$990m Bill for Xbox Red Ring of Death

Computer giants Microsoft are facing a $990m repair bill after their Xbox Elite consoles were hit by the notorious "red ring of death".

The console was originally thought to be immune from the problem, which permanently freezes the unit after a ring of green lights on the power control button turn red.

Now, hundreds of angry owners are sending back their consoles, which are being shipped to Germany for repair. But the fault remains a mystery.

[chaosatom]

People who I do feel sorry for:

People who are getting RRODs and getting Arcade shove up their throat.

Microsoft is just losing customers quick.

If assuming 19 million are sold, and 33% off, then we have 12.73 million. I know it's not right but Microsoft is losing customers quick and Sony is gaining a upper hand quicker than we think.

[Hydrolex]

782,000,000 Africans could sleep one night with a full stomach

Lets say a good meal worths 10$

[Hydrolex]

Making a new console. LOL

wow Microsoft failed so bad

[QueefyB]

hey chaos i agree man and also your math is really good you must be a playstation 3 player because i think only playstation 3 players have gone past addition and subtraction

[360degrees]

admirable company they are by CLEARLY going out of their way to satisfy and appease their customers and resolve any RARE incidents that may unfortunately occur with their Xbox360 Video Gaming Systems ..

Microsoft should really be commended for their unwavering Customer Support, and continued loyalty to their satisfied customers

[ice_prophecy]

33% Is not rare unfortunately. Even a 3.3% failure is not considered rare in medical terms.

>.>

[CaptainHowdy]

at this rate, MS is going for that "at ANY cost" strategy to try sell the most consoles they did last cycle. If you're taking that much of a hit...is it worth it?

[SacT0wnF1n3st]

How can you say that MS try to satisfy and appease their customers?

My definition of satisfying and appeasing the customers are releasing reliable hardwares, and not let those who have RROD 360s wait for months to get their fixed up 360s back.

[__Lawyer__]

I too speculate and ponder just how many 360 consoles were sold and are still functioning properly. I would take an educated and well formed hypothesis and come out to around 12.75 million functioning consoles as well as thats probably the reality.

--CASE CLOSED--

[Bnet343]

LOL this is actually good for people who own a an Xbox 360. Free 3 year warranty!!!! XD Sucks for MS but they have the money to pay that off I bet

[butterfinger]

I commend MS for not recalling the 360 and fixing the problem entirely. They truly did their customers a world of good by allowing the problem to still exist today, 3 years into the 360's cycle. I am sure Sony commends them as well:)

[sonarus]

I can understand Xbox fanboys but i really cannot stand Microsoft fanboys. Open your eyes and see microsoft corporation for what they are. Don't blind yourself in the name of N4G fanboy wars

[mistertwoturbo]

Yup Microsoft has trees inside they're offices that actually grow money.

Heck, they could afford to drop $50mil on DLC instead of making a new game. Surely they could afford to spend $782 million on their mistake. Pocket change I tell yah.

And anybody going to point fingers at me saying "You're just a Sony Fanboy" yadda yadda yadda. Just know that I like the 360, I just hate Microsoft.

[PS3forTheLose]

I feel sorry for them because it shouldn't have been there in the first place.

[morganfell]

Just wait until this November if you want to hear some real screaming. Just in time for Gears of War 2 we have the first wave of 360's with 3 year warranties expiring. It is going to be a hell of a crying session.

[RocketRaiders]

yep

thats the time when this place might explode with complaints. MS seriously should address the issues of the old x360s

[MikeGdaGod]

the number MS reports sold means nothing

when my 360 broke, i got a new one right off the shelf each time because i had Best Buy's store warranty on it. 3 consoles off the shelf.

i count for 4 360's, even though i only bought one. and when you replace a product under warranty, if you want the warranty on the new item you have to re-buy the warranty everytime. $50 each......that's another reason i decided to just move one.

[morganfell]

My HALO edition was purchased brand new on the day it launched. I had 3 Pro's prior that which had RRODed on me including a Pro launch model. One of those was the second refurb. It arrived, I took it out of the box, plugged it in and viola! Instant RROD. Microsoft gets the loyalty they deserve.

When I got my HALO edition the play and charge kit came with it and it was broken out of the box. Now my power down charge doesn't work. If my controller and/or HALO headset is plugged in and I power the unit down it is supposed to go into low power mode, charge the device and then completely shut down. Nope. It stays on. I let it run one time for 24 hours and it still won't auto shut off. It doesn't matter if you unplug the device and plug back up or whatever. I can feel this thing preparing to die.

Also it has now frozen on me twice in the past week, including last night. The power button wouldn't even work. I had to unplug it.

[thereapersson]

If anyone on this site is a blind fanboy, it has got to be you. Jesus Christ, talk about brand loyalty and spinning faults.

[thereapersson]

"1.4 - Once again Microsoft shows what a truly
admirable company they are by CLEARLY going out of their way to satisfy and appease their customers and resolve any RARE incidents that may unfortunately occur with their Xbox360 Video Gaming Systems ..

Microsoft should really be commended for their unwavering Customer Support, and continued loyalty to their satisfied customers"

Are you just Zhuk posing in an alternate account?

[LJWooly]

No, Zhuk is tongue-in-cheek, whereas this poor soul might actually be deluded enough to believe what he's typing. One can only assume, though.

[Hoggy1983]

For those of you who dont know the Mirror its an absolutely pathetic source for journalism. They always publish massively exaggerated stories whether its current affairs, football or now consumer goods.

I honestly wouldnt be surprised if it was simply a slow news day and the journalist pounced on a couple of incidents of rrod and turned it into this. Furthermore, he states hundreds, well how does 999 broken consoles equal £500m?

Im not saying Im unwilling to accept a story such as this might be a reality, but honestly guys, Ive read so many stories from the Mirror that are utter rubbish. I guess I just need some further evidence before Id be convinced, has anyone on heres Elite died recently? Mine hasnt.

[SL1M DADDY]

MS's 360 is not going to place in first or second place this gen. They will ultimately die off and MS will begin shiping their next console while dropping all support for the 360 much like they did for the original Xbox. It's a shame too, I love the games the 360 has to offer but the RROD is just one heck of a killer. Even with the low price of the Arcade, the 360 just can't seem to sell as good as it could be without the reputation it has with te RROD.

PS: LOL @ 360degrees - Trying too hard at being a fanboy I see...

[beavis4play]

it's more of a curiosity actually.
if the mirror is a pathetic source of journalism; why do you keep reading it? you said you read so many stories from the mirror that are rubbish.....why did you keep reading it?

[sumfood4u]

Tuff Titty Balls, M$ needs to repay its faithful fans for them buying a lousy machine, an getting a RROD as their Reward! Being 1st on the Market isnt always whats best, Look at how Square/Enix does it Patiences is Virtue.

[Hoggy1983]

I appreciate what you're saying but I dont keep reading it. Its just through being a UK citizen that I come into contact with it. Furthermore, I think its rare that you'll find a newspaper that has a daily "busty babe" on its covering going hand in hand with good journalism.

Its actually quite ironic that the newspaper that i do read (The Guardian) has today published Trinity Mirrors (and other newspapers) financial fortunes seing its share price plummet 81% from 480p to 91.5p since Jan 07.

Anyway, back on topic lol, I'm not wanting to appear as a blind 360 fan as Im open to this story being true but I wouldnt count on the accuracy of the Mirror which many are taking for granted.

Edit: Lol, a disagree? Oh well

[kazuma]

@1.4
funniest stuff i read all day

[I LOVE my xbox]

What is wrong with everyone? They don't see the CLEAR SARCASM in 360degrees' post? COME ON. Look at his NAME. 360 DEGREES.
Sheesh.

[Nostradamus]

Thats gotta be a record, I havent seen that many before.

360degrees was probably being sarcastic though.

[MADGameR]

Thats 3 times more than what SONY lost on the PS3s.

[jessupj]

Yeah guys common, it's cleary sarcasm. I thought it was quite funny actually. I'm gonna give you a bubble because no doubt every one has taken them away.

[sumfood4u]

Sheesh taking my bubble away for what? speaking my mind! kinda silly having to do childish things when i didnt offend anyone! & if U get offended about XBOX RROD blame M$ not me & my bubbles!

[jadenkorri]

152 disagrees and counting...im sure MS does right once and awhile..

[Wildarmsjecht]

This after the initial billion dollars set aside for warranties?

[Panthers]

I believe it was 3 bil set aside.

[mesh1]

im a ps3 fan and when my ps3 broke i had to pay 150 pounds to gwet it fixed sony are hiding they faults on their system i dont kno wwhy as i hated paying for repairs on my ps3 im planning on buying a 360 soon tbh as they seem to be no rrod problems atm rrod is old news . so ill prolly buy a 360 soon and this is the mirror a tabliopd they run old storys .

[jadenkorri]

but the rrod still exists, it is lower than the big 33%, but it still happening, even to their "fixed" and "redesigned" consoles... my friend bought an elite not too long ago and it rrod on him a week later, luckily he was able to r/t and get money back, they didn't have another console to give him, but he bought the other one at Zellers i believe, still working... Regardless, everyone puts MS on such a high pedestal for offering the 3 yr warranty, that if they learned the truth behind everything in offering the warranty, im sure it would change their minds about MS...now im not saying Sony is perfect, they have their flaws, espically when you discover that you need your receipt when you go for your 1 year warranty.... but really it com,es down to the lesser of two evils.

[xxGrimLogxx]

500 million pounds is almost a billion dollars. This is insane if true.

[BIoodmask]

it is 782 million USD. I used the google conversion calculator. Hopefully it is correct. 500m Euros came out to 782,215,000 USD but I just rounded it down.

[xxGrimLogxx]

Hmm, £500m should be pounds not Euros which would be about 990 million dollars.

[Max Power]

991,149,070.7 usd

[BIoodmask]

I used google conversion chart and it came out to 500m pounds = 998m USD rounded up. The moderator will be updating the story for me. I apologize to readers for making mistake. I am not European so I did not know symbol for pounds...I thought it was symbol for Euros.

[thewhoopimen]

http://www.google.com/searc...

Tryin to pull a fast one eh?

[Max Power]

i used the converting widget on my computer which gets update when ever its activated. so i imagine that Yahoo! Finance (which is the host of that widget) is accurate on their calculations. and within the four hours between posts the usd has gone down to 987,900,160.1 (500 million pounds)

[QueefyB]

wow that is a lot of money does anyone know how much xbox 360 players have sued microsoft for smoke inhalation

[Hagaf22]

the crazy thing is-- this is just for the elite model, not the others, imagine the total amount!!! Sony's 2 Bil loss is looking mighty small right now....

[NightVyper]

MS is a 50 Billion dollar a year company and Sony is almost a 90 billion dollar year company Those losses are effecting MS more then they let on. If sony is complaining about profitability and they are twice the size i would love to be a fly at MS these days at some point share holders will say hey we need to stop this.

[Angelitos]

Poor Xbots

Poor Xbots, these are only the Xbox Elite consoles, with the Pro and Arcade, it's problably up there in the 2 billion(Pro as been around alot longer than elite). Poor Xbots, why are they are still using their fixme dvd player, that has broken many times or is going to at any minute for the first time, I dont know why. Poor Xbots, M$ can't make money off from their fixme dvd players, because they always pay, pay, and pay their defective hardware repairs. Poor Xbots, for choosing the wrong choice to not get a PS3.

Poor Xbots

[Hydrolex]

Buy a PS3 instead of collecting dead 360s

[QueefyB]

angelitos that is another great poem ok heres mine its not as good as yours;

no reliability,no blu ray,no wi fi.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?
no metal gear,no kojima,no solid eye.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?
no spring update,no home,no free online.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?
no resistance,no ted price,no chimeras will die.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?
no tretton,no karraker,no kaz hirai.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?
no rechargeable batteries,no tilt,no playstation eye.
xbox,xbox;why must i cry?

ok this is it for now i will write another later because i heard a fire truck zoom by my house and i think theyre going to rescue some xbox 360 players

[Shaka2K6]

Thats why i dont have a single microsuck product in my home hahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

i love spreading the microsuck hate everywhere i go i tell everyone how much the xbug 180 breaks,
how the zune is not cool,
internet explorer is a Firefox wannabe,
vista sucks.

everywhere i go PS3s are always sold out while the xbug 180s are just sitting there collecting dust hahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

microsuck are losing billions, the xbug 180 is a terrible disaster world wide and the only ones making money out of the POS 180 are the UPS guys mailing xrods back and forward hahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!.

[Angelitos]

Poor Xbots

Poor Xbots, that's is good one QueefyB, I will try some more. Poor Xbots, no BigLittlePlanet, why dont you DigSkittlesFaggot. Poor Xbots, why SUPPORT a fixme dvd player, it will catch on fire, and you will cry ABORT! Poor XBOTS, the fixme dvd player is the last option to get, can't you connect the DOTS?

Poor Xbots

[QueefyB]

wow angelitos man you keep on making great poems ok let me give it another try because the fire truck just sped away and they managed to save two xbox 360 players who are going to sue microsoft in the morning;

a fart can be considered a work of art,if done right.
a star can be considered the sun,but only at night.
a shoe can be considered comfortable,if it doesnt fit too tight.
but an xbox is always considered a joke,because of the three red lights.

a dog can be considered a best friend,if it chooses to lick and not bite.
a tree can be considered heavenly,but only if the fruit are fully ripe.
a girlfriend can be considered an equal,if you are not married and have no wife.
but an xbox is always considered a joke,because of the three red lights.

[FAQS]

Q:....
A: Amazing posts guys, By the way, QueefyB, I love your poems!

[GameDev]

for this financial disaster they created, they shoulda packed a cookbook and sold the console in home depot as a grill.

[Sir_Ken_Kutaragi]

;-D
;-D
;-D
;-D

[-Maverick-]

QueefyB

HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA HHAHAHAHHA

[Pain]

just plan Ha!.

[QueefyB]

hey i just remembered dennis dyacks birthday is coming up on the 14th( http://en.wikipedia.org/wik... do you guys think we should send him for a gift i was thinking of sending him a job application form to fill out once the first review of too human comes out

[juuken]

*falls over laughing*

WTFFFFFFF Microshaft!

Oh man...tears in my eyes.

But I do feel sorry for the people who have this problem. That's just unacceptable and wrong. When I buy a console, I want the damn thing to work, not fall apart on me within a month!

And 360degrees, you are a JACKASS! Take your head out of Microshaft's shiny ass already!

[PoSTedUP]

thats a lot of bread to lose. i guess thats how big of a problem it was.

microshaft? it more like microlost! lol

all jokes aside. that must hurt but microsoft has alot more where that came from. they throw money around like its confetti!

@ juuken below- true true, i think they will make a couple more desperate purchases b4 the 720. it wont be smart purchases though, just like the gta4 DLC.....lol and the HD external disc drive.....XD......they come off as such amatures yo lol lol.

lol! lol! @ juuken "little cheerleader"<-------XD
that deserves my popeye laugh.....AHHHHHHHHHHgagagagag agag

[juuken]

Ah, but how long will that money throwing last? Microshaft is heading to the bottom of the console war and quickly.

And DAMN Bladestar! You're trying extra hard these days! MS must be proud to have you as their little cheerleader! Tell me, how much did that skirt and makeup cost? Oh, and if you need more skirts, I have a couple here that may just fit you!

COME TO THE DARKSIDE!

...we have cookies and milk included! ^_____^

[QueefyB]

juuken i think you are right

[FAQS]

Q:...
A: I can't say more, great comments, bubbles for you guys!

[ChrisGTR1]

LOL. damn ms. they should seriously let someone else make all their stuff cause they suck at it. but w/e at leased they extended the warranty to 3 years.

[SacT0wnF1n3st]

That sign is for pounds not euros. 500 pounds equals to almost 1 billion dollars not 782 mil.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

[dronde]

who the fuk is dyacks?

[The Karate Kid]

Ouch!!

[ash_divine]

Ouch!! 2x

[Mighty Boom]

My Elite crapped out yesterday! RROD! My second console that has done this! Customer support offered me a copy of Project Gotham Racing for my inconvenience! WHOOOOO HOOOOOO!!!! <-- Sarcasm. WTF! Am I going to be compensated for the month I wont be on LIVE while waiting for my 2nd 360 to be fixed!! Im soooooo pissed! I swear Im at the breaking point! The PS3 is about to become my console of choice.

@360 degrees

What is wrong with you. They are treating customers like crap!