Microsoft Xbox 360 Sets Standard in Gaming Performance and Console Broadband Internet Connectivity

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 has finally been released to the acclaim and delight of gaming enthusiasts. This gaming console boasts vastly increased processing power that allows for faster, more exciting and better looking games. Xbox 360 runs on a CPU with three separate core processors that clock in at 3.2 GHz each, integrated with a custom-designed 500 Mhz ATI graphics processor and 512 MB of RAM.

These hardware innovations make for a vastly enhanced gaming experience, allowing for four times the number of pixels per second processed by the original Xbox system. The Xbox 360 is truly unique, however, not only because it has been designed to become the next gaming powerhouse, but because it is also a one-stop digital entertainment center focused on broadband Internet connectivity.

Broadband Connectivity and the Next Generation of Gaming Consoles

Xbox 360 fills the role of a general digital entertainment system with numerous new features. The Xbox 360 system now reads DVDs, DVD R/RWs, and DVD-ROMs for all your movie-watching needs, CDs and MP3s for listening to and sharing music online, and JPEG files for viewing and sharing your favorite photos.

Xbox 360 also boasts three multi-function USB ports for added versatility. The number of accessories you can mix and match on your new Xbox 360 is almost endless. You can now connect digital movie or music players to your console, or stream digital music, movies, and photos from any PC with Microsoft Windows XP or Microsoft XP Media Center 2005 Edition.

You will never have to worry about running out of storage as you download and save new files onto your Xbox 360 with its own 20 GB hard drive. The greatest design challenge of the next generation of gaming consoles is allowing a console to function seamlessly online, and Xbox 360 has performed admirably.

Xbox 360 Online Services and Features

Furthermore, Xbox 360 makes connecting to your broadband Internet service with your gaming console even more attractive by including two different levels of specialized online services. Xbox Live Silver, which is free to anyone with an Xbox 360 and a broadband connection, provides an Xbox 360 messenger so you can chat with your friends while listening to music or playing your favorite games.

Xbox Live Silver also allows you to download music, movie, and other files from the Internet using your high speed broadband connection.

The second level of service, Xbox Live Gold, costs about as much as an Xbox Live account currently does and gives the additional option of playing multiplayer games online. Whether you choose Xbox Live Silver or Gold, it is clearly necessary to invest in a broadband Internet connection when you purchase an Xbox 360.

A broadband connection is important to ensure speedier downloads when using Xbox 360’s Silver and Gold tiers of service, and will give you an edge over players with slower connections.