360 Elite - hard to find?

[dawgfan]

So one of my co-workers has been bringing in his retail 360 and playing Forza 2 in my office. This has succeeded in convincing me it's time to get an Xbox 360, and I'm leaning heavily toward getting an Elite unit to get the HDMI cable (don't care as much about the extra 100GB of hard drive space, but I'm sure I'll eventually wind up making good use of it).

In looking around online though, seems like the Elite units are hard to come by right now - there don't seem to be any new ones available through Amazon, EB online isn't even listing them (because they're sold out?) and Best Buy shows them as 'sold out'.

I haven't gone around to the local stores to see what the on-hand stock is like, but I'm presuming that if they are difficult to find online, they will be difficult to find in-person. Has anyone else been seeing these on shelves?

[Eaglesfan27]

I was just at a Gamespot the other day and saw at least two of them available on the shelf.

[hukarez]

I haven't seen any here in SD since it's release - but I see a lot of their black controllers, battery packs, etc. available.

[Kodos]

They're not hard to find if your post count is high and your registered here early.

[TroyF]

I haven't seen any here in SD since it's release - but I see a lot of their black controllers, battery packs, etc. available.

Ditto.

[MizzouRah]

Welcome to the club dawgfan! Check out the gamertag thread and add yours once you get it.

[dawgfan]

Gotta find one first, but I'll post once I do and have a regular Live account set up.

I have to admit I'm surprised at how hard it is to find an Elite system - while MS must be pleased that there's enough demand for it that they are sold-out through most regular retail channels, they should also realize that they may potentially lose out on some sales. If someone is willing to pony up $480 for an Elite 360, it's not that much more of a jump to go with the readily available PS3.

They're lucky that for me, it's the appeal of Forza 2 and the upcoming Halo 3 that are ensuring I'll be getting a 360 rather than saying "fuck it" and buying a PS3, but there are probably others that aren't as determined to only get a 360.

The lack of availability of the Elite systems does suggest that MS probably isn't feeling a lot of need to drop their prices soon.

[dawgfan]

Man - still can't find one. None of the online stores have any, and no luck at any of the places I went to this weekend either.

I'm really jonesing to play Forza 2 and I'm starting to reconsider whether I'm really committed to getting the Elite - is the HDMI connection really that much better on a good HDTV than the standard component cables?

[hukarez]

Man - still can't find one. None of the online stores have any, and no luck at any of the places I went to this weekend either.

I'm really jonesing to play Forza 2 and I'm starting to reconsider whether I'm really committed to getting the Elite - is the HDMI connection really that much better on a good HDTV than the standard component cables?

Personally, for me, the concept of 1 single cable over 5 is appealing, though I would imagine the transfer of data from my original HD to the Elite's would probably be a nightmare... I would consider the VGA cable, if I didn't already have a computer and laptop connected to my TV's PC port.

[MizzouRah]

VGA looks AMAZING in 1080p.

[Eaglesfan27]

I'm not sure if this would change your decision, but the message boards have been lit up lately with rumors that a price drop of the core system is going to happen soon with a drop in the premium and elite systems to follow.

[dawgfan]

Makes me less cranky about finding one in stock - as long as I'm waiting, I'd be happy to wait a little longer for a price drop.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I'm not sure if this would change your decision, but the message boards have been lit up lately with rumors that a price drop of the core system is going to happen soon with a drop in the premium and elite systems to follow.

That would be great. The consoles NEED a price war right now.

[gstelmack]

Personally, for me, the concept of 1 single cable over 5 is appealing, though I would imagine the transfer of data from my original HD to the Elite's would probably be a nightmare... I would consider the VGA cable, if I didn't already have a computer and laptop connected to my TV's PC port.

I dunno, I run a single component cable to my TV, where it splits into 3 right before the TV (this came with my 360), plus a single optical cable over to my receiver so I can get 5.1 audio. With HDMI to get true 5.1, you have to run into an HDMI-capable receiver (which are out now), then another HDMI over to the TV, so I don't see how cable count is a factor...

[dawgfan]

Mmmm, I need to check my receiver - it may be old enough that it doesn't have an HDMI port. That could clarify my decision.

Can anyone working in the retail sector weigh in on what they've been seeing in terms of getting 360 Elites in stock - are they arriving on a regular basis in any kind of quantity and just getting snatched up immediately, or are they simply not arriving at all or only at a trickle?

[DeToxRox]

Called a gamestop here, they said they'd get Elites in the first week in July. Called another one a little further away, they had no idea.

[Anthony]

my wife got me the pro 360. f the elite. too expensive.

[stevew]

New X360 HDMI cable announced...hmm, maybe I don't need the elite after all...

http://www.audioholics.com/news/industry-news/legacy-xbox-360-1080p-hdmi-cable-announced.html

OK, this one is brief but very interesting - especially if you were thinking about trading up your Xbox 360 for the new Elite version hitting shelves. The extra costs gets you a shiny black box and some more storage but the real attraction is the HDMI output. Well, according to MaxConsole.net, XCM has announced pending availability of a new cable that will allegedly allow 1080p output via HDMI from current Xbox 360 models.

Too good to be true? We'll find out in 4 weeks when the company is rumored to release the product. The cable is reported as being nearly completed and will pimp up our existing "white" Xbox 360s to 1080p HDMI goodness.

We're hoping the cable works by pulling the digital information directly from the board via the Xbox 360's interface, however there is another possibility. The cable could actually perform an analogue-to-digital conversion and multiplex the AV signal into an HDMI-HDCP output. This would be similar to this product from DVIGear. While this can be effective, it is not as desirable as a native "from the video processor" HDMI output.

There's also the issue of "why". Why would we need HDMI when the current Xbox 360 is fully capable of transmitting 1080p via component? Well, the reason is that pesky HDCP everyone hears so much about (but probably doesn't understand.) Currently there are next to no display devices on the market that accept 1080p via component video - this is due to the inability to offer HDCP content protection/DRM over component video. As a result, 1080p can really only be sent via HDMI or DVI-D (with HDCP) as an industry standard. If you don't require 1080p, then there's no reason to think that this cable or HDMI in general is going to make your Xbox look any better than the current component video technology running at either 720p or 1080i.


We'll find out and bring you more if/when the product releases next month.

[MizzouRah]

Welcome to 1080p fellas.

[dawgfan]

Walked into an EB games tonight and asked about Elites, and as chance would have it they'd gotten a shipment today and had a couple. I'm going to be spending the rest of tonight getting it set up, figuring out what extras I want to buy and starting a Forza 2 career.

Tomorrow's schedule has a strong likelihood of being all about me buying and setting up a wireless network in my house and getting a Live account. Woo-hoo!

[MizzouRah]

Walked into an EB games tonight and asked about Elites, and as chance would have it they'd gotten a shipment today and had a couple. I'm going to be spending the rest of tonight getting it set up, figuring out what extras I want to buy and starting a Forza 2 career.

Tomorrow's schedule has a strong likelihood of being all about me buying and setting up a wireless network in my house and getting a Live account. Woo-hoo!

I know the feeling! ;)

[Logan]

With the rumored price-drop...what's the consensus, dawg especially, on the need for the Elite system when HD space wouldn't be an issue?

[SackAttack]

Logan, if you've got a 1080p TV, and you want to use that capability in gaming, it's worth a go, if you can get one.

If your TV is anywhere south of 1080p, don't bother unless you plan to upgrade your set in the next couple years.

[Logan]

Two questions answered in two minutes Sack...thanks.

[SackAttack]

Fastest guns in the West, baby.

[dawgfan]

With the rumored price-drop...what's the consensus, dawg especially, on the need for the Elite system when HD space wouldn't be an issue?
For me, getting the Elite was all about the HDMI cables. Of course, there's a lot of evidence that stores are gouging the hell out of HDMI cable prices...

[Logan]

monoprice.com

[MizzouRah]

Logan, if you've got a 1080p TV, and you want to use that capability in gaming, it's worth a go, if you can get one.

If your TV is anywhere south of 1080p, don't bother unless you plan to upgrade your set in the next couple years.

Unless you have a 24" monitor capable of 1080p, then the Xbox premium is just fine with the VGA cables. :D

[stevew]

Hey, quick question for someone with an elite.

Can I run HDMI video into my TV, and then run optical audio out of that other port on the xbox?

[stevew]

hmm, looks like I need some "audio dongle" thing that comes with the elite. I just orded a premium, since I found that with HDMI.

[stevew]

This is just a heads up. If you are going to buy an XBox360, and you want to output fibre optical audio(for surround sound) as well as HDMI video, the adapter thing from Microsoft is 50 bucks, and is not included in the new HDMI Premium.

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-HDMI-AV-Cable/dp/B000UODATY/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3/103-7163334-0065421?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1187933907&sr=8-3

I can get an HDMI for like 5 bucks, so this is horribly overpriced.

Basically the elite is a much better value, if you need this stupid 50 dollar dongle thingy. Hopefully they make a generic version of this soon.

[SackAttack]

Steve, I'd never heard of that before.

Hell, when the Elite box says "HDMI cable," I didn't realize this was also part of the package. Be nice if they mentioned that more clearly.

I'll have to check at work tomorrow and see if we plan to carry them at Best Buy.

[mrsimperless]

What's the big deal about 1080p? Is that in color or something?

[SackAttack]

What's the big deal about 1080p? Is that in color or something?

Nah. It's resolution and draw rates.

The number refers to the number of horizontal draw lines the display has. The 'p' tells you whether it's progressive (constant, complete refresh) or interlaced (half the lines refresh each time the screen is drawn).

1080p means there are 1080 lines of horizontal resolution, progressive scan means that every line refreshes each time the screen is drawn. Typically, that means effectively 30 frames per second.

Interlaced scan can output as high as 60 frames per second, but since it draws at half the rate, it amounts to the same 30 Hz that you'll see from 1080p and 480p.

720p is a little unique in that it is capable of 60 Hz output (which, for the longest time, all NTSC TVs were; that was the difference in the composite video days for game systems. NTSC output at 60 Hz, PAL output at 50 Hz, and had a slightly different resolution to boot).

1080p is capable of 60 Hz as well, but that currently isn't used, AFAIK.

Anyway. basic summary: 1080p and 1080i have the same number of horizontal lines of resolution, but 1080p will draw all of those lines twice in the time it takes 1080i to do it once, which effectively means a crisper picture.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/db/Interlacingani2.gif <-- the left two frames of that gif will give you a general idea of what I'm talking about when I distinguish between interlaced and progressive scans, if the technical stuff goes over your head.

(And no, I'm not the guy who made that image.)