Whats the main difference between xbox arcade and normal?

jgallcash

I'm looking to buy an Xbox and have noticed that the arcade versions are cheper. Am I right in thinking these don't come with an internal drive?

Is there a massive difference in having one with a HDD? I would mainly use it for games like C.O.D. With online multiplayer functions.

Any suggestions for which Xbox to buy and cheapest prices?

davetrousers

The HDD 'clips' on top of the console so it's not internal as such. You could easily add one later.

With a HDD you can copy the games to it. You still need the disc in the drive, but it plays the game from the HDD so it's much quieter.

jgallcash

Is it more cost effective to buy a HDD seperately or one with it?

Would i still be able to save my game without the HDD? I know these are basic questions but I'm afraid I haven't a clue.

Marty_J

The Xbox 360 Arcade has 256 MB of internal memory for saving games on. You can also buy 512 MB memory cards to expand the storage, or just buy yourself a HDD (around £50) at a later date.

DCFC79

You can save your progress etc with out the hard drive but if you were to download say extra content or map packs for modern warfare well you would need a hard drive as the map packs require more than 512mb for storage, you can get an elite for £199 and an arcade is £110 and then buy a hard drive at a later date. It depends whether you would download any extra content

jgallcash

Is 20GB a suitable enough size for general work? That seems like a cheaper option.

pitkin2020

20gb is fine, but you can only get one game stored on it at a time, but they are so cheap on ebay. If you can afford it though try and get a 60gb or a 120gb. You'll soon realise how much better it is to run the game from the HDD (disk still has to be in the drive) as you don't hear the disk constantly spinning. It also speeds up the loading of the game, not a huge amount but still enough.

DCFC79

Depends how much you can afford really,

jgallcash

DCFC79 wrote: »

Depends how much you can afford really,

Its not that i'm wanting to cut corner totally. I just want to find the most cost effective way. Is it reasoable to get a wireless controller and a spare (not wireless) for £140-£150?

If its much better to spend a little more i'm willing. Reccomendations welcome!

DCFC79

jgallcash wrote: »

Its not that i'm wanting to cut corner totally. I just want to find the most cost effective way. Is it reasoable to get a wireless controller and a spare (not wireless) for £140-£150?

If its much better to spend a little more i'm willing. Reccomendations welcome!

ive seen a wireless controller for about £30 or maybe less but ive not seen a non wireless controller around. If you want to install some games to the hard drive which reduces the noise and loading times ? then get either a 60GB or a 120GB or if not then get a 20G. I didnt mean cut corners, you didnt mention a budget or whether you had 1 kind of thing

Bowling_4_Gold

It can be argued that the Arcade console hase a worse disc drive than the 'Premium', 'Pro', and 'Elite' versions - so some say there is little point buying an arcade and fitting your own hard drive just to save a few pounds.

Unfortunately, the 20gb and 60gb models have been discontinued by Microsoft, but you are still able to get an Elite version (with a 120gb HDD) for around £190, or a Super Elite version (with a 250gb HDD and bundled with Forza 3) for around £230.