NexGen Wars Update: Xbox 360 leads, Wii catching up

Last July, Nexgenwars.com went on line to provide an "unbiased account" of how the three next-gen consoles are faring in the market. Back then Xbox 360 was the only one available with almost 4 million units sold. Today, after its two competitors finally launched, the sales figures are really heating up.

Based on NexGen estimates, Xbox 360 has now sold over 9 million (28%) since it launched over a year ago. Unless it sells another million within the next few days, MS will miss its 2006 sales target of 10 million

Nintendo is way, way, way off its target of moving 9 million Wii consoles by the end of the year. So far Wii sales is at 1,956,724 units (17%) since it launched. But then again, only 2 million units of the console have been released so far.

Lagging behind the two is Sony's PS3 at 792,619 units sold. Back in August Sony boldly predicted it will top Xbox 360 sales. Unfortunately, Sony didn't manufacture enough PS3s to go around to break Xbox 360's record.

Stay tuned for the final 2006 sales figures which we will post a few days from now.

(c) www.qj.net

Xbox Video Download Service Succeeding By -- Gasp -- Being Decent

Movie download sites and services are playing out to a more predictable storyline than the most trite Hollywood flick: one after another, they all suck. Their offerings are plagued by restrictive copy protection, poor site design and usability and other drawbacks, while many of them apparently ignore their biggest problem for many people -- it's difficult to download a movie then watch it on a TV set rather than a computer. It's hardly surprising to learn, then, that Amazon's movie-download store (which covers all the bases when it comes to these problems) continues to struggle, while the Xbox Live video download service is apparently doing quite well. While the Xbox service isn't perfect, it does offer a few significant benefits, namely that the machines are typically hooked up to a TV, and that it also offers HD content. The HD video appears to be a big draw, because despite its $1 higher price and significantly longer download time, HD content is more popular than the same content in standard definition. While there are only 3.5 million Xbox 360s in the US, video content is selling as well as, or better than on the download sites, which are available to far more PC users. While it may be news to the download site owners, it's hardly surprising that users will flock to services that offer a good user experience.

(c) www.techdirt.com

HD DVD vs. Xbox Live Marketplace: Why There's No Big Difference

How can an Xbox Live WMV encoded video which has 720p/1080i and only 6.5 Megabits per second (VBR) compare to an HD DVD, which has the potential to go up to 1080p and 36.55 Megabits per second? It can, and it turns out there's not as much difference between the two as you might think.

By recording and comparing two clips, one HD DVD and one XBL WMV, Brandon Wirtz and Jake Ludington came to the conclusion that there's really no noticible difference between the two if you don't have a 1080p TV that's been correctly calibrated. Other than the fact that Windows Media Encoded files can't display true blacks because it's calibrated for NTSC color space instead of ATSC color space, there ain't that much to report.

In short, unless you're a true videophile that spent hours calibrating your TV, have a 1080p set, and have a theatre-lit room, you probably won't notice the difference. – Jason Chen

[original post: www.gizmodo.com]

Xbox 360 Wireless Receiver Reviewed

Three things are combining to make this Xbox 360 wireless receiver for Windows a fantastic buy. First, it's only $19.99. Second, Xbox 360 controllers like the Wireless racing wheel and even the standard ones are great. Most importantly, DirectX 10 and Vista's "Games for Windows" branding requirement is forcing every game developer to support all Xbox 360 controllers via Direct X. That means just about every game will have real 360 controller support.

As for the device itself, it connects via USB and can handle any combination of four controllers or headsets. Even new controllers like the Mad Catz arcade stick should be supported. Did we mention it's only $19.99? – Jason Chen

[source: www.gizmodo.com]