Microsoft faces new Xbox 360 reliability accusations


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Personally, I think its a bunch of B.S. When I bought my Xbox 2 years, it had a sticker on top of the console that said very clearly in english: "To prevent damage to your hardware, please do not move console while disc is spinning."

What kind of a moron moves an Xbox from flat to vertical position while playing a game? That is asking for trouble. I've had my Xbox for 2 years and I have had no issues with it whatsoever. None.

Microsoft faces new Xbox 360 reliability accusations

By Mike Smith

Remember last week's story about Jason Johnson, the Illinois man who sued Microsoft over his Xbox 360's alleged habit of scratching his game DVDs?

Documents unsealed in his court case revealed Microsoft discovered its Xbox 360 could scratch discs before it went on sale in 2005, and even got as far as considering three possible solutions to the problem, the Seattle Tech Report revealed today.

The characteristic circular scratches can occur whenever the orientation of the console -- which is designed to be used in either a horizontal or vertical position -- is changed while the drive is spinning. Johnson filed his suit after his console scratched three store-bought game discs, and is seeking $50,000 in punitive damages.

Testimony obtained from a Microsoft program manager indicates that Microsoft became aware of the problem months before the 360's launch when retail demonstration consoles malfunctioned. The company examined three solutions: strengthening the magnets that hold the discs in place, slowing the rotational speed of the discs, and installing rubber bumpers to cushion the discs, but rejected them all. Installing the bumpers could have cost as little as $0.50 per console, the suit claims.

It's not the first time Microsoft has come under fire for alleged foreknowledge of Xbox 360 hardware issues, either. Back in September, an expose penned by VentureBeat writer Dean Takahashi claimed systemic failures in Microsoft's design and quality assurance processes lead to the Xbox 360's now-infamous overheating "Red Ring of Death" failures.

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I read this a few days ago on Digg or something. A complete waste of time and the case will be thrown out because anyone with half a brain understands a disk spinning at 5400/7200 rpm in an unmounted tray is going to be damaged if you move it while playing!

It says in the manual not to move the console while disks are in it, and just about every console before it has instructed the same thing!

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I've moved my console about with a disc in in the past (just like an inch or two in the same position), but actually taking it and lifting it from a horizontal to vertical position? That's just stupid :laugh:

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With all that said, if it is true that Microsoft could have stopped this with a few cents per console, I'd say this is a step in the right direction.

Just wish it didn't have to go through the court to have anyone pay attention to it.

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Just wondering, but has it been confirmed or even reported the user moved it while it was playing?

I heard some people legitimately have the problem of a 360 scratching discs. One of my games got scratched a little, but it's still playable after I cleaned it.

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And I believe the RROD are caused by people not looking after their things. I have had mine first 360 bought in Feb 08 and it still works. No moving it around and no "covering it up" or thrashing it and it is doing me what it is designed to do :)

Many people blame MS when infact it's people's own fault for not following the system maintainance advice.

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And I believe the RROD are caused by people not looking after their things. I have had mine first 360 bought in Feb 08 and it still works. No moving it around and no "covering it up" or thrashing it and it is doing me what it is designed to do :)

Many people blame MS when infact it's people's own fault for not following the system maintainance advice.

That's very true. People know by know that the Xbox as well as the PS3 have heat problems, so common sense tells you that it needs to have as much ventilation as possible. When I play my Xbox, I turn on a Fan that blows air to both the console and the power supply and I have never had any over heating issues whatsoever. No RROD. Nothing, and I played Halo 3 for 6 hours straight when it first came out, every day for a week. No problems. BTW...I finished the game in a week!!!!...LOL

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50 cents a unit? That's f*cking expensive. No wonder Microsoft didn't do it.

P.S. think of the savings of "50 cents a unit" when Microsoft makes millions of Xboxes. It adds up to a huge chunk of money.

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50 cents a unit? That's f*cking expensive. No wonder Microsoft didn't do it.

P.S. think of the savings of "50 cents a unit" when Microsoft makes millions of Xboxes. It adds up to a huge chunk of money.

that would be 5000$ for every thousand unit

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A couple of my discs were getting these scratches. It was because the Hi-Fi unit that my 360 was sitting in was not level. As soon as I fixed that, the problem went away.

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what kind of idiot moves the console while a game is being played? Would you tip over your computer tower in the middle of drafting your resume?

I would like to stress, again, that the article doesn't say if that's what the user did... only that doing that can result in scratched discs.

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what kind of idiot moves the console while a game is being played? Would you tip over your computer tower in the middle of drafting your resume?

I agree with the first comment as it is a console, however I move my computer (laptop) quite a bit when it's in my lap. Tipping it, etc.

And yes I realized you said tower....

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