Xbox One

[Cronozilla]

If you have a spare $500, why dump it into a project you've been meaning to do for awhile. If there's only one game you want to play on the XB1 ... and you only know of three games that are coming, and they're not all even showing up this year. That doesn't sound like a great way to maximize that extra cash.

Maybe try going 4K on your PC.

Or make a projector setup.

Redo a room.

Spend it all on retro games.

Buy a bed!

There's a lot of worthwhile things to do with half a grand, instead of buying a box that's going to sit there until your games actually show up. Especially when you already own a platform that can play most of the same games already and play them better.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

There are plenty of games I would play on an XBO if I had one. Zoo Tycoon, Dead Rising 3 (yes it's coming to PC), Forza 5, and Killer Instinct for instance. Hell even Ryse.

It's not like I'm in a rush to buy one though. I have my 360 up and working again and what games I have already on my PC. I'm going to wait until the time is right for me. Could be as soon as a month. Could wait until holiday when the Halo Collection comes out.

The only reason I'd buy one sooner rather than later is to satisfy that new-shiny desire I always have with tech products really.

That said we still haven't found a solution for internet that would enable me to really enjoy PC gaming up here. The rec center near by, while having unlimited internet, is painfully slow. I also don't want to cart a desktop setup there and spend the whole day waiting every time I get a new game. We're trying a wireless booster next weekend to see if we can manage to get an LTE signal here. If we do that opens up more options.

[lisalover1]

If you have a spare $500, why dump it into a project you've been meaning to do for awhile. If there's only one game you want to play on the XB1 ... and you only know of three games that are coming, and they're not all even showing up this year. That doesn't sound like a great way to maximize that extra cash.

Maybe try going 4K on your PC.

Or make a projector setup.

Redo a room.

Spend it all on retro games.

Buy a bed!

There's a lot of worthwhile things to do with half a grand, instead of buying a box that's going to sit there until your games actually show up. Especially when you already own a platform that can play most of the same games already and play them better.

This is a really good point. If you get too fixated on a potential major purchase, then you start to develop tunnel vision around it (i.e "This half-grand is either for an Xbone or it isn't."), which can blind you to other possibilities.

[Opa Opa]

So what's the failure rate on these things? I might consider a purchase now that Kinect is optional.

[Cronozilla]

So far, it sounds like none of the consoles have any real catastrophic failures. The PS4s return rate during the launch window (not sure what it is now) was somewhere around 1%. And the Xbox One's was somewhere around 2% (mostly thanks to the Kinect malfunctioning). Those were the numbers I saw, anyway.

Xbox One also seemed to have a possible BluRay drive problem.

In either case, it's not like the 360 or the launch PS3.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

So far, it sounds like none of the consoles have any real catastrophic failures. The PS4s return rate during the launch window (not sure what it is now) was somewhere around 1%. And the Xbox One's was somewhere around 2% (mostly thanks to the Kinect malfunctioning). Those were the numbers I saw, anyway.

Xbox One also seemed to have a possible BluRay drive problem.

In either case, it's not like the 360 or the launch PS3.

And we can all be thankful for that this time around.

Although I have heard that the DS4's thumbsticks have really bad rubber and that the Xbox One can have issues with connection properly. Amongst my friends I have only heard about the DS4 thumbstick thing ever being a problem and that was only one case from a friend that plays a hell of a lot of Call of Duty.

[Opa Opa]

So far, it sounds like none of the consoles have any real catastrophic failures. The PS4s return rate during the launch window (not sure what it is now) was somewhere around 1%. And the Xbox One's was somewhere around 2% (mostly thanks to the Kinect malfunctioning). Those were the numbers I saw, anyway.

Xbox One also seemed to have a possible BluRay drive problem.

In either case, it's not like the 360 or the launch PS3.

Good to know it isn't at the 30% failure rate of last gen.

[Cronozilla]

It's definitely below normal electronics hardware failure and return rates. That's like 5% or something.

But that's not particularly surprising, considering, the PS4 and XB1 have virtually off the shelf consumer components in them.

I doubt they really fixed the core issue that the 360 and PS3 had, they just used more power efficient chips and put in larger more generous fans.

[Opa Opa]

Got a kinect-less unit and have played the console long enough to beat Dead Rising 3.

Console:
+ hdmi-in port looks kind of interesting. I do not intend to integrate my cable service into my console though. I don't see the need.

- one of the largest systems I own?
- the gloss finish looks nice but is a fingerprint magnet.

+/- I like that the power supply is external but the brick is huge.


Controller:
+ matte finish
+ d-pad is nice and clicky
+ analog sticks are less slppery than the 360's
+ It sounded idiotic when they announced it, but the rumble-triggers are pretty nice once you use them.

- left/right bumpers kind of suck now
- batteries are going to be more challenging to change out

UI:
- Oh help us, Windows 8.
- store layout is confusing and a chore to navigate.
- oh dear Lord, help us, it's Windows 8!

[Stark]

Tomb Raider exclusive?