Another Launch 360 dies - Update - Replacement 360 arrived.

[gellar]

First console of mine that has ever failed.  Really disappointing, as it was a fun box - but I can't bring myself to spend money on something I *know* is going to break eventually again (within 2 years, no less).  It's annoying.

Disappointing that I won't get to play Forza or Mass Effect, but I'll live.  Look for a games for sale section in the trading thread... I have a large collection of games I need to get rid of.

gellar

[Ralph-Wiggum]

It's perfect timing - the Elite Edition was released today. It must be a sign.

[gellar]

It's perfect timing - the Elite Edition was released today. It must be a sign.

Heh... nah.  If that device has similar failure rates, it's just not worth the cash for the less than 5 games a year I won't get to play.  I'm a huge believer in having all consoles to play everything I want, but the 360 is just so poorly made it's not worth it for me.  I have a principle about throwing good money after bad... this would violate it.

gellar

[ATB]

Or you could send it in and have it fixed.

[gellar]

Or you could send it in and have it fixed.

She ain't under warranty.

gellar

[mikeg]

One by one they all drop.  Sorry man.   Hate to hear it.  I agree with your decision though.  Once mine is no longer under warranty and dies, I'm done with Microsoft.  I would love for it to surprise me and last forever, but not gonna hold the old breath on that one. 

[Eduardo X]

Send me your games and accessories. Please.

[denoginizer]

I agree that the failure rate of the 360 is waaaaay to high.


However of the 3 next gen consoles it is the one I have to own.  Too many good games.

[Jancelot]

Agreed.  And if you have to foresight to purchase a 2-year extended warranty then the egregious failure rate is much easier to stomach.  But I certainly hope these reliability issues abate with the smaller and cooler chip.

[Azhag]

You can still send it in for fixing (at $180 or whatever), can't you?  And that would come with a new warranty.

[ATB]

You can still send it in for fixing (at $180 or whatever), can't you?  And that would come with a new warranty.

180?  Zow. I wouldn't do that either.

Ah, well. Guess I'll be kicking teh gellar off my friends list.

[Turtle]

They discovered one of the reason for device failure was heat issues where the inside of the box would heat up so much that the inner parts would expand/warp at different rates, eventually causing chips to pop off the board.

This is why the towel trick works.  Essentially you wrap your 360 with a towel and turn it on, leaving it for I think half an hour or even several hours.  The heat builds up until it reaches a high but stable temperature, meaning all the parts are now at the same level of expansion and might actually reconnect.

It's funny because in the 360 elite, even with all those redesigns, the main way they prevent that problem is with glue.  Yep.  Someone took apart an elite and the main chip that was known to fall off was held down by a large blob of glue.

[Andrew Mallon]

Agreed.  And if you have to foresight to purchase a 2-year extended warranty then the egregious failure rate is much easier to stomach.  But I certainly hope these reliability issues abate with the smaller and cooler chip.

Buying an extended warranty doesn't show foresight. They're scams, pure and simple. You should avoid purchasing any product where you're sufficiently concerned about its reliability that you feel you have to purchase an extended warranty.

[gellar]

You can still send it in for fixing (at $180 or whatever), can't you?  And that would come with a new warranty.

I could get a refurbed one back from them at a cost near $150, I believe.  I'm not certain if that comes with a new warranty, but for some reason I remember reading that it comes with a very limited one.  I could also (as Kratz reminded me) buy a Core for $300 and just slap on my HD and call it good... but again, all of this is throwing good money after bad.  I need to decide if basically Forza 2 and Mass Effect are worth the cash to do that.  Right now I'm leaning towards no, though teh woman's inability to play GH2 may also factor into the decision.  The PS3 was already my console of choice for cross platform titles, so I guess I'm just trying to evaluate the thought of tossing more money at a console that I am fairly certain will fail within 2 years.  $300 is well within my thought of 'disposable', but it's just sorta the principle of the thing.  Of course, Forza does look pretty f'ing sweet...

They discovered one of the reason for device failure was heat issues where the inside of the box would heat up so much that the inner parts would expand/warp at different rates, eventually causing chips to pop off the board.

This is why the towel trick works.  Essentially you wrap your 360 with a towel and turn it on, leaving it for I think half an hour or even several hours.  The heat builds up until it reaches a high but stable temperature, meaning all the parts are now at the same level of expansion and might actually reconnect.

It's funny because in the 360 elite, even with all those redesigns, the main way they prevent that problem is with glue.  Yep.  Someone took apart an elite and the main chip that was known to fall off was held down by a large blob of glue.

HAHA!  I just looked that up when you mentioned it... there is quite a lot more glue on the elite than the regular:

http://www.llamma.com/xbox360/news/images/xbox-360-elite/360_elite_mobo.jpg

http://www.llamma.com/xbox360/news/images/xbox-360-elite/360_original_mobo.jpg

gellar

[gellar]

Agreed.  And if you have to foresight to purchase a 2-year extended warranty then the egregious failure rate is much easier to stomach.  But I certainly hope these reliability issues abate with the smaller and cooler chip.

Buying an extended warranty doesn't show foresight. They're scams, pure and simple. You should avoid purchasing any product where you're sufficiently concerned about its reliability that you feel you have to purchase an extended warranty.

Absolutely agree to the letter.  I may get a warranty on an item I am likely to break (Cell Phone, iPod, Camera... things I can make smashy when I drop them).  For a console that sits in one spot and has zero chance of abuse, it's insanity.

gellar

[HankRaptor]

Testify Gellar!

Its my favorite console ever made, and yet. It HAS to be the worst made. I am at 5. And I will keep going, I have to think the PS3 is better made.. but if the 360 was better made, they would have a bigger install base, IM SURE OF IT.

[gellar]

Um... odd.  So after Brendan PMed me a link today on xbox.com to see if my console was under warranty (it wasn't), I called the Xbox folks today to see how much it would cost to repair it and... it's back under warranty.  Something happened in the span of about 8 hours, but a coffin is on it's way to me and I should get a repaired or refurbed one back free of charge.  They're also extending my XBL subscription by a month, lol.

Odd, but I'll take it.

gellar

[Lee]

Um... odd.  So after Brendan PMed me a link today on xbox.com to see if my console was under warranty (it wasn't), I called the Xbox folks today to see how much it would cost to repair it and... it's back under warranty.  Something happened in the span of about 8 hours, but a coffin is on it's way to me and I should get a repaired or refurbed one back free of charge.  They're also extending my XBL subscription by a month, lol.

Odd, but I'll take it.

gellar

Wasn't there something a few months ago about 2005 models being fixed for free?

Mines a 12/05 model, I am expecting to die anytime now.

[Destructor]

I thought Microsoft at one point said that all 2005 models would be covered under warranty for another year (or something) for free. Glad to hear that they're replacing it for you.

[Tebunker]

glad to know you will be getting a replacement at no charge. It sucks that people have to deal with this crap. Obivously Microsoft can't say anything or admit anything or there'd be a lawsuit shoved so far up their rear ends that they'd be giving away games and free Xbox live to anyone who bought a system made in the last 18 months.

I actually considered getting rid of the 360 now that I am starting to get DRE's and I just got a PS3, but there are about 5 games I'd be upset if I missed them.

[Knightshade Dragon]

Glad to still count you among the 360'd folk Gellar. 

[Brendan]

Good to hear it'll be fixed.  Just trying to encourage more Forza sales...

[Eightball]

Um... odd.  So after Brendan PMed me a link today on xbox.com to see if my console was under warranty (it wasn't), I called the Xbox folks today to see how much it would cost to repair it and... it's back under warranty.  Something happened in the span of about 8 hours, but a coffin is on it's way to me and I should get a repaired or refurbed one back free of charge.  They're also extending my XBL subscription by a month, lol.

Odd, but I'll take it.

gellar

Glad to hear it, man.

[Calvin]

You lucked out, but glad you are still on 360 boy!

[ATB]

So should I still expect a list of your (cheap) games or what? You can't put the genie back in the bottle.

Oh and I'll keep you on my friends list if you beg.  I mean, really, it's quite coveted real estate.

[gellar]

So should I still expect a list of your (cheap) games or what? You can't put the genie back in the bottle.

After typing up my list of 32 games, I've come to realize I should probably get rid of all but 10 of them.  Once I figure out if the price is worth the effort, I will see about posting in the forum.

gellar

[Andrew Mallon]

Um... odd.  So after Brendan PMed me a link today on xbox.com to see if my console was under warranty (it wasn't), I called the Xbox folks today to see how much it would cost to repair it and... it's back under warranty.  Something happened in the span of about 8 hours, but a coffin is on it's way to me and I should get a repaired or refurbed one back free of charge.  They're also extending my XBL subscription by a month, lol.

Odd, but I'll take it.

gellar

Wow, that's very cool of MS. Glad to hear they're making things right for you.

[CeeKay]

Um... odd.  So after Brendan PMed me a link today on xbox.com to see if my console was under warranty (it wasn't), I called the Xbox folks today to see how much it would cost to repair it and... it's back under warranty.  Something happened in the span of about 8 hours, but a coffin is on it's way to me and I should get a repaired or refurbed one back free of charge.  They're also extending my XBL subscription by a month, lol.

Odd, but I'll take it.

gellar

Brendan probably took a couple of those guys out back and told them if they don't do right by you they'd end up with an image of tubgirl tattoed on the inside of one eyelid and goat.se on the other.....  his gamertag is 'Villain' after all......

[Jancelot]

Buying an extended warranty doesn't show foresight. They're scams, pure and simple. You should avoid purchasing any product where you're sufficiently concerned about its reliability that you feel you have to purchase an extended warranty.

It most certainly does when the product you're buying is known to have a high failure rate.  Has that for backwards logic?    But I certainly agree with you and outside of the 360 I never buy them.  We should all be voting with our dollars and not buying a product with such a high defect rate.  But it didn't happen with the PS2 and it's not happening with the 360.  The draw of the games and online system is too great for all of us.  I see buying the extended warranty through MS as basically a requirement for owning a 360. 

Congrats on the fix gellar.

[Dimmona]

Yeah, just a quick update to my dead 360 - even though the website showed it out of warranty, they are going to replace it for free and give me a free month of Live as compensation. 

So some quick tips for those who have to go through the red ring of death procedure:
1) DO NOT go through the website - at the end it just ends up telling to you call the support line anyways.
2) If you call the support line and go through their automated menus, their annoying automated system will waste 20 minutes trying to walk you through some simple trouble shooting steps.  To bypass this, just say "Agent" at the first voice prompt and you'll go straight to a real breathing person.
3) Tell the agent you walked though all of the troubleshooting steps listed on the website, and he or she should send you a replacement!

[Raider H]

I can also confirm that MS seems to be replacing 360's with a 2005 manf. date free of charge.  When mine busted several weeks ago they replaced mine free of charge even though I was pretty sure I had it more than a year already.  Talking with the rep I didn't ask any questions about the warranty trying to avoid that whole discussion and thought maybe I got lucky.  Looks like it must have been because my console had a 2005 date.

[Ridah]

So approximately how long does it take from the moment you call them and they tell you a coffin will be arriving, to the moment you get your replacement?

[Brendan]

So approximately how long does it take from the moment you call them and they tell you a coffin will be arriving, to the moment you get your replacement?

They ship the boxes via UPS - 3 day ground.  They'll give you a tracking number for the box in the event that you want to wait breathlessly on the front porch until it arrives...

[ATB]

So approximately how long does it take from the moment you call them and they tell you a coffin will be arriving, to the moment you get your replacement?

They ship the boxes via UPS - 3 day ground.  They'll give you a tracking number for the box in the event that you want to wait breathlessly on the front porch until it arrives...

Guffaw. Ask Warning if that's what happened for him.

[Purge]

They've changed their methods ATB.

Try not to be too callous when a product's support team actually listens to what people are screaming at them.

[Brendan]

Guffaw. Ask Warning if that's what happened for him.

I speak from (unfortunately) personal experience.  Fortunately, I was lazy enough about calling in that I delayed until the new warranty terms had gone into effect.  Sadly, Warning was more prompt with his return.  :|

[warning]

So approximately how long does it take from the moment you call them and they tell you a coffin will be arriving, to the moment you get your replacement?

They ship the boxes via UPS - 3 day ground.  They'll give you a tracking number for the box in the event that you want to wait breathlessly on the front porch until it arrives...

Guffaw. Ask Warning if that's what happened for him.

Don't even get me started...

[Purge]

The service they're offering right now is what I (in Canada) have had since the Xbox1. Mind you, I've not had a 360 returned to them so I don't know how it was "in the middle".

They gave me a tracking number for the 1 time I had to send my obsidian brick back, and they sent me out power supply replacements with no fuss.

[TheMissingLink]

Somebody assured me in an earlier thread that Microsoft fixes the 360's that they ship back to you.

Well, I got mine today...annnd they told me they've given me a new one.

I swear, it's going to break in a week.

[Brendan]

Somebody assured me in an earlier thread that Microsoft fixes the 360's that they ship back to you.

Well, I got mine today...annnd they told me they've given me a new one.

I swear, it's going to break in a week.

The warranty update reads "most customers will now receive their original console back from Microsoft."  I received my original Xbox back last week.