It has been over three years since Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 console around the world. Since its release the console has been plagued with one MAJOR problem, the dreaded 3 flashing red lights, better known as the Red Rings of Death (RROD). The problem became so wide spread that Microsoft pledged millions of dollars towards the problem by giving all Xbox 360 console owners a 3 year warranty. The thing is that didn’t spend the money actually fixing the problem itself, instead they just spent it on fixing any broken consoles for free along with reimbursing those whose console was fixed for a fee prior to the warranty announcement. With consoles made more recently, it is claimed that the problem has been reduced, but you still hear of many instances of the RROD occurring.
As many of the initial batches of consoles no longer under the 3 year RROD warranty, will Microsoft be forced to release the next Xbox earlier than they may have wanted to? The reasoning for this is that with so many consoles now out of the 3 year RROD warranty, or about to be out of it in the next 6 months, are the owners of these consoles going to be prepared to pay Microsoft to fix their console if it gets the RROD, or alternatively pay for a new console? You may say why would they care, as 360 sales are going strong and new 360 owners will still have plenty of warranty left. That maybe so, but the millions who bought the console in its first six months of release are most likely either the early adopters of all consoles or are those that built up a loyalty to Microsoft after owning the first Xbox. These are the people that are so important to a new consoles launch success and these are the people Microsoft should want to keep happy.
One way to hopefully ensure that these people will buy Microsoft’s next console would be to launch it sooner rather than later. If Microsoft did this while still fully supporting the Xbox 360 for a few more years, they may not only get the jump on Sony and Nintendo in the next generation, they may also keep the hardcore gamers who lined up on launch night to buy their now out of RROD warranty Xbox 360’s. It is definitely food for thought for Microsoft and it will be interesting to see exactly when they launch the next Xbox.
Article Written by Craig Cirillo