My PS2 is about 4-5 years old and has never missed a beat, my Dreamcasts suffered the "reset problem" my PS1 still works after god knows how many years of abuse, my Saturns are all half dead. My XBOX is still working like the day it was purchased 3 years ago, my Gamecubes all have intermittent faults with memory card corruptions, and when playing PSO they will just hang. My 360 works perfectly, even after having it on for 8 hours+ So apparently I am the exception to the rule, as the "evil corporate dictators" have provided me with perfectly working kit, while the "hardcore gamer companies that love each and every one of us" have given me shit gear.
regarding the Dreamcast, I have yet to meet a long-time user without a similar complaint regarding the "reset" problem. It looks like a 100% issue on aging Dreamcasts. The PSX works like a dog, but my award for longest living console without a hint of a problem is definately the N64. The amout of abuse and work that all my 3 N64s have put up with is next to none, and they work better than any other system I ve had so far, and I ve had 'em all, almost ;-)
True, but it doesn't make it any less of a "fuckup" on Sega's behalf than the problems people have been having with the 360. I would say a few % of people with 360 problems compared to probably 90% of DC users with a known problem makes the 360 "more reliable" Admittedly you can fix the reset problem yourself in 2 minutes with just a screwdriver, but the point stands.
They were only good for simple machines. With the power of the 360/PS3 it's a shame to only let them play games.
all dreamcasts and saturns i've bought so far (only used ones) had that reset problem. i left each of them running for 2 hours, and the problem was gone, and never came back. my assumption is that it only occurs when you dont touch the consoles for a long time and then switch them back on. i'd call it a design flaw, but its not that bad compared to the 360, really. and i'd say the gc is the most reliable of all the current generation systems. most just need a laser pot tweak after some time, most likely due to dirty or scratched lenses.
My PSX finally died yesterday. It sort of runs incredible crisis, but without music. Might be the laser. Still, not bad for 9 years of continuous use. My sister's nes is in excellent condition. My Snes crapped out last year (some video-out problem) but I have another one that works like a charm. My first PS2 died on me, but my PSTwo works wonderful. My dreamcast works flawlessly. My N64 works flawlessly as well. But what gets me is that my PC Engine is in perfect working order, and my Atari 2600 and Intellivision work like it were still 1983. I guess, with all these examples, the point is that machines surviving or not, is a matter of luck. On a long enough timeline, everyone's survival rate drops to zero. The bad part would be that the timeline for the survival rate of 360s seems to have a very low average. I'd wait for a redesign.
The only console I ever had a problem with was my *old* PSX. I bought it used around 1998, and after about a year and a half or so, it just crapped out. Along with Tachikoma, I dodged all the faulty systems of this generation.
Hmmmm I think it is time, that I maybe should spent some money on an XBOX , since that one is fucking cheap, and I think has better reliability. And then I can always chip it, and put in a BIG mf of a HD and use the homebrew stuff on it
Maybe Florida just managed to get a bad shipment of systems. As I said, no issues with mine (except for one freeze up during PDZ) or any of my colleague's systems.
Since I have no clue what you are talking about and I own a Dreamcast then I guess I am the first person you met without this problem.;-) The only consoles I have had die were 2 Gamecubes. The first one was an indigo one that I left on for (literaly) a year and a half straight 24/7 before it died. The next one was a platinum cube which I did the same thing with except this one only lasted 8 months. Now I know better than to leave a disc based console on like you would a catridge based one.;-)
is it possible to find a functioning XBOX for about 50 US greens? (what would the price be if it were mod chipped?)
I've never had any problems with any of my systems dying, and the only ones with any problems are my NES with the flashy thing and since my Xbox is an older one it's a little loud, but they still work fine.
I personally wouldn't buy on that advice. The whole point is to get a quality unit that isn't going to malfunction in the first place; one where I won't have to waste a few hours boxing and shipping it back to MS for repair. I've been hearing more reports of bugged out 360s lately, and until it's stable, I'm going to keep shying away from throwing $400 at one. Same reason I won't buy a PS3 anywhere near launch. Reliability in game systems has hit a new low in the last 5 years, and it doesn't seem like it's getting much better. Before long I'll be using my "never buy a new car model its first year" logic to game consoles.
If you're concerned, leave the 360 on for a week. If anything is going to crap out, it'll show and then it's just a short trip back to the store. It's obvious that there's no "burn-in" period for 360. Just some quick simulated stress test. The crappiest car can do 100mph once, doesn't mean it is reliable. Here I am on number three unit, and I've had a total use of maybe a month's time from the previous two...
Does nobody seem to remember we have this conversation about nearly every console launched to date? The PS1 had spindle/heat problems, the Saturn had disk read problems, the PS2 would freeze, the Dreamcast would overheat, the XBOX was too noisy, the GameCube hasn't had that much publically, but loads of people have had problems with them. The DS and PSP were "launched with dodgy screens with dead pixels" Nothing released yet has been "100% trouble free" it's just people's memories seem pretty selective. ASSEMbler has gone through 3, yet I know of plenty of people who have launch 360's and later 360's who have had no issue.
Yeah, but how long has the XBox 360 been out? These faults crop up after a few months. Who knows what will happen in a year or two? The DC reset issue occurs after several years or under very hard wear and tear (I always thought it was down to overheating?)
Just a small weigh in; I've got 2 360s here at home (primary one getting atleast a couple hours of use each day, and has held up during 12-18hr constant-on situations) and have never had a single problem, even with my power brick being in a seemingly cramped area. I have 3 friends locally who have 360s and haven't commented to me on having a problem, nor have I ever spoken to anyone on the 'net who's had a situation.
OK, my turn: 1993 Genesis-OK 1993 SegaCD-Working like new 1995 32X-OK even when I did open it a few times to see the SHs. 1995 Nomad-OK 1996 Saturn-OK 1997 N64-OK but the analogs are about to bust 1999 Dreamcast-I almost lost it in europe (fucking 220v sockets) yet is still working as new 2000 PS2- Almost launch model, it never worked, not even out of the box. I returned it and never bought a PS2 again. 2001 Gamecube-My ONLY launch console (DOL-001 USA) and works like a charm 2001 GBA-Also launch model, and no issues at all. If I dont see a solution to the issues with the X360 soon, I'm getting an Xbox.
