Dissecting the 360

[bapenguin]

Anandtech (http://www.anandtech.com/) could have gotten a cool grand for their 360 on EBay, but instead decided to dissect it. In their article (http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=2610&p=1) they take the system apart piece by piece to show you exactly what's under the hood. They even give you detailed instructions on how you can dissect the 360 yourself.

Holy crap is that power brick huge.

[Taco]

Yeah, that's how they shrunk the size of the console so much compared to the XBox, moving the PSU outside. The PS3 currently dwarfs the 360 in size, I wouldn't be surprised if they end up doing the same thing.

Interesting article though.

[earthworm48]

When I've seen the 360 in stood up against the Xbox and PS2 (see 1up.com) I didn't think it was that small. Also I don't know about the PS3 as in the pics, looking at the size of its sockets in relation to the machine it doesn't seem that big.

[Taco]

It's not a lot smaller than the XBox. But I saw some side to side comparisons with the PS3, and the PS3 dwarfed it. The PS3 is larger than the XBox, but I think it was just a mock up to take away some of the 360's thunder. I tend to believe the final product is going to look different.

[Captain Awesome]

Yeah, that's how they shrunk the size of the console so much compared to the XBox, moving the PSU outside. The PS3 currently dwarfs the 360 in size, I wouldn't be surprised if they end up doing the same thing.

Interesting article though.


Just like the GC, the GC also has a nicely sized PSU :P

[Morratut]

Oh lord that power supply is huge.I could kill a medium sized dog with one swing of that thing...--==whooosh> {CRACK} 'yelp!' <splat>

I bet the 360 didn't fucking work afterwards though :D

[Murmillo]

Ok, that power brick joke is getting old now. Move along...

[Taco]

Just like the GC, the GC also has a nicely sized PSU :P

It seems pretty obvious, I'd rather it on the outside where I could tuck it away. Were they just so small they didn't matter until recently?

[BleedTheFreak]

PC PSU's are really big, of course, and what is the 360 but a powerful PC in a micro-ATX form factor, really? How big is that PSU? 450W? 600W? At any rate, it is larger than a standard PSU, lengthwise especially, but I'd rather it was a rectangle than a cube, since it should be easier to tuck away behind something.

I don't really know what folks expected, like I said it's basically a very powerful PC, and I'm sure all those high end components draw a lot of power.

[BleedTheFreak]

Good Gravy, I just noticed the shot with the heat sink, that thing is so big it would lower the ambient temperature of the room your playing in!

[Taco]

It's about the same, or maybe even a tad smaller, as a fanless PC heat sink. I've always wanted to build a fanless PC. But I want the speed and lack the patience.

[Roc Ingersol]

So it is bigger than a bread box.

[Paranoia]

I thought X360 was supposed to be water cooled.

[mister_slim]

Are 360's really selling that high on ebay? I just did a brief look, but most that were actually be bid on were running only a slight premium.

[Chalex]

The PS3 currently dwarfs the 360 in size, I wouldn't be surprised if they end up doing the same thing.

Do you have any idea what you are talking about or do you just make things up as you go?

http://bigkid.com.au/images/size_comp.jpg

http://img2.kult-mag.com/photos/00/00/57/09/ME0000570998_2.jpg


Note that these pictures are scaled evenly using the DVD drives (which are a standard size) and the ethernet ports on the back of the system (which are also the same size on either system)

[bapenguin]

PC PSU's are really big, of course, and what is the 360 but a powerful PC in a micro-ATX form factor, really? How big is that PSU? 450W? 600W? At any rate, it is larger than a standard PSU, lengthwise especially, but I'd rather it was a rectangle than a cube, since it should be easier to tuck away behind something.

I don't really know what folks expected, like I said it's basically a very powerful PC, and I'm sure all those high end components draw a lot of power.

I think I read somewhere 307W, or 315W. It was something odd though....not an even number like 350, 450, etc.

[Taco]

I know I saw a picture that looked very different than that(which apparently may have been wrong), I'll try and find it. I'm certainly not making things up, I have no agenda :).

[Chalex]

I know I saw a picture that looked very different than that(which apparently may have been wrong), I'll try and find it. I'm certainly not making things up, I have no agenda :).
Fair enough, I just try to keep information a correct as possibe.

Neither of those pics are perfect, but from every hands-on I have read the PS3 is a bit bigger than the original PS2 and the 360 is a bit smaller than the original Xbox.

[DanAmerson]

In addition to being massive, the 360 power brick gets pretty warm too. I use the one on my dev kit to heat my feet. It's nice. Saves me on the heating bill a bit. :)

dba

[Chalex]

And you probably saw something like this where someone obviously just did a hack job make the systems whatever size he/she thought they should be

http://www.playfeed.com/blogimages/uprightconsoles.jpg

But just by looking at the drives you can tell not one of those systems are to scale with either of the other two.

[Chalex]

In addition to being massive, the 360 power brick gets pretty warm too. I use the one on my dev kit to heat my feet. It's nice. Saves me on the heating bill a bit. :)

dba
Is it true that the power brick is fan cooled, I read somewhere (not sure where) that the brick gets so hot MS had to put 2 small fans inside :confused:

[Taco]

I think I saw one where they were similar size(PS3 slightly larger), but the dome towered over the 360. But yeah, it could of been a hack job.

[bapenguin]

I think I saw one where they were similar size(PS3 slightly larger), but the dome towered over the 360. But yeah, it could of been a hack job.

From our Very Own Front page (http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-2958.html):With measurements of 320mm x 240mm x 80mm to the XBox 360's 309mm x 258mm x 83mm - in inches: 12.6" x 9.45" x 3.15" for PS3 vs 12.17" x 10.16" x 3.27" for XBox 360 - Sony's new console enjoys a 7.5% advantage in physical volume.

The second picture that Chalex posted is not to scale. They used the power inputs to scale it, but that's only if the power inputs are using standard size connectors...which they are not.

[Taco]

Found several mockups similar to what you were posting, and some people arguing that te 360 was smaller. But it's obvious you're right. My bad ;).

[Chalex]

From our Very Own Front page (http://www.evilavatar.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-2958.html):

The second picture that Chalex posted is not to scale. They used the power inputs to scale it, but that's only if the power inputs are using standard size connectors...which they are not.The second one is actually the corrected version of the one you mention, where the USB and Ethernet ports were used for scale, it should be more or less correct.

[bapenguin]

The second one is actually the corrected version of the one you mention, where the USB and Ethernet ports were used for scale, it should be more or less correct.

It does not match up to the official measurements though. The systems are only half an inch difference in height, which would be about the size of a USB port. The 360 looks a lot more than a USB port higher than the PS3 mockup in the second shot.

[Roc Ingersol]

Does it really matter what the dimensions of an empty box are?

[Phades]

Does it really matter what the dimensions of an empty box are?

No kidding. Does it really matter once that box is full of parts for that matter? I thought the Slim PS2 was very cool. Then, I hooked it up, started playing games and never thought about it again.

[EternalGamer]

I always enjoy reading Anantech's stuff even though I often don't have an idea what half the stuff they are talking about is. I appreciate their objective and professional investigative approach to hardware.

Dan

[51|RandoM]

somebody must've posted this on slashdot, at is crawling.

[Stormwatcher]

Actually, the Bluray discs are bigger, so the PS3 is really that larger than the X360.

Nah, I'm lying.

[agentgray]

Actually, the Bluray discs are bigger, so the PS3 is really that larger than the X360.

Nah, I'm lying.
I do know they are blue-er. :D

[Vandenh]

>Does it really matter what the dimensions of an empty box are?

True :) Comparing a non-existant product to a ready-to-launch product does seem a bit silly.

[Twigz'N'Berries]

We haven't seen the PS3. I'd wager to say that the specs the PS3 threw out at E3, were just that specs. Sony wanted to kill the 360's thunder right away and they were partially successful...for a while. With Sony's underhanded business tactics of late, I am more and more sure that the PS3 design probably wasn't anywhere near complete at E3. I'd be surprised if it was more than 90% complete now.
That PS3 model we saw was nothing more than a concept. Along with the controller. It served its purpose and took away interest for an actual system. Kudos to Sony, even though they are bastards with no respect for gamers/consumers anymore.

[bapenguin]

I thought X360 was supposed to be water cooled.

I think this (http://www.hardocp.com/news.html?news=MTM3NjQsTWF5ICAgICAgLDIwMDU) will answer that. Not technically "water".

[Qoz]

There is no out of box DVI or HDMI support, nor is there any Microsoft support for either of those video interface standards at this time, although Microsoft has indicated that they may offer HDMI support when it makes sense to.
What a letdown. I'm only buying the Xbox 360 if it supports HDMI. Guess I'll have to wait then. :(

[BleedTheFreak]

I think this (http://www.hardocp.com/news.html?news=MTM3NjQsTWF5ICAgICAgLDIwMDU) will answer that. Not technically "water".

Wow, that's pretty wild actually. So the volume of liquid never decreases or anything? Is that because it's air-tight or how does that work?