# Xbox 360 4gb vs. 250 gb



## FXB

I want to know the major difference between both units the xbox 360 slim 4gb and the xbox 360 slim 250 gb.  When the first xbox came out there was a logical sequence 20gb 40gb or 60gb.  I want to know what would be placed on this hard drive space.  I assume music and movies but there has to be something else.  I want to buy an xbox 360 to stream the content I have on my desktop to my living room.  In this case which xbox is best? What is the hard drive space used for?


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## voyagerfan99

The 4GB will work best. The space is mainly for saving profiles, game saves, movies, music, and games. Streaming content will only use some space for temporary buffering.


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## FXB

I also read on the xbox website that you can download content in that case wouldn't be best to get the 250gb model?


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## nathan32111

I have a 120gb elite console, i use about 60gb because i install all my games to the hard drive which makes the console relax a bit, meaning that the performance is better and the console is quieter. Oh and i also put all my music on it.
to save profiles ect you probably only need 4gb so its all up to your personal preference.


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## gamblingman

The wife an I debated the 4GB vs 250GB, we finally went with the 4GB. Big mistake, I went back and bought the hard drive the next week. She likes to play games like Fallout and Oblivion which come with large add-ons you have to install to a hard drive.

The system also works a LOT faster with the drive in. Its probably due to the hard drive giving the system room for page-file. As nathan32111 said, it also runs quieter. I would guess its because you can install games to the hard drive, and thus the game-DVD-disk isn't thrashed.

On a side note, give the console room to breathe, don't block the ends or the large vent. This console gets somewhat warm, so give it good air-flow so that you don't run risk of overheating. Just so you know, the fan pulls the air through the ends of the console and pushes the air out through the large vent port.


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## FXB

Could I buy games and put them on the HDD to boot faster?


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## gamblingman

You can install the game to the hdd, but you still need the disk to run the game. Though installing games to the hdd does seem to make games run faster and smoother. For instance, I found that once I installed Forza 2 the game ran a LOT faster (starting and loading times) than before it was installed.


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## FXB

could microsoft not setup a single license so you can associate your game to your xbox live account which is associated to your xbox like that you do not need to have the disk in the console.  CAn you not also download full games from the marketplace?


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## Matthew1990

250GB all the wayyy

I can not stress enough improvement in gaming experience once games are installed on the hard drive. Also, when you manage to get your cd scratched to the point when you cant play the game off the cd, it will play if you have the game installed. First thing I do when I get the new game is to install it.


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## FXB

Any other reason to get the 250 gb model?
Do you know if it will be refreshed soon?


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## salvage-this

I heard from friends that the 4gb model has a lot of trouble with multilayer games due to a lack of memory.  I can't really confirm that for sure but they heard of a lot of people that were complaining about it.


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## gamblingman

FXB said:


> could microsoft not setup a single license so you can associate your game to your xbox live account which is associated to your xbox like that you do not need to have the disk in the console.  CAn you not also download full games from the marketplace?



No, Microsoft won't do that, you have to have the disk. Some games are available for download, but you won't find anything like ModernWarfare. You can get games like DOOM (the original one), Castle Crashers, etc... I know because my brother does it all the time on the XBOX Live marketplace. 




FXB said:


> Any other reason to get the 250 gb model?
> Do you know if it will be refreshed soon?



I don't think we will see another resurrection of the 360 with a different design, like has happened for the slim to appear. The slim will probably be on the market for several years to come, at a minimum. But I seriously doubt it will ever be revamped.

If you are asking if they might be coming out with a totally new type of console.... seems like something is always in the works at Microsoft. I'd expect a brand new console to surface in the next year or so.


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## FXB

new console as in a new xbox? or as in an entirely different system that isn't compatible with previous the machine.  Like nintendo when they went from N64 to gamecube?


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## gamblingman

FXB said:


> new console as in a new xbox? or as in an entirely different system that isn't compatible with previous the machine.  Like nintendo when they went from N64 to gamecube?



Well, Microsoft is always coming out with new devices. I'd bet that a totally new console, a successor to the XBOX 360, will be out in about a year or so. I haven't heard anything definite though.

But if they were to come out with a totally new console it will _probably_ be backward compatible with some games. It was the same way with the original XBOX and the XBOX 360, some games from the original could be played on the 360, but not many. Time will tell.

I would not hold my breath waiting for a totally new console to come out, its gonna be awhile. Even when a new console comes out, its gonna take some time for game firms to catch up in development.

Get your 360 slim and enjoy it, my wife and I love ours. Have you decided on whether you want the 4GB or the 250GB?


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## FXB

gamblingman said:


> Get your 360 slim and enjoy it, my wife and I love ours. Have you decided on whether you want the 4GB or the 250GB?


 I'm thinking of getting the 250gb model but I'm still not convinced.  I'm not much of a gamer but I already have an original xbox so I would like to keep some games.  I'm also skeptical about the boot time difference between the games loaded on the HDD and the games loaded from the disk.  I remember when I rooted my PSP and I was running games from the memory card is was alot faster.


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## gamblingman

Your choice of course. Just start with the 4GB model, you can always get the drive later if you decide you need/want it. 

Like I said before that's what I did. I got the 4GB model first, and then the following week I went back for the drive. It was necessary for several games because of add-ons which cant be run from their DVD disk, they can only be played after being installed to the hard drive.


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## FXB

yes but if I do that I get charged an extra 50$.  What else can you do with the xbox other then DVD and games?


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## epidemik

FXB said:


> yes but if I do that I get charged an extra 50$.  What else can you do with the xbox other then DVD and games?



Stream online content from netflix. That wouldn't require a large hard drive though. I've never streamed from your PC but obviously you know it can do that. I guess you could play music on it but there are better ways of listening to music.

What types of features are you looking for? It's a gaming console so it's primary function is video games.


http://www.xbox.com/en-US/Kinect/Entertainment?cid=20110124SAWWWWSANONEFEAT0012NONESUBALL
Looks like you can watch espn, do basic twitter and facebook updates, video chat with other kinect users, and access last.fm too.


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## FXB

Well I've been thinking of building a HTPC for a while now and my original xbox is breaking so I thought I could hit 2 birds with 1 stone.  I know my computer science teacher uses one xbox 360 for media streaming and the other for gaming.  I could probably stream content from my computer and play video games with the same console.


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## FXB

It's decided I am getting the 250gb model  Any suggestions of good game titles?  I'm not big on FPS.  I'm more of a casual gamer


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## gamblingman

I like Forza 2 and 3 
Oblivion GOTY 
Fallout 3 (a fps)
FarCry 2 (a fps also, but the map editor and the multiplayer made this totally worth it. I could play with the map editor for days!)
FX vs ATV


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## FXB

Forza and mx vs. atv seem good I have mx vs atv for the orignal xbox.  I've heard good things about farcry and fallout but never seen anyone play.


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## gamblingman

Since you have decided on the whole 4GB vs 250GB thing and now you are wondering about games, you should make a new thread. People will be more aware of your new question and you will get more answers for what games to buy. Make a new thread in the computer games and consoles area and put your new question, like:

"XBOX 360 Game Suggestions?"

Then in the thread just mention that you aren't as interested in FPS games, but you would like some suggestions for your NEW XBOX 360!!!


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## FXB

Good Idea it is located right here


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## FXB

So I finally purchased an Xbox 360 slim 4gb model setup everything and I am disappointed to notice 2 things.

Once I setup windows media center on my desktop and xbox it lags a lot now I am not sure why it lags so much it might not even be the xbox's fault.

I cannot play any of my original xbox games without the 250 gb hard drive.  Needless to say it will be ship tomorrow.


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