XBOX 350 4GB Advice sought please

[Myc]

Hoping some more knowledgeable than me can help.

Never bothered upgrading from the Playstation 2 that I still occasionally tinker with but after being nagged about what I want for Christmas thought I might like an XBOX 360 in particular to give Forza 3 a try and maybe see what all the fuss is about with COD etc.

Plus I thought it would give me a good escape when she's watching X Factors Dancing a Celebrity Out of Here.

Now as its the Girlfriend paying I'd like to keep it to as cheap an option as possible, so am thinking about the new 4GB slim version. I'm not planning on becoming a serious gamer but wanted to check if people thought it was upto the job. I believe the memory can be expanded through the use of USB Memory Sticks so thought that left some scope for expansion if needed.

With regards package, I've found a XBOX 360 4GB + 2 Games + Extra Wireless Controller for 140 pounds. Which sounds pretty good value to me.

[russ_a]

The 4GB refers to the hard drive capcity and not the System RAM. So the 4gb Xbox will perform exactly the same as the 250gb one. It simply has a smaller hard drive, so you will be able to store fewer downloads.

The drive can be upgraded at anytime and costs about £60ish I think.

[Myc]

Thanks Russ.

I think my main concern is, not knowing how much memory is needed to store game progress and any other bits and pieces, whether or not the 4GB memory would be too small.

[Steve Evil]

You're right OP about the use of USB sticks, I think it will take up to 16gb per stick, but there's nothing to stop you having more than one, so you could spread saves over a few sticks if you wanted. I have to say that I like my 120GB drive in my elite as it allows me to install games to it and save both the wear on the DVD drive and noise it makes whilst playing. I don't think using USB sticks gives you that option. Each game usually takes between 6 and 8 GB of space per install.

Edit: Game saves are usually a few MB in size at most, so you'll get plenty onto a USB stick. I would say that 4gb is a bit lacking, as once you've got system files on there and a few mandatory game updates you'll start running out of space.

Edited by Steve Evil on Thursday 11th November 14:59

[JM16v]

How much is a 16gb USB stick now? Keep buying them price will rack up?

I'd just chip in the extra for the bigger HDD. Or buy an upgrade yourself

I save a game to the hard drive to make it run quieter. But the new slim is meant to be quieter? So I dont know if you need to save them to the hard drive.

[Myc]

Thanks Steve, you've got me thinking about spending the extra and getting the 250GB version now.

Unfortunately Argos who appeared to be offering all the best deals have sold out of the 250GB model.

[justin220]

I bought the 4GB recently, and for saving game progress and the usual stuff its fine.. I think if you want to store movies and music, the bigger one would be better

[JM16v]

Amazon, was just on there, £210 for game and xbox 250

[Webber3]

JM16v said:

Amazon, was just on there, £210 for game and xbox 250

and you get a free HDMI cable.

[Myc]

Thanks guys you've just made the decision even harder.

I guess my concern is that if I don't get into it then I've blown a lot more money 70 on the console plus 30 on the extra controller by buying the the 250GB version.

My concern with Amazon is if the product develops a fault. I'm working in Africa at the moment so lots of to'ing and fro'ing and its much easier to return things to a high street store than deal with what at first glance looks like a returns policy that basically directs people to the manufacturer which I'm guessing will involve lots of phone calls and trying to post a XBOX to a service centre.

[Mazdarese]

Surely the 4gb is flash memory and not a hard drive? I wonder if you can upgrade it?

[jonny142]

Hi "Myc"
Ive got bought the new style 4gb xbox from Argos .. 2 controls +2 games 'all be it batman lego and pure' for £140 i think it was, and a Sandisk Cruzer Blade 16GB USB Flash Drive from play.com for £14.49...works a treat....like many have said if your a casual gamer its fine ...black ops took about 8gb and about 15 mins to download ,handy to do to stop hearing the disc going around as can be noisy if the sounds down etc..cheers jon

[richinleeds]

Hi mate i just got a 360 4gb for £210 with Black OPS, wireless controller , wireless headset and a good quality HDMI cable. The 4gb is absolutely fine for casual gaming like some one said there is plenty of space for updates and game saves with 4gb only worth getting the 250gb if u really need to store movies and music on it, although the 250gb comes in a snazzy gloss finish

[Myc]

Thanks for all your very helpful comments guys.

Having read the opinions shared I think I'll stick with my original plan and go for the 4GB version.

For the limited use I'm going to make of it I think it will meet my needs, and ultimately it was the low price that made me even consider it as a good value present.

Plus if it does end up gathering dust in the corner I'll feel much less guilty.

Thanks again and I'll look forward to getting involved in some of the group gaming sessions in January.