempt consumers while Nintendo struggles to meet demand for its extremely popular Wii console.