MS handheld debate

[alxian]

MS has been up to something with their origami project.

> http://synaps.com.ar/screencasts/origamiproject.wmv

While I believe success for them won't come from an overpriced productivity device such as the origami tablet, but instead from an entertainment device with some small productivity elements built in. something to compete with PSP and iPOD rather than laptops and PDAs.

a link to a thread on the xbox forum
> http://forums.xbox.com/2681729/ShowPost.aspx (membership/registration required)

a link to a page viewable by the general public
> http://alxian.gametrailers.com/gamep...ewblog&id=1896
> http://alxian.gametrailers.com/gamep...ewblog&id=1710

a picture of my design
> http://alxian.gametrailers.com/gamep...wphoto&id=1327 (press on the image to enlarge it).
----

the main debate question is

Should MS take on PDAs and laptops, or focus their resources on releasing a portable xbox to compliment 360 and compete with iPOD video, nintendo DS, and Sony Playstation Portable?

[alexander]

MS laptops and PDAs.... what a scary thought...

[alexander]

are they going to be as unstable as the 360?

[alxian]

not a fair question as the 360s are rock solid.

i own one and have no issues whatever with its performance or stability.

i would however love to buy an MS handheld xbox just to see it crash.

[alexander]

dude, 360s have had a load of problems: DVD drives scratching disks, problems on the power ups, sudden shut downs every 20 minutes in the middle of games, problems shutting down, problems playing older games... so just consider yourself lucky. come on M$, solid product, thats an oxymoron...

[alxian]

i'm not arguing your sources for these urban myths however i will once more comment that i know NOone with any issues what so ever.

and will take the bait.

drives scratching disks

is a result of people transitioning the console during operation between flat and vertical positions. MS has warned against this behavior, any damages caused by this after MS had issued proper precautions is entirely the fault of the consumer.

powerups

i've actually never heard of this issue. though i'd assume its power related or in the extreme minority of software failure. whatever the cause a DOA console can be returned to MS and replaced. this is less than 2% of consoles, and of those few just simply die for no reason.

shut downs every 20 minutes

is a result of an overheating power block. keep it in a well ventilated environment and you shouldn't have any problems.

problems shutting down

again i've neither heard of this nor experienced it myself. can't fathom any other explanation beyond heat issues.

BC

the only thing that isn't a myth. and is due in major part to the lack of support from the developers who created the games in the first place. where yes MS has a team creating emulators... they have to start from scratch when the original authors are not available, which is most of them. this is due to the fact that dev cycles and costs burned many developers out, cites the 100 cancelled titles for the legacy xbox. while i have a handful of titles i want to see, i'd rather have MS keep the licenses and make sequels or knockoffs than kill themselves and the reputation of xbox (which is meaningless either way) by pursuing the people who created the games to help create partial emulators.

i.e. i want new games not rehashed halfbaked emulations that are not guaranteed to run 100% if they run at all.

BC was a luxury not a selling point for 360. people seem to forget that, and worse they will focus on this as a failure of the system rather than the possibilities of the console and its future games that may themselves become classics given time.


i don't actually consider myself a lucky 360 owner. they are worthless actually. but i do have hopes that as the year progresses more titles and features and services will arrive to help build 360 into a proper 'next generation' gaming experience.

why so much hate alexander? why are you so easily seduced by the propaganda against 360?

[Binary_Branflakes]

Originally Posted by alxian

the main debate question is

Should MS take on PDAs and laptops, or focus their resources on releasing a portable xbox to compliment 360 and compete with iPOD video, nintendo DS, and Sony Playstation Portable?

i think they should simply concentrate on releasing an OS that has less bugs! ya know, you should'nt put out new products when you havn't even got the first one right!

[InfiniteNow]

Originally Posted by Binary_Branflakes

i think they should simply concentrate on releasing an OS that has less bugs! ya know, you should'nt put out new products when you havn't even got the first one right!

It sounds good in theory, BB, but why should they do that? What's the business sense behind it?

If they build a car that will last forever, I'd never buy another one and they'd never survive as a company...

[Binary_Branflakes]

Originally Posted by InfiniteNow

It sounds good in theory, BB, but why should they do that? What's the business sense behind it?

If they build a car that will last forever, I'd never buy another one and they'd never survive as a company...

Yeah, you would buy another one. Either yours would wear out from use or you would simply want to upgrade as technology changes. What i mean by "getting the first thing right" is that they shouldn't release these buggy OS's and softwares that they have to spend as much or more money trying to patch in order to keep the customers they have and not hurt there reputation so that they can continue to attract new customers.

This is why MS is beginning to suffer now! people are wising up and moving to open source software or even Mac. but the move is more towards open source than Mac, i would think. if MS would concentrate on getting there bloated products running as they should BEFORE releasing them, then they would have a stronger hold on customer loyalty.

[InfiniteNow]

Originally Posted by Binary_Branflakes

Yeah, you would buy another one. Either yours would wear out from use or you would simply want to upgrade as technology changes.

I'm pretty much in line with the overall point you are making, but, uhmmm... hmm.... can you tell me how a car that would last forever would wear out from use?

Actually, don't worry about it. That would derail the thread and I think I know what you meant. They release products like this most often because they need to maximize profit, and most likely are unable to continue "fixing bugs" due to a lack of funding which is needed to achieve this.

Besides, who needs customer loyalty when you've already lined your pockets with a few billion dollars through the years?


Cheers.