Xbox 360 buying and upkeep advice

[angelox]

Hey - I'm looking at buying a GOW+Xbox 360 pack from play.com and I was wondering if there was any tips to give the machine a good lifespan. I had a look at the 360 faults thread on here and it was very suprising that there were so many issues regardless of production date.

Also I was wondering, would the 360's at play (or for that matter any retailer) have the "new" drives rather than the 1st gen ones? Sorry for the general newbness of the questions - I just cant afford to buy replacement 360's on a student budget :\. Cheers in advance

[Daragon]

You're more or less taking a gamble with a 360 these days - People report a 3 month old console taking a dive, whereas mine being a launch day model was fine up until about a week and a half ago.

Basically, if yours goes tits up within 90 days then its covered by the store, any longer and you'd probably need to pay for the repair unless you're happy with a MS refurb.

[MikeF]

I would advise buying from a high street retailer as that way you are covered for the first 12months

I have had to return my 360 twice to the retailer for a replacement

[egparadigm]

Yeah, HMV have been very good to me - they have replaced my console twice in seventeen months.

[MyDogSkip]

Also, (even though I do work for them) GAME have a really good warranty scheme going on now. Its only £35 ish for a 3 year guarantee (which also includes accidental damage) You can take it back to the store for the first year, then after that allianz cornhill will send you a postage paid box and return the console (either repaired or a BRAND NEW one, NOT refurb) within a week.

(please excuse the shameless plug, but it really is a good idea )

[fahrenheit]

We are getting ahead of ourselves here a bit aren't we?

Practical things you can do before the thing dies -

* Run the console horizontally, but get yourself some rubber feet (at least an inch high) and raise the console up on them. This will ensure airflow under the case and free-up the underside vents so they can draw in fresh, unstiffled air. It will keep the underside panel much cooler to the touch also.

* Get the Play & Charge kit and make sure you use it after every session. When the console shuts down, the rear fans turn off and the console is left to bake un-aided thanks to the lack of airflow inside the case. This is a real killer. By plugging in the Play & Charge kit, you ensure that the fans remain on and will help cool the console quickly before turning off completely. It acts much the same way as a turbo timing in a car.