Glossy Xbox 360s Are an Endangered Species

[Brian Albert]

Glossy Xbox 360s Are an Endangered Species

If you want a glossy new Xbox 360, pick one up soon. Just don't forget to wipe off the fingerprints.

After "the coming weeks," Xbox 360 consoles will be available at retail with a matte black finish only. Current 4GB models already feature the non-reflective exterior, so if you think those look neat, you've got nothing to fret over.

My heart goes out to those of you who love shiny things.

Microsoft announced the news earlier this month, but due to confusion from both consumers and the media, Larry Hryb, Xbox Live's Major Nelson, dropped some clarifying knowledge via his official blog.

"Some of the news outlets that covered [the announcement] mentioned having a choice between matte and glossy Xbox 360s this holiday," Hryb said. "I wanted to set the record straight and let everyone know that that is not the case."

Hryb added that future Limited Editions, including the upcoming Gears of War 3 console and the Star Wars console, may still be offered with a glossy finish.

"The coming weeks," isn't exactly a specific timeline, so if you really want your 360 to also serve as a mirror, go out and buy the 250GB model now.

The current, glossy, <a href=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003O6JJKY/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=64bo-obpsa-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=B003O6JJKY>250GB systems retail for $299.99. The matte black <a href=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003O6JKLC/ref=as_li_tf_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=64bo-obpsa-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=B003O6JKLC>4GB version costs $199.99.





Source: Major Nelson


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[pspman45]

but
the only reason to upgrade was the shininess.....
Microsoft's profit margins will go down the drain

 

[PixelKing]

Come on, I still use a white xbox

 

[mjc0961]

Good riddance. Glossy is terrible. Fingerprints everywhere, I don't know why these companies keep making things you need to touch glossy in the first place. Especially you, Nintendo. Thanks for making the 3DS a fingerprint magnet.

 

[wooty]

Urgh, why?
The old shiney PS3 also looked better, what is it with companies going boring?

 

[superline51]

I love my shiny 360. Oooooh, pretty

 

[Jaebird]

This is good news for me, since I was just toying with the notion of upgrading from the standard, old white 360 (with a teeny 10GB disk drive) and trading it in for a new model. Shiny is nice and all, but it leaves smudges and fingerprints. I want something that looks dusty right out the box =)

Edit: Plus, when I first bought my 360, it was $299 (cheap at the time); so I'm not really losing anything.

 

[GeorgW]

I liked the glossy one, but maybe they're more expensive to make. Oh well, I have the really old 20GB version and am happy with that. My GF is looking into buying one though and she's disappointed by this news.

 

[ddq5]

Yeah, glossy does equal fingerprints. I much prefer matte finish on pretty much anything. Shinier is not always better.

 

[Stall]

And this is a bad thing how? Fuck glossy man... it's nothing beyond a magnet for fingerprints. Matte is simply superior because your hardware won't be covered in disgusting finger grease.. Plus, I think matte just looks better: it looks so much more classy and sophisticated than glossy.

This is good news... very good news.

 

[flowzmental]

This is good news for me, since I was just toying with the notion of upgrading from the standard, old white 360 (with a teeny 10GB disk drive) and trading it in for a new model. Shiny is nice and all, but it leaves smudges and fingerprints. I want something that looks dusty right out the box =)

Edit: Plus, when I first bought my 360, it was $299 (cheap at the time); so I'm not really losing anything.

Wait, you still have the 20GB model, and it works?

 

[Jaebird]

This is good news for me, since I was just toying with the notion of upgrading from the standard, old white 360 (with a teeny 20GB disk drive) and trading it in for a new model. Shiny is nice and all, but it leaves smudges and fingerprints. I want something that looks dusty right out the box =)

Edit: Plus, when I first bought my 360, it was $299 (cheap at the time); so I'm not really losing anything.

Wait, you still have the 20GB model, and it works?

I only ever had to send it out for repairs once, and right before Microsoft dropped their free repair-thing. And I don't know why I put 10GB, but I corrected it.

 

[TimeLord]

Yay! I'm very happy for my shiny 250GB 360. It will be famous.
What is it with the big two companies and black anyway.

Shiny = Yay! +2 points
Black = Boring -14 points

Make a lime green PS3 or 360 and I'll love whichever company that does forever!

 

[migo]

Good riddance. Glossy is terrible. Fingerprints everywhere, I don't know why these companies keep making things you need to touch glossy in the first place. Especially you, Nintendo. Thanks for making the 3DS a fingerprint magnet.

Yeah, it was popular for a while, but people are starting to hate it across the board. Sony twigged on it with the slim, and MS is realising they had a good thing all along.

 

[marcuszer0]

This is good news for me, since I was just toying with the notion of upgrading from the standard, old white 360 (with a teeny 10GB disk drive) and trading it in for a new model. Shiny is nice and all, but it leaves smudges and fingerprints. I want something that looks dusty right out the box =)

Edit: Plus, when I first bought my 360, it was $299 (cheap at the time); so I'm not really losing anything.

Wait, you still have the 20GB model, and it works?

I still have the 12 GB white box and it works just fine, no repairs, no anything, and I still play RE5 and MW2 all the time on it.

There is a problem with it reading discs as DVDs and then sending me to that one, "To play this disc, put it in an Xbox 360 console" but I can easily work around it by ejecting the disc and re-inserting it a few... Maybe 9-12 times. The patient man's 360 at its finest.

 

[Alphakirby]

Good riddance. Glossy is terrible. Fingerprints everywhere, I don't know why these companies keep making things you need to touch glossy in the first place. Especially you, Nintendo. Thanks for making the 3DS a fingerprint magnet.

This is why they make things glossy:

It brings in people with ADD.

 

[Kakashi on crack]

So... Its like pokemon in which the shiny ones are rarer but aren't necesarily more useful?

Actually, now that I think of it, the glossy one is worse BECAUSE its glossy.

You touch a matte one all day and it leaves behind small fingerprints, touch a glossy anything and it'll leave smears all over it.

Its why I love my alienware's gel-matte finish :3

 

[Jfswift]

eh, I like my boring old white one