Xbox 360 gaining USB storage support in 2010 update

[Alucardx23]

This is a really good update for does that only have and arcade and want a cheap way to install games, the only bad thing is the 16GB limit, but I guest is better than nothing.

Xbox 360 gaining USB storage support in 2010 update

Documentation obtained by Joystiq – and subsequently confirmed with two separate sources – reveals that "USB Mass Storage Device Support on Xbox 360" will soon be a reality. The document, authored by a senior software development engineer at Microsoft, states that due to "increased market penetration of high-capacity, high throughput USB mass storage devices, a 2010 Xbox 360 system update" will allow consumers to save and load game data from USB devices. The update is purportedly coming in Spring 2010.

Once the update occurs, Xbox 360 owners will be able to download Xbox Live Arcade games, Xbox Live Indie games, Games on Demand, DLC and Title Updates to the storage device. "USB storage devices may, however, have far greater memory capacity than MUs (at the date of writing, the largest MU is 512 MB), and may therefore support previously infeasible operations-such as installation of a full disc-based title." That's right, you can also store disc-based games to the USB device; however, it will require the disc to be in the tray for authentication, identical to the current functionality.

For the complete story follow the link.
http://www.joystiq.com/2010/03/18/xbox-360-gaining-usb-storage-support-in-2010-update/

 

[dragonelite]

16 gig limit kinda sucks.

But if they can make it so that i can have more 16 gig partition on my usb hdd then im fine.

 

[AntShaw]

Pretty awesome if you ask me. Basically gives all the current Arcade users a free upgrade to the "Pro" machine. Win/Win.

 

[Rangers]

So the only real benefit I see to this, because of the 16GB limit, is it basically obliterates memory cards.

I think the MS official memory card is 40 or 50 dollars for 512 MB. Pretty sure even at retail now you can pick up 2 or 4GB USB sticks for like $10. So a smart customer would never purchase a memory card. Kind of weird that MS would shoot themselves in the memory card revenue foot like this LOL. But I dont think they sell many anyway currently.

Another benefit is now a consumer with a USB flash drive or a USB external HDD laying around would now have "free" access to 16 GB. But this only mostly matters for people who dont have a 360 with a HDD anyway.

I'm sure the 16Gb cap is to protect their high margins on 360 HDD's.

 

[AzBat]

Anybody else think that the reason for the new feature is to make Datel's lawsuit meaningless?

I also wonder if Arcade users can now play backward compatible Xbox games now that they will have the necessary space?

How anybody can say that the 16gb limit sucks has never used an Arcade model with a memory card. I have & I was amazed how even a 512mb card was plenty of space for game saves. Granted if you want more than just game saves you'll want a hard drive, but if game saves & profile portability is all you need, then anything bigger than 512mb is not really necessary.

Tommy McClain

 

[joker454]

So the only real benefit I see to this, because of the 16GB limit, is it basically obliterates memory cards.

It also makes it easier for a company to justify making a game that requires mandatory install, like say GTA5. Before, requiring install more than doubled the price of a game since it would be assumed that the games real cost for Arcade owners was $60 + HDD cost. Now it's more like $60 + $10 for a usb memory stick.

 

[MrFloopy]

Interesting implications for a slim model too.

 

[infinity4]

Clearly, the memory cards were not selling as well as they thought.

MS are idiots when it comes to things like this... why couldn't they have done this earlier?

 

[AzBat]

Clearly, the memory cards were not selling as well as they thought.

MS are idiots when it comes to things like this... why couldn't they have done this earlier?

They didn't have a lawsuit from Datel forcing them to. Plus, I bet it was all profit till the Arcade came with internal memory.

Tommy McClain

 

[eastmen]

From what I've read you wont be able to run games off this. Its just additional storage. So you'd still have to keep the games on your hardrive if you want to use them.

Which makes sense cause any usb thumb drive you buy will be very slow compared to the hardrive .

 

[V3]

Why can't they support external USB hdd as well ? Why limit it at 16GB ?

 

[eastmen]

Why can't they support external USB hdd as well ? Why limit it at 16GB ?

who would buy a $150 120 gig drive if you can just hook up an external 1TB drive to the system ?

 

[joker454]

From what I've read you wont be able to run games off this. Its just additional storage. So you'd still have to keep the games on your hardrive if you want to use them.

Which makes sense cause any usb thumb drive you buy will be very slow compared to the hardrive .

Ah ok, I thought game installs would have been supported. Shame that. I think the speed could have been ok though compared to just dvd, when I transfer data from my video camera to PC via usb I get around 20MB/s, and no seeks needed.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Ah ok, I thought game installs would have been supported. Shame that. I think the speed could have been ok though compared to just dvd, when I transfer data from my video camera to PC via usb I get around 20MB/s, and no seeks needed.

Well, there's a bit of conflicting information out on that at the moment.

Some articles say you can run games off the USB drive similar to the HDD. And as usual, you'll still need the game DVD in the drive to validate ownership. And some articles just don't mention it.

Regards,
SB

 

[corduroygt]

It also makes it easier for a company to justify making a game that requires mandatory install, like say GTA5. Before, requiring install more than doubled the price of a game since it would be assumed that the games real cost for Arcade owners was $60 + HDD cost. Now it's more like $60 + $10 for a usb memory stick.

I've read that you can install XBLA games on it, so it's reasonable to assume you can install full games as well.

However your idea is still not very practical, first, 8GB flash is closer to $15 than $10, but regardless, how would the publisher know how many copies of the $70-75 SKU for arcade owners vs. $60 sku for pro/elite owners to ship? How many people with the arcade would buy the $60 version and then return it because it didn't work, regardless of how clearly it's stated on the box that it won't work without a hdd, since there is no limit for human stupidity. A big title like GTA5 with all these troubles would look bad compared to the $60 PS3 version that runs in every PS3 without any issues.

Less consumer confusion if they pack 8-16GB flash memory in the Natal camera and just say a game requires Natal even if it's just for the memory and not the camera.

I'd still be wary of installing/deleting so many games from cheap USB flash drives, since they don't have wear leveling technologies found in SSDs, and I've personally seen a few USB flashes/memory cards that went bad over time because of this.

 

[Tap In]

I've read that you can install XBLA games on it, so it's reasonable to assume you can install full games as well.
s.

yes I read this yesterday as well. Same disc check rules apply as HDD installs

 

[joker454]

However your idea is still not very practical, first, 8GB flash is closer to $15 than $10, but regardless, how would the publisher know how many copies of the $70-75 SKU for arcade owners vs. $60 sku for pro/elite owners to ship? How many people with the arcade would buy the $60 version and then return it because it didn't work, regardless of how clearly it's stated on the box that it won't work without a hdd, since there is no limit for human stupidity. A big title like GTA5 with all these troubles would look bad compared to the $60 PS3 version that runs in every PS3 without any issues.

Less consumer confusion if they pack 8-16GB flash memory in the Natal camera and just say a game requires Natal even if it's just for the memory and not the camera.

I'd still be wary of installing/deleting so many games from cheap USB flash drives, since they don't have wear leveling technologies found in SSDs, and I've personally seen a few USB flashes/memory cards that went bad over time because of this.

It's practical for games that perhaps have no choice. Requiring a $100 hdd to play a game on what will by then be a $149 console is just not doable, but requiring a $10 accessory is not as big of a deal. People already buy games sometimes knowing that something else is required, like extra GTA or Oblivion episodes, etc, so it's not a big deal. A 360 GTA5 that required a usb memory stick would not look bad compared to the PS3 version because it would still be far cheaper to play it on the 360 as the PS3 will probably still be ~$100 more expensive than the arcade model. Plus a 4gb memory stick would likely be plenty for the next GTA game, and those are what, $5? Many people have them lying around as well.

I wouldn't worry about wear and tear on usb devices for this purpose, the memory in peoples phones has worked fine and presumably they have seen lots of updates and deletes.

 

[Zassk]

You can connect two USB drives to the console at a time, so that means 32 GB for game installs and downloads. And if your drives are bigger than 16 GB each, then the remainder space can still be accessed by the console as secondary storage for things like music and movies, just like today.

(For folks like NeoTechni that may be a little confused - the 360 doesn't really have the concept of copying music/video libraries to its HDD. You just attach your own USB storage containing these things, and the console accesses them directly.)

 

[corduroygt]

People already buy games sometimes knowing that something else is required, like extra GTA or Oblivion episodes, etc, so it's not a big deal.

Please show me a full game that you can't play without a HDD. Not DLC or special mode, like online play in Burnout Paradise, or extra cars in Forza., I mean the actual main game. No one is trying that for a reason. It'd be suicide to try it in a multimillion seller like GTA. Not to mention even the best case 4GB USB stick for $5 multiplied by 5 million copies makes $25 million extra cost for the publisher, not to mention those cheapie USB sticks are not horribly slow, but many are also faulty in my experience. Even rock band, etc is playable with a regular controller if you want to.

I still think Natal is a good opportunity to include this flash. You can make it crystal clear by saying Natal required, and hopefully it can act like a trojan horse, getting people to try out Natal games as well. Also fits the MS comments about treating Natal like a new console launch.

 

[joker454]

Please show me a full game that you can't play without a HDD.

You're missing the point. It's an *option* to require one. I mentioned GTA5 because of all the games I thought of past, present and future, it's the only one I could think of that might need a mandatory install at some point. 99.9998% of games will never need one because dvd is enough.

They said they would support "approved" usb sticks, so the archaic slow ones would not be supported. The rest would work fine and likely be faster than the dvd drive anyways since seeks are the killer (not bandwidth) and flash memory doesn't have any.

I don't understand why you are so worried about flash memory faults. So many devices use flash memory today, if flash memory faults were an issue then many device ideas would have tanked. You are dealing with the two most failure ridden consoles (yes, both of them) in the history of gaming, if you are really that concerned about hardware failure then you should skip this generation completely. The console is far more likely to fail than a usb memory stick.

I still think Natal is a good opportunity to include this flash. You can make it crystal clear by saying Natal required, and hopefully it can act like a trojan horse, getting people to try out Natal games as well. Also fits the MS comments about treating Natal like a new console launch.

This is where you confuse me. You seem to think that people will be ok to pay $50 or whatever for an accessory (natal) to be able to play a game, but you think a $5-$10 usb memory stick to play a game for the hdd less console owners is a deal breaker, even though it has use beyond the game itself. I don't follow.