New Xbox 360 300GB Hard Drive to be Announced Soon?

Abstract360.com Writes: "Today, we posted about MajorNelson confirming that USB Memory Support will be arriving to the Xbox 360 on April 6th. In the pictures that he has provided to us, we have noticed something new, a bigger hard drive.

Inside of these pictures we can see the USB Drive being connected to the Xbox 360, but we also see a Hard Drive that contains 293GB of free information. Does this mean that we will be seeing a 300gb+ Hard Drive being announced soon? I think so."

[dangert12]

get the price right

because 20gb 60gb 120gb are all over priced

[-MD-]

They keep increasing the size when all anybody really wants is a cheaper HDD.

I'd take a 40 dollar 60GB HDD over a 120$ 300GB HDD. I simply don't need that much space.

[Convas]

300 GB?!?! What'll that cost, $200 bucks?

I like the fact that MS is trying to offer more Hard drives (Does anyone feel mandatory installs coming on?), but they're going to seriously have to drop these sucker's prices like the stock market . I'm talking No more than $120 for the most expensive HDD and even that's pushing.

MS should try to aim for having all their HDDs under $100. THEN they'd start seeing some profit.

[Raf1k1]

250GB is £79.99. I would expect a 300GB one to be no less than £89.99 http://www.strategyinformer...

[GiggMan]

Soon the hard drives will cost more than the consoles.

[Microsoft Xbox 360]

Probably cost 3 times more than a 500gb HD for a PS3.

[crck]

The retail price difference between a 250 gb drive and a 320 gb drive is only $5 to $10. So expect MS to charge $20-$40 more for a price of probably $150-$170. I wish they would release a 500 gb drive so people could hack it. My 120 is filled with installs but don't want to bother to upgrade until they have a 500 gb drive.

Kind of stupid that PS3 is the system with the cheap drives but you don't have the option to install every game. While MS charges ridiculous prices but has the option. So I'm left with an 120gb 360 drive that is full but a 60 gb ps3 drive that's not even half used.

[WhittO]

lol what's the point in someone buying a 20GB anyway!

I thought the next model up would have been higher than 300GB since they already have a 250GB.

Edit: Also, for £39.88 - you can get http://www.ebuyer.com/produ... for PS3.

[ProjectVulcan]

Problem is that hard drives typically dont get cheaper and cheaper and cheaper, they just get bigger for the same money and smaller drives get phased out.

The second thing i dont understand is why anyone really needs a 300GB HDD for 360, Its not like you can store your own video content or whatever on the drive, and even installing games probably works out average of 5Gb a game. PS3 on the other hand benefits greatly from a big drive as among other things you can dump HD video onto it for playback

[zeeshan]

They can release all the hard drives that they want. They can even release a 1TB hard drive but it wouldn't matter because DVD9 will always be used by the game developers as the lowest common denominator. Seriously, this won't help compete with BluRay... AT ALL!!

[KingME]

Microsoft releases some news, and the first 10 comments comes from PS3 fans all with negative slants. Still curious what any of you really care. I guess it the thrill of the "hate", just can't help yourselves.

[darthv72]

his 360 is like a debug unit. After all he is trying out the newest updates before all of us so it only makes sense that his 360 is special where ours are not.

Plus, I would think it as a 320gb and not a 300gb. The amount of free space is not very reflective of the real size. For all we know he is using a 500gb hdd special made for his 360 from MS. Loaded with all sorts of game installs.

Now that is a size I wouldn't mind paying $129.99 for.

[captain-obvious]

300 GB
Well it cost a 1000$ this time ??

[anh_duong]

Slimbox with 320gb

[WildArmed]

Hopefully that means a price drop for older HDD's.
I've been meaning to pull an upgrade but dont want to dish out 100 bucks just yet

[Army_of_Darkness]

come on MS! your almost reaching my 320g PS3 HDD capacity that I had a year ago;)

[The Simple Truth]

Could this be the new 320GB Natal slimline hard drive thats been rumoured of late?

[Convas]

Major Nelson did say he was testing the 16GB USB system ... it would make sense for him to be testing "other" products. Oh man, I'm getting giddy with excitement. E3 could/will be beast.

[BeaArthur]

I have a small hard drive (I believe it's only 20) but it's honestly all I need. I don't keep a massive library of games and I don't download an excessive amount of movies, themes, etc. so I'm fine with my small hard drive.

[radyboy]

....

[WildArmed]

Both my 360 n ps3 have a 60gb in them and I am perfectly satisfied with them.

I've never run into a space issue yet, and dont see it getting any worse in the future.
I install games and then delete them.. I d/l DLC, but they barely take more than a few hundred mbs.
I have alot of full games on both consoles, but still have atleast 30-20gb left.

So yeah, I can see how people are perfectly content w/ smaller HDDs.

[redbadger]

What is the big deal with people wanting an insane amount of hard drive space. My ps3 is a 120 gb HD and i haven't even used half of that.

[Somnipotent]

i personally like to install my games on the the 360 HDD, saves my drive, extends the life of my console, and makes gaming quieter because the drive and fans aren't on full blast. so yes, more space is a good thing.

[What Would Kratos Do]

I agree.

I can't play MW2 without it being installed on the HDD.
Because the 360 is so loud you cannot hear enemy footsteps with the DVD drive spinning.

[crck]

Its for people that like to install their games. Quieter, loads faster and no disc read errors.

[BasilMarceaux]

Even after installing all of your games, thats way more space than needed. The game installs dont really take up that much space.

Now if for some stupid reason you want to keep all of your old game installs on there, for all the games youve EVER played, then maybe youd need this much space.

[YourCall]

Perhaps instead of lying and exaggerating about how load the 360 DVD drive is, you should invest in a sound system with more than 1 watt of power. It's not the drive, it you cheap arse stereo system/tv.

Also, it's pretty difficult for you 360 DVD drive to be loud when you don't own one. Another day another D-BAG!

[WildArmed]

I install every game i play.. and i have a 60gb 360.

So.. i still dont see why?

Ofc, once I'm done with them I delete then.. No point in having files for a game i dont plan on playing for a few months.

[SuperStrokey1123]

Ahh poor yourcall, just face it, the 360 is loud for the most part. The launch unit i had was a leafblower but the falcon i got to replace it was much better until the disc drive was really busy then it was farily loud again.

That being said my one ps3 has a much louder disc drive than my other one and my wii has the loudest disc drive of all so it may be more unit specific.

[maxcer]

installing games = improved loading times

noticeable in bfbc2, initial spawn on multiplayer is quicker with the install

...and less risk of the POS hardware borking out

[jkashuba07]

No lifers who simply sit on their butts at their moms house and all they do is eat and play games.. So you can imagine they must have a butload of games they need to install or butload of arcade games to get.

[Queasy]

Major Nelson works for Microsoft and has access to stuff like dev kits which have larger hard drives.

Even then, bumping up from 250GB to 300GB makes little to no sense.

[Somnipotent]

i think it's a 320GB drive... at least from the image and current available HDD configurations.

or yes, a dev kit.

[maxcer]

im thinking its a dev kit 360

[aftrdark21]

But only has 293Gb free space. I have a 20Gb and it only has 13Gb free space to begin with.

[OpenGL]

Hard drives are sold as 1GB = 1000MB when in reality 1GB is 1024MB based on the binary definition. When you pair that with the format and whatever reserved space the 360 requires, 293GB sounds about right for a 320GB drive.

[Vip3r]

£100 then. Next week we'll get a 320GB, then a 460GB and finally a 500GB for a mere £200.

Sweet.

[divideby0]

MS is just clueless..they need larger disks to support digital downloads and to compete with BlueRay, BUT they are so over priced, I will not upgrade my 20G launch 360 HardDrive to a price which I can buy another PS3 for another 150 bucks...STUPID MS

[BeaArthur]

Well how would you propose they get "larger disks"? There is no way to update the core technology at this point so they have to work with what they have. Blu-Ray wasn't available when the 360 came out, there is nothing MS can do about that.

[Arnon]

He's not able to propose anything. It's funny how absolutely nobody realizes why they're doing this.

I'll give you a hint:

It's now the leading format for PCs.

[SuperStrokey1123]

Bearther... hes talking about harddisks i believe as in harddrives.

[Spiden80]

They tout that DLC is the future, yet they have over-priced hard drives for their console, BIG FAIL yet again for microsoft!

[JeffGUNZ]

It's a dev. kit. Also, they are now allowing USB storage, so you can use your flash drive for an additional 32GB at a time. You can only have 2 in at a time, but I haven't read any limits on the amount you can sync up with the 360. Basically, you can keep buying flash drives and use one for demos, a few for installed games, and another for pics/thems/videos/etc.

[Somnipotent]

while your solution may work, it's definitely not the most elegant design. just because it works doesn't mean it should be praised. the limitations set forth by Microsoft are downright backwards.

it shows quite frankly that Microsoft the the sole entity of holding back themselves. ie: they backed HD-DVD but did not include it as the de facto media for the 360. they push digital downloads but sell their proprietary drives at butt rape prices.

Microsoft is anti-consumerism at it's worst.

[Mo0eY]

Why are you guys trying to disagree with his comment? It's true. There's no way the casing for the hard drive brings the price to 250% of the original price. Microsoft has always had a tendency to overprice their products.

[JeffGUNZ]

I would never pay that price for an HD. I also really only use my HD for saved files and games, and I only install the entire game that I am currently playing on the HD. I don't need a ton of space, so throwing in a flash drive is perfect for me and isn't really that much of a hassle. For those who download all their games onto a HD, then it's a pain, but a majority of the people don't do that. Therefore, the USB should solve the average persons HD filling up.

[gdguide]

This should have been a 500gb model. Why have one so close to 250gb which was just barely released?

[Convas]

It's very possible that it could be a 320 GB HDD for something else ... say ... A certain revised Console ...

[Stationfan]

It's a ironic when a company that taunts a digital downoald future, then gets painted in a corner by it's poorly taught out console design. Microsoft needs to stop monopolizing the 360 harddrive control and have 3rd party manufacture in the picture so a price war will ensure.

It's bullcrap how in the begining part of the marketing blitz was, them giving you the option to buy the system the your way. And not wanting to add unecessary cost to the consumer who just wanted a 360 but didn't want a harddrive.

[Wikkid666]

Could it be USB HDD? It seems like they might be trying to get out of the business of storage. Flash drive will eliminate the need for Memory units... so why keep selling an over priced HDD add on?

[Kingofalltrolls]

Because people buy it... If I could sell a 300 dollar turd to you I would... Speaking of which anyone interested? I'll even slap a Microsoft sticker on it for ya!

[Rowsdower]

http://majornelson.com/arch...

[quiddd]

this could be a venture to go for their attempt go going totally digital and downloading games.

What do you guys think?

[Rowsdower]

MS comes up with a reasonable solution to those with limited hard drive space and the hate comes rolling in. Yeah it would be nice if you could easily put any hard drive into a 360 like the PS3, that would be great but that is not reality. The USB solution is a good solution for 360 owners with limited space, now Arcade and 20GB HD owners have an option that does not cost an arm and a leg.

For those that dont own a 360 this does not effect your life in the least.

So unless you fashion yourself a fanboy troll lets try to keep it civil and respectful.

I'll do my part regardless if you do yours.

[Mo0eY]

It'll cost more than the 360 Arcade. Funny thing is bots will buy it, LOL!!!

[NeutralGamer]

Excuse me Mr. 1 bubble?
Is Xbox really poor mans console when we got the cash for overpricey stuff?

[Mo0eY]

Bots need as much space as possible so they can install the games on it. Their disk drives sound like a space shuttle taking off.

[Kahvipannu]

I know this is a bit far fetched, but I get the feeling MS is going for mandatory installations with it's games. First cheap HDD's for arcade users, then bigger HDD's, and now support for usb-flash memory. Personally I would be happy with it, since I always instal my games to the HDD.

Or it could be just to offer more space for people to spend more money for downloadable content..

Any toughts?

[Convas]

With the current DVD9 issue, it would make sense for them to start initiating Mandatory Installs. It's either that or start putting games on HD-DVD/Blu-ray and we all know that chances of that are slim to none.

[Morgue]

MS = Money Sponge. $99 for 500g HDD for my PS3 vs $100 for a 120g HDD by MS? I think we know where the better dollar is and who did the most research on their console.

[spooky205]

The problem is that knowing MS and based on their pricing of their HDDs this thing will probably cost as much as a 360. I am frankly getting tired of MS propietary crap.

[maniacmayhem]

All this teasing and stuff. MS needs to get some balls and hit us with a damn # Terabyte size HD.

Then again MS might charge us through the nose if they did. But hell give us that and be done with it.

[jaixvx]

$250 min. Buy away bots, buy away.

[NeutralGamer]

PS3 fans call the xbox for the poor mans gaming console yet again you keep claim we spill money on Xbox Live Gold and Harddisks...

You keep contradicting your self...

[The Iron Sheik]

For someone with the name "Neutral Gamer" you sure sound like a 360 fanboy. That's not neutral in fact it is very much the opposite.

[NeutralGamer]

Iron I own a PS1, PS2, PSP Go and Sony Bravia TV and in fact I hate my 360 from time to time.

I dont hate PS3 in fact I love it and going to buy one soon, but the fanboys just make me sick and wanna puke all over my PC keyboard.

[Arnon]

I really hope people understand why they're doing this. It's for digital distribution. The bigger the drives, the more games to be stored on them. The more games to be stored on them, the more developers will realize that DD is going to start taking off on consoles. The more they realize this, the more they'll scrap the DVD-9 to go with uncompressed downloadable titles. The more titles released through Games on Demand, the less royalties they will have to pay to get their game on the console.

It seems everybody only has a skin-deep attitude towards this. If I'm right, I'll say within the next year or two, Microsoft will be allowing 500 GB HDDs/USB drives, and their Games on Demand library will be 3x what it is right now.

[bviperz]

The bigger reason is money. Why give you the option for free when they can suck you dry in the long run?

[DOOMZ]

Yep!

[NeutralGamer]

For the love of god Major Nelson commented that it is a development kit harddrive...

http://www.flickr.com/photo...

[mittwaffen]

This will be a 320GB not a 300.
MTF table uses alot more than <10GB.

[Main_Street_Saint]

Now at that point I can't imagine using THAT much space but it is nice to have a buffer so that you don't have to worry about space issues.

[Dorwrath]

That isn't a 300gb hard drive Major nelson has. It has to be larger.

I have a 250GB MW2 drive and empty it reads as 228GB. The 120 reads as 100GB empty approximately.

I would imagine this is nearer to a 320 or bigger.