360 RRoD: Repair or Replace?

[QualityChimp]

Woah!

My 360 has just died on me with the dreaded RRoD .

It's a launch-day machine that's only had the RRoD once before, but it's well outside the repair warranty window.

What would you do:
1. Send it off to Microsoft to repair it (around ?80)
2. Buy a 2nd-hand one from Gamestation/CEX (around ?100)

If I do the former, there's no guarantee how long it'll last, but if I do the latter, it may be registered to somebody else and could die anytime too (but could be quieter and have HDMI).

So what would you reccomend I do?

Thanks!

[egparadigm]

No doubt someone will be along to quote the relevant piece of legislation which states that products should last a "reasonable" amount of time/6 years and that, quoting that, you should return it to the store of purchase...

I take it you've registered the machine with Microsoft previously? When they asked you what the purchase date was you told them the truth? If not, phone them up and tell them you bought it 2 1/2 years ago. Thankfully, I've been problem free for over a year now, but in the past I found them to be pretty unlikely to check for receipts.

[toythatkills]

Get a new one.

If you get an Arcade you can get it for £125, probably get a few games in a bundle, and it'll be a Jasper, so much less likely to die in future. There's no way I'd trust a second-hand 360. No way. Premiums are only £160 (again, look for bundles), if you haven't upgraded your HDD yet, too.

[Matt]

Get a new one.

If you get an Arcade you can get it for ?125, probably get a few games in a bundle, and it'll be a Jasper, so much less likely to die in future. There's no way I'd trust a second-hand 360. No way. Premiums are only ?160 (again, look for bundles), if you haven't upgraded your HDD yet, too.

100%

?80 for a repair is a joke, and ?100 for a second hand one is suicidal - you know it will die. For a bit more, you get a [supposedly better] Jasper and a year warranty in a shop. Sell the bundled games if need be.

[NaveT]

Mine recently did the same. It was out of warranty.

I took it too a local shop, and they got it working again. Apparently they replaced the heat sink, and fan all for around 40 quid, plus he gave me 6 months warranty...

Maybe somewhere local can fix them for you.

[paulus]

Me too

My launch day premium did the same. Sold the power brick, cables & broken 360 separately (kept the HDD) & then bought a 1 month old Arcade from the AVForums, cost me about a tenner?

[k0pp0]

Grab a repair kit off t'internet and fix it yourself. I know a couple of chaps who have done it now with perfect results.

[peeveen]

What koppo sez. I've fixed two now, one of my own, one for a friend.
A pack of screws off eBay, a set of Torx screwdrivers, a tube of arctic silver and a paint stripper heatgun were the only "specialist" tools I needed. Give it a bash, you've nowt to lose.

[QualityChimp]

Hey guys,

I really appreciate your feedback.

I was all set to send it back to Microsoft, but after reading your suggestions I think I'll consider purchasing a new 360, but I'll have a bash at fixing my broken one first.

Might as well if I was just going to abandon it!

I was looking at this on eBay, which comes with the thermal paste that the other ones don't seem to supply. Worth a punt?

[ste]

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I was wondering:

I have a 360 from September 06 that still works. I had an RROD in January out of nowhere - before I got chance to book a repair it started to work again and it has been fine since (and we've logged like, 250+ hours of SF4 on it in that time)

Would you try and induce a RROD before the 3 year RROD warranty runs out? I figure if this dies out of warranty, I'll pick up a Japanese model for all the Cave games we're missing out on... though I paid like £300 for this, and what, £150 or something for a current one? I have a PS3 as well, so it's even harder to get around that.

[mr_rich]

mine died last night.
i was playing a new game on it - is it true that games can bring on a fault? (mine wasnt RROD, just freezing / crashing)

[MisterBubbles]

still in warranty??
mines RROD just before 3 years thankfully, dont play my 360 much now but if it RROD's again im BINNING it and selling my games

[Hombre]

Funnily enough, mine went and RROD'ed on me last night.

Purchased back end of 2006, so just inside 3 year warranty.

UPS are picking it up tomorrow to ship to MS for repairs in Germany, does this mean it will definitely be a repair or will I get a replacement 360?

[MarioMark]

I'm gonna cave. My 4th 360 broke back in November so I'd had enough with it and got rid. But I've just been offered a boxed year old elite with 2 pads, resi 5 and COD 4 for ?120. Plus with decent line up from E3 on its way I can't turn it down!

[MisterBubbles]

i got a replacement 360 seems to work so far but i dont play my 360 much, just as well cause we all know its gonna happen again