The mournful ballad of 11 Broken Xbox 360s |
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We're all very, very familiar about the Red Ring of Death. It's cruel, it's sick, it's absolute torture on those of us who saved and scrimped on our very first next-gen console that lets us enjoy true classics such as Forza 2, Gears of War, and the occasional Pac-Man Championship Edition round on Xbox Live Arcade.
While there are some of us lucky enough not to get the three red light (total hardware failure) in our first consoles, and the somewhat less-luckier few who did get the red ring, but was immediately taken care of by Microsoft's customer service and replaced with a new one, there exists a gamer who's had to have his Xbox 360 replaced not once, not twice, but eleven times.
His name is Justin Lowe, and this is his story.
His very first Xbox 360 was purchased a month after the console's launch. At first, everything was peachy keen, with our young Justin enjoying some quality time with Microsoft's latest console. Unfortunately, the red ring struck soon after, causing him no small amount of distress. A quick call to Microsoft's support hotline got him a prompt response and replacement, and Justin was able to play once more, thinking the incident is behind him, and the red ring would never return to haunt him again.
After his first Xbox 360, Justin Lowe had not had a Microsoft console work for him for longer than a month, each one breaking down. The list is large, almost funny, but nevertheless cringe-inducing: three red rings, two disc read errors, two broken on arrival, several with random video and audio issues, and one that actually went and blew up. Seriously.
It got to the point that when Justin Lowe had a Microsoft Customer Service Representative read off his support/repair request numbers, the rep actually laughed - stating that Lowe had quite a large amount of numbers in his account.
What's wrong with this picture, then? With Justin on his twelfth Xbox 360 now, that's eleven failures all in all. It doesn't help much that the customer support representatives are continuously asking Justin to check if the wiring in his house is doing all the Xbox 360-bricking - all his other consoles (not to mention computers) are working fine, he had it checked by a contractor, and his father is in fact an electrician.
Despite all of this, however, Justin still likes to play with Microsoft's console. He says that while it may be unbelievable, he doesn't have any hate toward Microsoft. Cool and level-headed gamer? Definitely.
Well, how about you readers? Is it merely bad luck on Justin's part, or something else? Let us know by your comments.
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Comments [refresh]
ms is a peace of ***** i was gona buy one tody but this changed my mind i will just save some more to buy a good ps3 or just buy a wii with some games
I am on my 6th console
I am shocked at this story. However I'm still going to get an XBox 360 for my birthday as not everyone is having problems, and I played it at a friends house and it is AMAZING
if you go thru that many then it is something you are doing. i have had one for aver a year and it is fine. also all of my friends have only had one.
How come MS hasn't done anything to fix their consoles. They're are losing more money replacing and fixing consoles than selling them, Just two weeks ago I got an UNPLAYABLE DISC error and they charged me 9 for the fix
Ok, we get the point. Xboxs break down. I'm on my 3rd console but this is seriously beating a dead horse. Move on already.
I have owned the 360 for 6 months and have not a single problem. I'm sure MANY others have had thiers since launch. These things happen and if you dont remember PS3's major breakdowns during launch. So yea. Things happen, whatevs.
im currently on my fourth console and had a really hard time trying to get them to repair my second one. I called CS and they told me that a shipping box was on the way. For three months I called up ms and they told me it was on its way. When it arrived it took almost a month for them to get it back to me. NOT INCLUDING SHIPPING TIME.
If my fourth console fails, Im demanding something in return. I missed out on like 6 to 8 months ,in total, of gaming and XBOX LIVE GOLD time.
same here
no I dont remember PS3's major breakdowns during launch. Please enlighten me.
Yeah, he's doing something wrong. Sometimes they are made wrong but 11 is too many. It is a hot humid climate, unventilated entertainment center, using it standing up, next to a hot cable box, something! MS usually replaces the motherboard with a 3RL repair, so he just abuses the hell out of them.
At least he isn't bi*ching about it and MS is paying for the repairs, like most people seem to forget.
what happened to this guy is a statistical phenomenon. I've only had one red ring, and none of my friends have had it happen to them. The procedure for sending your xbox back to get repaired isn't too bad if you have a ups store in the area where you live. The only really bad thing about the xbox (and the ps3) is that buying a bunch of games can get pretty expensive.
You know I would show up to spit out my usual BS comments about the console I don't own that I hate so much. Of course the only reason I hate it is because MS stole all the games I wish I could play on my PS3 but now I am forced to fold protein and buy and play blu ray movies endlessly.
Wow what a moron not buying the awesome protien folding ultra reliable PS3 instead! All Microsoft makes is crap that doesn't work! I never owned one or know anybody who does, but I can say that because I know everything! I am a rich smart ass so bow down to my know it all attitude! Every 360 sold breaks and everyone who says it doesn't is lying so buy a PS3 instead! Please! Sony needs your help. I am soooo sick of Motorstorm and Resistance.
I think Microsoft will let this go on forever so they will go out of business. Yeah, that makes sense, you better get a PS3 if you want it to keep working. It will last 10 years! No it's not failing now, it will pick up and go on for 10 years I swear. Look Ninja Gaiden Sigma is a big seller even though it's a 3 year old game! And you only have to wait another full year for Metal Gear and Final Fantasy. I love waiting and hoping forever.
Who would want to risk buying a fun system for cheaper with plenty of games that has a risk of breaking and being fixed under warranty with a couple weeks of downtime? Not me! I would rather wait years for the games I want to come out while leaving my console on using 400w electric hoping I'm helping cancer research and bi*ching about better supported consoles in the meantime.
God, I'm such a loser.
I'm not one for lawsuits and whatnot.. infact, I hate whenever I hear about people suing just because they have the opportunity to sue. However, I do believe Microsoft should be held accountable. They should be forced to refund all the money people have spent to have their consoles repaired for the Red Ring Failure because it is obviously a flaw. It's also very true that their customer support will blame your house before taking the blame themselves. I had one rep tell me that I have a microwave in my supposedly metal incased room..idiots!
I really hate to tell you this, but if you have broken more then 3 xboxs its USER ERROR. Dont run your 360 in 115degree whether, stand it up and buy a fan stand. Dont leave it running 100% of the time. Really I and 4 of my friends all got a 360s launch day ONE had errors with lock-ups and the eventual red ring, and it fryed two days after it was bought. So again if your on you 4-5-6-7-8-9 console your just and idiot and shouldnt have electronics near you. It really not that hard to not burn a console up just dont be phucking stupid.
dude, I have a 360 and i prolly won't buy a ps3 for a while... however I must say I agree with you. Microsoft is screwing everyone and I dont think they even care. Plus, I'm sure as well that every 360 sold will break, just like my last 2.
I have had the same xbox 360 since the day the console has launched. i have over 70 hours play time on oblivion, I've beaten call of duty 2, 3, gear of war, saints row, and many other games countless times and I usually spend atleast 3 hours a day playing online. I have never had any problems except once when i was playing tomb raider and the system froze on me.
Currently, I've had my ps3 replaced once (blueray drive stopped reading discs) and my wii twice (same issue twice, overheated and recieved artifacts onscreen while playing due to faulty gpu because of the overheating). I've had 2 bricked psp's (ok ok, those were techinically my fault) and my ds screen cracked yet my gba advanced still works to this day. Honestly, its all about the way you treat your equipment and the luck factor with which your unique system was manufactured (good parts vs bad parts, etc).
i guess i'm one of the minorities here since my 360 is the only console thats been faithful to me... dirty rotten cheaten ps3 and wii!!!!
thank god my 360 is still alive..i got my 360 2 months after it came out and i only got the 3 red lights 2 times..and my 360 is still running with no problems..
i had a xbox give out not that many times but more than twice. two were laugh consoles and i just got one exchanged a month ago. the only thing that gets me mad is that i only had a month left on my xbox live so i missed out because of their fault and i have to pay for that. they should have given me that month back. the 360 is the best system out right now will to me it is, so that why i haven't given up on it. it would be nice if microsoft had a 3 year warranty because i don't think that mine is going to last that long. i also take really good care of it to, a really cold air condition room, dust free, real good airflow, everything thing. the ps3 is not doing that good but it doesn't break down that much.
Hi....i just got to say that this is such a shocking story but i think, he is really to blame. He had his 360 dead eleven times, thats either because he is the most unlukiest guy in the world or it's simply his fault.
I think that all xbox 360 owners especially those that play more often have had problems more than once.
I personaly had problems and i continue to have minor problems like the "Disc Read Errors" ALMOST every time i play my 360 for over an hours or more. I'm sure most or all of xbox 360 owners have had the disc read error problem. But i never had anything more serious than that. Nothin like the "RED RING OF DEATH" thank god for that.
You mean sony's hired goons didn't shut you up about the broken PS3?
I don't remember hearing of slim PS2 problems either, but sony had a lot of problems with that. It's all in what gets leaked to the media.
Sure PS3 has had fewer problems so far, but sony's electronics aren't perfect either. There will be disc read errors in your PS3 consoles in 2-5 years I guarantee.
i cant handle it anymore already on 6th 360. still got the red lights.this is my last 360.what could i do with a useless system.Damn im gong to miss xbox live and the cool stuff in the 360.well im stuck with a useless 360 and a damn wii..
Im on my third 360 now... and waiting for that one to be replaced. so much for "customer support". I love the system, but its a pain in the ass to be calling everytime something happens, especially when you think its gonna get fixed the first time, not the fourth.
And im not gonna bash MSOFT or SONY, I have both the 360 and the PS3. I love both.
Wii... not so much. games are *****TY. the system is *****TY. ***** nintendo... they should just re-release their SNES, then that ***** would be HOT.
Go away fanboy. Nobody believes your crappy story.
I have had mine for over a year. Never had a problem, and I don't expect I will. Don't worry and enjoy your purchase.
Of course, if it does break down, it seems that MS is pretty willing to pick up the tab to repair it, so we will just be out of a console for a week or two, no biggie.
Well, Im on my 3rd one in less than a year....
Damn busted,but i do own a 360 and i do have xbox live.i made up the story becaues of the topic..
I'm still on my first. You guys must play for ridiculous amounts of hours or something. Anyways i guess the news wont stop till microsoft shortens the amount of duds it has
I GOT DISC READ ERRORS TOOO
Im on my second xbox 360 and the dvd drive will not open. This problem happened about 5 months later after recieving my 2nd xbox 360. They want 140 for the fix and im not doing it.
Mine is a launch 360 that according to microsoft was manufatured in the period of high defects....I also played it all through last summer in a 35-40C (90-100F) un-airconditioned appartment, and am doing it again this summer....no problems...
I also know 10 people in real life and about 50 on my friends list....also none have had problems...
Maybe some people have extremely bad luck, are liars or are really stupid and are doing things to their system to screw 'em over (One dude on the net played his 360 while it rested in/on 3 inch shag carpet....then it ROD'd...hmm, wonder why)
So I can only go by personal experience....and know quite a few people with 360's....I think the whole thing is blow out of proportion...
MS were very smart at making sure all warranty issues came back through them, rather than bothering retailers. But this is what you do if you have problem, DO NOT ring up MS, take it back to retailer and demand a refund. They will not want to do this but it is well within your consumer rights. Go and pick up another 360 at a different retailer, till you get one that works. MS may not want to listen to we the consumers, but they will sure listen if retailers stop stocking 360s on their shelves.
MANY (waaaay more then less) have had no problems with their 360's....
Then even in the remote chance you do, MS will fix it, even if it's out of warranty.....and if you do it comes back now with new heatsinks to prevent it happening again....so whats the big deal ?
It'd only be horrifying if MS was denying everything and not fixing anything....or saying it was a normal part of manufacturing (defective LCD's on the PSP anyone) but no, they replace your 360 as many times as needed to get it going good....
I almost want to get some sort of error just so I can sympathise with you people, but as of now and out of about 60 360's I know of (friends and friends list) none have had problems....
I own a launch console, meaning I bought it exactly when it was available. Mine still has not shown any signs of the Red Ring of Death. I played Oblivion for +200 hours, COD 2+3 probably for 30 hours, GOW for about 15 hours, and other random games (mostly Halo and Halo 2) probably amounting to around 50 hours. I suppose its luck because my friend who bought his console from the same place and at the same time got the ring of death. Mine will probably die eventually. The truth is no one is 100% why they crap out and guesses are becoming facts. Is it ventilation, I don't know so many arguments exist for and against it. The fact is the chips are poorly made and susceptible to breaking, I count the days left on my XBox and hold back a tear, while grasping the expired warranty with a limp hand.
good rant though...
just get it out of ur head that "games i wish i could play on my ps3"... if i wanted all those average 360 games i would have bought an xbox already... it's been out way longer and there's no question a ps3 owner can afford it...
face it... i don't like ur cheap console and i don't like ur line up of average games... u can keep on convincing urself that we want ur cheap xbox and ur overhyped average games but the reality is the XBox 360 is a pice of crap!!! actually it's only selling cause of the amount of stupid people in America!!! no wonder foreigners are stealing ur jobs.
I worked at Gamestop since the 360 release..(please don't confuse that for an "I know more than you" comment, it's not how I intend it to sound).. but I've seen way too many 360 problems working there. Most of the 360's people traded in were broken and were trying to be passed off as working, and even if they passed our initial 2 minute test, they were likely to be brought back broken.
Both of my systems that suffered the 3 red lights (one launch, the other from Oct. 2006) were directly under/next to an air vent/fan and not on the carpet without modifications. I'm not doubting you, I believe all your friends have perfectly fine xbox's.. but has there ever been this topic with any other system this far past the launch date? It's obviously bigger than what Microsoft has been allowing everyone to believe.. and I like Microsoft.. well.. not as much anymore. I've never had to replace ANY consoles since my first NES, and they all still work (with the obvious execption to the blue screen on the NES occasionally).
The xbox 360 really is an amazing system, but I can not buy one because I would always be thinking that it would break. I originaly had one, but it broke within 4 days, and it was very well ventilated, this wasnt my fault at all, it was MS's. If they made a quality machine, like the sony PS3, i would buy one. Then again, it would also be more expensive...like the ps3. Just goes to show, you get what you pay for!
Come on man, not everyone who's having bad luck with the 360's is mishandling them. I agree, there's people out there that keep their systems on when they aren't playing while keeping it in a non-ventilated tv standand whatnot(they're the idiots). I'm expecting my 3rd 360 to be shipped to me soon (both previous ones have had the red lights), and I guarentee even though I will have cool air on it 100% of the time, off the carpet, turned off when not in use, and whatever else I do to take care of it it's still going to break within a year. Sure, I could be wrong, but I'm willing to bet it's doomed from the start unless Microsoft has done something to fix the problem. There isn't anything I could've done to keep my first 2 from blowin up on me; I took better care of those than any other system I've ever had. So quit jumping to conclusions man. 7 of the 8 people I know personally with 360s have had the red lights, and dude, we're not idiots..well ok, maybe one is..but that's beside the point.
well i just got that problem last weekend but my 360 was working just fine after a few days
So does his 12 XBOX counts 12 towards what microsoft sold.
So if 1 million Xbox was sould and all 1 million of them was defective and gotten replaced does that means they sold 2 million xbox
I swear it is. We still have 2 ps3s that have been sitting there since launch while the xbox 360 continues to do better but we get people coming to us and telling us the xbox 360 console keeps freezing/has 3 red lights on it just about every month.
DUDE you dont know how terrible it is to go through this process like 6 times. ive had my crapbox replaced 6 freaking times and mine has the fan thing and eveything its even next to the air conditioner vent. well im actually gonna get a PS3 and not have to deal with *****get microsoft anymore
how they ignored their consumers problems constantly for a year, finally start fixing them (suposly) aafter a year, and put a small tissue (comments on failure rate from ms) over a HUGE pile of dog sh1t (true failure rates) on the rug (360 owners)
xcbcz
despite all this people all over the world continue to buy 360s and that is reality, people who want a 360 will buy a 360 even people with 360s that broke are still going to either get it repaired of buy another one so sony fanboys and microsoft haters get lost
QFT!
The only reasonz i bought 360 is no.1 gow no.2 can't afford ps3 so 360 died and 1 dead is more dan enuough but i dont get why buy 9 or 12 with dat money u can get a ps3 (90%360 games are here) and a very high end pc (cysis at full power) da rest of da 10% are here except halo 2.5 so people on 5 360s plz explain why u spend money on cheap hardware
My xbox 360 got the red ring of death only one time after I played oblivion for about 15 or 16 hours straight. All of the sudden it just shut off and a black screen came on. The system was really warm so I shut it off and went to sleep. When I woke up, I played it for about another 8 hours with no problems. I read on a private website not affiliated with Microsoft that if you set your xbox vertical instead of horizontal, it breathes better and can prolong the life of your system. Never had the problem since.
I thought the saying was fool me one , shame on you, fool me twice shame on me..not fool me 11 times shame on u..get a bloody PS3 already..RESISTANCE IS BETTER THAN Gears of WAR
2-5yrs is way better than 6 months. Although my PS1 AND PS2 lasted bout 4-5 yrs.......it still aint bad compared to a PC let alone 360...period
Shut the f*ck up.
If 1 million dumbass fantards were replaced, would anybody care?
It's obvious you've never played an XBOX 360 and its "average" games. I know it's games are anything but average because I've compared it to the PS3's "superior" Motorstorm and Resistance and I can say they aren't worth a $20 greatest hits purchase. Aside from graphics, PS2 games are FAR better. Maybe that's why backwards compatibility is sooo important?
Calling Americans stupid is just plain ignorant. We buy XBOX consoles because the problems get taken care of, the games keep coming, and MS doesn't lie or make excuses. So what, you want MS to say exactly how many 360s have failed? That would be suicide. Sony would never do such a thing. They never admitted the slim PS2 had a high defect rate. They never admitted the slim PS2 had overheating or disc read error problems or offered to repair the consoles after warranty.
The vast majority of XBOX problems are covered under warranty and are a result of a design defect. The PS3's problems are the result of a managment defect, they don't care about gamers really. The hidden agenda is blu ray, and I still fail to see what that has to do with a Playstation product, as new media format wars they are pushing were never an issue with the previous successful consoles.
XBOX 360 is and will always kick the Playstation's ass, probably from now on, even with some console defects. That shows some pretty bad sony managment.
I made a smart choice because I can get a dual format HD movie player when they become affordable instead of being stuck with only blu gay, and I have great games to play now instead of waiting years for a game system that could become a 3D0, Jaguar, Gamecube, Dreamcast, Saturn, or one of many other failed game systems.
Or lack thereof. You are truly an idiot. Final Fantasy and Metal Gear Solid are not the only great titles for the PS3. We got Lair, Heavenly Sword, Killzone and Haze that are due for release this year. So I don't know where the hell your getting your info but the PS3 has great titles coming up. Meanwhile there are plenty of multiplatform titles not to mention exclusives on hand to keep me occupied until then. I don't ever get tired of playing Resistance. We also got Virtua fighter and have had it for a while now. I own a 360 and loved playing Gears on it I also bough Pray for it, but since I finished pray I havn't touched my 360 and probably wont until August when Bioshock comes out.
But what bothers me the most is that mine gave me the red ring of death after just having turned it on the second day after I bought it. Well at least I didn't have to send it in for repair I just went to the Gamestop and exchanged it. Still there are more problems with it than just overheating.
Yea, dude we get the point. Resistance is a sweet game. I'm not doubting you there. But umm.. that's the only sweet game on the system. Oh, wait.. yea there's oblivion and rainbow six.. but dude, you can get those on the 360. Again, I'm not saying the PS3 sucks.. but man, I don't care what you think. I think Microsoft sucks, but I'm not buying a PS3, you need to get a life or maybe a job with Sony since you're so passionate.
sega mega-drive/genesis kicks ass.
well maybe its to do with inconsistently manufactured parts/chips - therefore most xboxes have durable parts + some don't........or is it the other way round? XD
erm im sorry but resistance isnt better than gow (this is completely off topic btw)
Yeah well, i bought my first 360 at end of january and lasted for 2 weeks, so took it back to the store and got another. This one lasted 4 months then same again, the 3 red rings. So took it back and got yet another replacement so 3rd time lucky on 3 xbox's in 5 months.
lol
Is it me or are more 360s breaking down and seems qj is all over it ^_^
A lot of my friends have 360's, none of them have ever had the ring of death. While I'm not saying it never happens, this kid has to be doing something to his. There is no way you could treat a 360 normally and have them die 11 times. And, one blew up? That's just a load of *****.
i bought my premium on launch day and i have had no problems at all and i have a few friends that bought the same day and they still work no problem. its called dont put in a confined space. leave lots of air flow!! and for the ps3 my buddy bought one and he is on his third 60gig ps3 so that machine has its problems too and i dont like the ps3 or sony but do you see me flaming them??? nope i dont think so!!!! xbox for life
anyone remember the horror of sony's ps2?
*****ing sony and micrsoft!
My PS2 still works after almost 6 years! I have never had any Disc read errors. The only that's anoying is the disc tray that won't open properly.
But what you are saying Mr. Nonsense is something that doesn't really make sense. We will experience disc read errors in 2-5 years? That's better than the Xbox and besides, the blu-ray discs have a hard coat of protection so i think it will surely last much longer.
Why are you fighting this irrelivant war Mr. Nonsense? If the Xbox 360 is so perfect, then get the ***** out of here and play on the goddamn Xbox 360!
why don't you just leave the console on, overheat it, wait for the 3 red rings and send it to them?
like three months of playing the 360 constantly ever did anything. The only thing i had a problem with is i used one of those cruddy 3rd party snap on fans. The thing linked directly into the power suply and so the xbox turned on and ONCE gave me the red light. all i did was take the fan off and it was fine.
Now i just have a fan stand that links into the usb, not directly to the power. Its at least 3 times cooler. Literally and figuratively.
I won my 360 from the mountain dew thing and i got mines 2 days before launch and it just broke about a month ago, i never had it close to any other electronics, just dead in the middle of the living room.
i sent it off to the RC and i just got a replacement consle and it broke on the same day, i just called up CS and they're givin me a free game along with the repair