MS to offer NXE 'storage solutions' to those in need

by Dustin Burg { Oct 10th 2008 at 12:15PM }

After learning that the New Xbox Experience and Avatar customization would require, at minimum, a 256MB memory card, it spawned more questions than answers. Would the NXE install take up all 256MB? If so, what about Xbox 360 Arcade owners and their tiny 256MB memory card? Wait, what about Core customers who don't have storage or own a 64MB memory card? What are they to do and is the NXE update a mandatory download? CONFUSION! So, we reached out to. Major Nelson and, thankfully, he cleared up said confusion ...

"The new Xbox experience will require 128MB of free space. A hard drive is recommended for the optimal experience, to take advantage of some new features, and to be able to enjoy the great movies, TV shows and games available on Xbox LIVE. While we expect the majority of consumers to download the New Xbox Experience without a problem, a small percentage of Xbox 360 owners do not have enough memory to accommodate the update. To help ensure all Xbox LIVE members are able to download the New Xbox Experience and enjoy its new features, Microsoft will be offering storage solutions to the Xbox LIVE community. We are not sharing details of this offering yet. Be sure to check xbox.com for more details in the coming weeks."

There you have it. The NXE is a required dash update, will need roughly 128MBs of storage, a HDD is recommended AND (shocker here) for those who own little or no 360 storage, Microsoft will be offering some sort of "storage solution". We wait for more info ...

Tags: avatars, dashboard-update, fall-update, new-xbox-experience, nxe

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

DBoyFlex @ Oct 10th 2008 12:24PM

Nice to hear that for those without, but I wonder if it is a discount on a HDD or memory card. Who knows, maybe those with an arcade/core SKU will get something free from MS. Maybe, just maybe they care for their customers as much as they care to make money.

Justin @ Oct 10th 2008 12:29PM

That's awesome, but the same people that bought a core system are the same ones who don't read the internet.

Urza @ Oct 10th 2008 4:15PM

I'd be surprised if anyone was still using a Core system that didn't red ring. :)

CyberKnight @ Oct 10th 2008 12:32PM

Call me cynical, but why do I smell more overpriced memory cards in the works? I was lucky to find a 512MB card as an "open box" item for half price once, and even then it was expensive as sin.

I have a hard drive, but I store my profile on the memory card (for portability and it keeps it "out of reach of children" ;) ). How much of this NXE will be stored on the hard drive, and how much with my profile? I'm assuming my avatar will go with my profile -- is that the full 128MB?

OwningXylophone @ Oct 10th 2008 12:39PM

That's a good point... I bought a 360 back when they came out with the 20gb HDD, but also grabbed a 64mb memory card when one appeared for the right price. My memory card now pretty much only holds my profile, which is 30mb on it's own! So if it stores the avatar in the profile, am going to lose the ability to have my profile on my memory card?

I wonder if they're going to offer a trade in to swap the 64mb cards for 256mb's?

DSK UK @ Oct 10th 2008 12:35PM

I would like to know how much our gamer profiles are going to be in size. At the moment mine is 12mb. Is this why 128mb is needed for it? Because the profiles are going to be a lot larger?

Doug @ Oct 10th 2008 12:36PM

I asked this before buying an Arcade at the new $200 price. I was told on Joystiq forum... it's a firmware update. Don't worry about it ;)

Anyhow, glad to see MS has a plan.

And can we stop the Arcade bashing? It does make sense as a 2nd machine for family who only play Catan, Hexic and Luxor 2.

mirage @ Oct 10th 2008 12:49PM

Not trying to bash, but you paid $199 to play Catan, Hexic, and Luxor 2? Ouch...

Doug @ Oct 10th 2008 12:56PM

Not exactly. Add a HDD and wireless adapter from my Pro model in the office, and suddenly it's a Pro, for Rock Band, streaming Netflix, etc.

And an Arcade comes with a wireless controller and a power cord (that's over $100 right there to buy separately) I'm able to let family play arcade games while I play Halo in the office.

It's a cheaper solution than buying another pro for a HDD that would rarely get used. And besides, you can get a used 20 gb HDD for almost $40 these days. Still cheaper than a Pro.

iFester @ Oct 10th 2008 12:45PM

I've noticed your profile size increases with your Live activity (ie DLC, purchased XBLA titles). My current profile is around the 12mb mark while my secondary profile is only 400kb as I don't purchase anything on it (it's Silver so Gold must upgrade the profile size with licensing).

I have two Arcade units (one with a 20gb HDD I was given) so I guess I'll be needing some kind of solution for my other one (needed a DVD player for an SDTV but didn't have the room in the cabinet so since the 360 can stand up next to it...).

I'm curious to see what MS has in store.

Lance @ Oct 10th 2008 12:49PM

I just watched the video on my 360 about the new update and the developers said that they are working to make the 360 the central part of our entertainment system.

With that said, it begs to be repeated that the 360 NEEDS a much larger and affordable hard drive in order to do all of the things they are wanting to make it do. 120 GB isn't going to cut it, especially at the price they want for it.

BrokenMonkey @ Oct 10th 2008 12:50PM

Where in that statement does it say that it's a required dashboard update?

dante sparda @ Oct 10th 2008 1:07PM

All Dashboard Updates are required.

BrokenMonkey @ Oct 10th 2008 1:09PM

Then why pose the question in the first place at the beginning of the post? Surely the author had some reason to believe that it wouldn't be required, but there was no evidence in the statement that it will be.

BrokenMonkey @ Oct 10th 2008 1:09PM

MikeB @ Oct 10th 2008 12:53PM

Probably bringing in Windows Live services like Live Mesh. We all know they are announcing cloud-based OS initiatives this month at the PDC so it makes perfect sense to bring it to the console/entertainment realm.

I DeX I @ Oct 10th 2008 12:55PM

What about additional Themes and Avatar Skins? Seems to me all of the new fancy 3D themes would take up a bit of space? What about all of the pictures associated with the games you are playing that are part of the selection screen on the new NXE? Where are they stored?

Phawx @ Oct 10th 2008 1:12PM

Online Storage!

echoraven @ Oct 10th 2008 1:13PM

Heck why not enable the 360 to use a USB hard drive? Doesn't Microsoft already get $$$$ from manufacturers to display the Vista logo?

Michael Paul @ Oct 10th 2008 1:32PM

In short: 'piracy'.

Microsoft sold their collective souls to their Content Provider partners, and a USB hard drive could allow multiple users to access content only one of them paid for. Unless every nickle of IP value is carefully guarded, it's not allowed on a Xbox 360.

Sony, on the other hand, is making things like larger hard drives easier as time goes on, but so far I have no real incentive (and lately no spare funds) to buy a PS3...

h0mi @ Oct 10th 2008 1:42PM

Cheaper hard drives or let us use USB storage.

JerkfacedFed @ Oct 10th 2008 1:48PM

y dont they just release an 8 or 16gb memory card already and just drop anything below 1gb. its complete nonsense that u can get a 16gb in the store for less than $50 but the 512mb costs the same.

cmdrpwn @ Oct 10th 2008 3:07PM

Can an Arcade stream Netflix videos?

I ask because I'm planning on acquiring a 360 in a month or so around the holiday season, and I'm leaning towards the Arcade. I'm a full-time college student on a tight budget, and the less money i have to spend on a consoel the better (that's why i changed my mind about the PS3, in addition to its fairly pathetic roster of titles).

So, keeping that in mind, I'd be fully content with an Arcade so long as it can play the games, although things like Netflix would be great fringe benefits. Does streaming require an HDD?

Also, if NXE takes up half the Arcade memory card, will the remaining space be sufficient for a good amount of games and maybe an XBLA title or two?

thanks guys.

iFester @ Oct 10th 2008 3:47PM

My suggestion to you would be to do a store to store search to see if they're clearing out any of the old 20g Pro 360's. With the memory card + the NXE on it you'll have enough space for game saves, but not DLC. I wouldn't look into buying any XBLA titles with that little space.

It's another reason Microsoft should have discontinued the Arcade, and made the SKU's the same pricing but with 20g, 60g and 120g HDD units.

Urza @ Oct 10th 2008 4:17PM

The longer 360 is on the market, the more obvious it becomes that the Core and Arcade models are a mistake.

Consoles need harddrives now a days, the original Xbox didn't because Microsoft only let bungie use it.. everyone else was out of luck. But today, every game has a patch, every game has DLC.

And now we need to waste 128mb on a new Dashboard many don't want.

Mrblonde @ Oct 10th 2008 6:28PM

Its more of a 50-50 kind of thing on the new dash. I'm sure once people try out the new dash they will like it a lot more then they though they would.

Jayenkai @ Oct 10th 2008 5:08PM

FFS...

What did I JUST say!!

That's the last time I trust you guys for Firmware Update info ;)

cmdrpwn @ Oct 10th 2008 6:08PM

@iFester,

How much space does the typical XBLA game consume? For example say, Braid?

joker ant @ Oct 10th 2008 6:14PM

Hopefully this will be some sort of free MU thing. Preferably 512 MB. :)

Mrblonde @ Oct 10th 2008 6:25PM

My guess is they will offer rebates for hard drives for those without one.

Watson SE @ Oct 10th 2008 7:18PM

I can accept that the Avatars are stored on an extrenal memory (HDD or 64/256/512MB card) but having the NXE on it is just crazy! I see the NXE as a new "OS" - this shall not be stored on a memory device that is removable from the system. Imagine this: After Nov 19th I download the NXE as a system update, loading it to my HDD. What happens if I turn off my box and removes the HDD and starts up the box? Will I have the 'old blades back'?! If I after this insert a memory unit, connect to LIVE, will I prompted to download the system update again? What happens if I only have the system update (i.e. NXE) on a memory unit (no HDD) and removes the memory unit while the box is on? System crash or does it revert to the old blades?!

cmdrpwn @ Oct 10th 2008 7:38PM

After thinking about this a bit more, this development seems to even further validate and vindicate my aim to get an Arcade; I'll get a 360 for $100 less, and a storage solution is on the way to compensate for the lack of an HDD.

Is this sound logic?

(I should also say, and this is on a far more superficial level of analysis, but the bundled game packages for the Core and Elite actually seem considerably LESS attractive than the Arcade...)

onimuusha @ Oct 10th 2008 7:47PM

Jesus christ buy a hard drive you cheap bastards. I got the 120 gb and i dont earn shit, its called saving or paying off interest free.

I guess its ms fault, how could they not make a hdd as standard. Bunch of idiots, i guess they were worried about the casual crowd. All this crowd does is increase sales of bad games and pollute the pool.

onestar @ Oct 10th 2008 10:30PM

More than just bungie used the HDD on the original xbox. So many games had download content and updates. Hell there were also games like Half life 2, doom 3 and conker live and reloaded the never would have been possible to even play without caching the game to the HDD.

Darlaten @ Oct 10th 2008 10:43PM

LOL - You all know what's going to come out; an overpriced hard drive or memory card to which, compared to any other prices for memory, will be easily double/triple the going rate. Yeah, MS rocks.

Seriously, their 120 gig drive is still $169.99 when you can buy a Western Digita Portable Hard drive that is of 250 gig for $179.99!

I like my Xbox but really, the whole price of their hard drives and memory sticks seems like another typical MS way of nickle and diming the public to death.

BJ Wanlund @ Oct 10th 2008 11:05PM

Well, admittedly, they did far better than that other Redmond company in the fact that they were proactive about storage and didn't ignore the storage problem until quite recently, and even THEN they are going to continue to ignore it till Spring 2009. Dumb, dumb dumb dumb DUMB!

BJ