XBox 360 Red Ring of Death after 3 years?

techno12

Hi,

Well, finally it's happened. I bought a 360 in January '06 but I've hardly ever used it until this past month or two, when I played through Halo 3 and I'm currently half way through ODST.

So, every 360 owner I know has had the RROD, so I knew I'd be getting one soon. I've just phoned Microsoft as their online repair system wouldn't accept my serial number, and I thought I was getting a free repair until the very end of the call when she asked when I purchased it. Now it's going to be £68 + VAT.

Has anyone successfully managed to get an old 360 repaired or replaced without paying this charge, either via the Sale of Goods Act (maybe 3+ years is deemed to be too old and it won't apply here - but it is a well-known inherent fault so it's possible I can hassle GAME..) or via Microsoft?

Cheers!

Marty_J

Well, Microsoft aren't obliged to replace or repair it, and it's almost 4 years old, so I doubt you'll have much luck with Game (though by all means give it a go if you want).

If I were in your shoes, I would just buy myself an Xbox Arcade and stick my hard drive in it. The newer models are cooler, quieter, and more reliable anyway.

techno12

Marty_J wrote: »

Well, Microsoft aren't obliged to replace or repair it, and it's almost 4 years old, so I doubt you'll have much luck with Game (though by all means give it a go if you want).

If I were in your shoes, I would just buy myself an Xbox Arcade and stick my hard drive in it. The newer models are cooler, quieter, and more reliable anyway.

Tempting, but I've also been teetering on the brink of getting a PS3 so now may be the time. The big reason being that my work (Sony Computer Entertainment) gets a couple of PS3 games every other day to add to our 'library' so I ought not to need to buy any games ;-)

Good idea about the arcade - I didn't realise they were that cheap. I may just do that as I want to finish ODST!

I suppose I could have been dishonest and not told MS about the date I purchased it, as I'm not sure if they could prove when I bought it (the manufactuing date is Nov '05 but it could have been sitting in a warehouse for a year before being sold for all they know).

Dave101t

pay the price. or buy a new bundle, the machine works out at 60 quid after peripherals anyway. i have 2 xboxes, one was repaired twice, now out of warranty, the other freezes on forza, but wont give me the RROD, ironically i want it because i only have 6 months warrantry left on that one!

leanneslow

wrap it in a couple of towels, turn it on and leave it for about 15 mins. Then unwrap it and turn it off for about 15 mins. Then turn it back on and it should work. Its called the towel trick. Supposed to overheat it then cool it down.

Mine got the red ring a while a go and i found that on google. Worked for me anyway!

HTH

4743hudsonj

leanneslow wrote: »

wrap it in a couple of towels, turn it on and leave it for about 15 mins. Then unwrap it and turn it off for about 15 mins. Then turn it back on and it should work. Its called the towel trick. Supposed to overheat it then cool it down.

Mine got the red ring a while a go and i found that on google. Worked for me anyway!

HTH

The x-clamp fix is a little more complicated but permanent, where as the towel trick can do more damage in the long run.

TEDDYRUKSPIN

LOL. With all the money spent to fix it, I would just bin it! Worse piece of rubbish I have ever brought.

If you have alot of games, buy a cheap xbox arcade for roughly £100.

dizziblonde

They're nigh-on impossible to con about when you bought it as well. Ours died the week before the 12 month warranty ran out (good timing), but when I called them to arrange a repair they said their systems were showing it was out of warranty - because they estimate the time it will take to sell a machine and mine had been in a stock room longer than expected. To get the warranty reset on their systems and get it repaired for free I had to send them the reciept showing the date it was bought, and photos of the back of the console showing the manufacturing date. Because of all that I doubt you'll be able to wangle that you bought yours at a different time to be honest.

Only reason I knew exactly when the 12 months was up on ours was it was bought on Halo3 release day when I couldn't cope with the man moping around the house wanting to play it!

Oneday77

Well Free games from Sony and a broken MS console.....hmmm....yip PS3 time. Not to mention someone will buy a RROD 360 on ebay for about £50 to £60 console only then sell th ebits seperately. Job done

techno12

Oneday77 wrote: »

Well Free games from Sony and a broken MS console.....hmmm....yip PS3 time. Not to mention someone will buy a RROD 360 on ebay for about £50 to £60 console only then sell th ebits seperately. Job done

Aye, I'm looking into this now - I can sell the wireless adaptor, hard drive, controller etc separately as well so it might not be so bad..

I can also sell my Sony Blu Ray player as I've only used it about half a dozen times since in the 14 months I've owned it - having skipped Blu Ray to the convenience and quality of HD downloads (I own a Popcorn Hour). I'll still want a Blu Ray player though so the PS3 will do that job as well..

..though I did a quick towel trick earlier (well, I used an old T-shirt) and it's fine for now. Hopefully it'll last until I finish ODST!

Marty_J

It seems a pity not to have both. There are some very nice exclusives for the Xbox 360 coming up (Alan Wake, Mass Effect 2, and Splinter Cell: Conviction to name but three).