Microsoft update will lock out unlicensed Xbox 360 storage devices

The question is, even if you could live without the update, would you eventually need to get it for future updates? Future updates that you may need to utilize certain features of XBL or certain games? Are MS updates like Sony updates, where they tell you that they are optional, but in reality, you need them do sign on or play certain games? If I had a 360, I'd pass on this update due to having no interest in Twitter or Facebook or lastfm, but I'd be royally pissed if down the road I was forced into it due to subsequent updates.

Probably going to get some backlash from people who update without reading the details. What could be the possible reason from banning external storage devices besides wanting more money?

For a company that has yet been able to make their system last for more than a year they really should be walking on eggshells and be doing everything not to piss off their customers before they all jump ship.

Of Course if we all do leave then I dont see why Playstation wouldnt be on top because of all of our brand new money.

Also I will not be standing in line to buy the new XBOX console (whenever it come out.) I'll wait and see how many fail first. Better yet I might just get the PlayStation first since its not know for dying.

I'm off topic I know but I got thangs to say.

I wonder if a custom hard drive will still work after this update.

They are either targeting mem cards with high storage capacity or removing cards that didnt get properly licensed.

Either way without them suing for IP violations this stinks of anti competitive practices...

Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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Originally posted by creaky:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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if it was your money coming in you'd all be singing a different tune.

Originally posted by Hopium:

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if it was your money coming in you'd all be singing a different tune.

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This is so ridiculous.
I can't understand why a company that has been so good to gamers for so long would start to push people away over something so inconsequential at a time when their competition (Wii & PS3) is or has warmed up to consumers. they really better not do this an the rumored hike in Live! subscription services or this will truly be the beginning of the end for the 360's so-far great run.

Originally posted by jookycola:

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This is so ridiculous.
I can't understand why a company that has been so good to gamers for so long would start to push people away over something so inconsequential at a time when their competition (Wii & PS3) is or has warmed up to consumers. they really better not do this an the rumored hike in Live! subscription services or this will truly be the beginning of the end for the 360's so-far great run.

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This reminds me of Sony with their proprietary memory chips and their insistance that you use a Pro Duo (sony) chip in all of their devices.

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Originally posted by jookycola:

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This is so ridiculous.
I can't understand why a company that has been so good to gamers for so long would start to push people away over something so inconsequential at a time when their competition (Wii & PS3) is or has warmed up to consumers. they really better not do this an the rumored hike in Live! subscription services or this will truly be the beginning of the end for the 360's so-far great run.

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good? MS has been bad to gamers for so long, its jsut they have the games thus people ignore all the issues the 360 has....

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It's not anti-competitive. Apple do this thing all the time, for example, updating iTunes so it no longer allows Palm Pre owners to sync, or only allowing their operating system to run on computers sold by them. It's no different to that. MS doesn't have monopoly status in the games console world, so they can allow whatever peripherals they like to be used with their systems. It doesn't mean that it's a very nice thing to do though!

What is shitty about it is the fact that they've decided to do this now, after the console's been out for 4 years. The Arcade comes with 512 MB of memory built in now and obviously the Elite and Super Elite both have hard drives, so blocking unlicensed memory cards is likely to affect people who have already bought a console much more than it will affect any future buyers who will have less of a need to buy a memory card. Also, if I buy a cheap 4GB Datel memory card, it means I can buy more DLC and XBLA games. That means more money for MS in the long run. I think this is a really bad move on their part, especially as there are bound to be people who aren't aware that this is happening until after they updated and then they'll wonder why they can't access their gamertag, game saves etc.

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I wonder if a custom hard drive will still work after this update.

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Sucks to be a 360 owner if this is for non-MS hard drives. As far as I know right now the Microsoft branded hard drives are way more expensive than other hard drives of equal size on the market.

For example the $120GB Microsoft hard drive retails for $159.99 while the same size hard drive retails for around $40 from most other companies.

So wait will this stop custom hdd's from working?

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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Wow it's amazing how Micro$oft screws the people who buy their crap over and over.... Get a playstation !!!!!!

How many xbox's actually it 3 years without getting some type of error ?
I'm not sure but this number seems to be way too low for me to stick with ms on this one. And that membership rummor is a go. Remember what Micro$oft stands for.. Buy one now and another after the first one breaks

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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The problem is that this isn't anything close to anti-competitive behavior. Microsoft isn't the only game in town and consumers have a choice of the competitor's systems (Sony or Nintendo) if the consumer does not like Microsoft's lockout policies. I myself find this decision by Microsoft upsetting BUT Microsoft will be punished by the consumer by reduced sales IF the consumer sees this as a big enough problem. On top of that, if consumers don't like the infamous "greed" of Microsoft then those consumers need to stop buying Microsoft gaming products. Many gamers talk a lot of trash about Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo but that hate sure doesn't show in their sales numbers.

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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Quote:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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The problem is that this isn't anything close to anti-competitive behavior. Microsoft isn't the only game in town and consumers have a choice of the competitor's systems (Sony or Nintendo) if the consumer does not like Microsoft's lockout policies. I myself find this decision by Microsoft upsetting BUT Microsoft will be punished by the consumer by reduced sales IF the consumer sees this as a big enough problem. On top of that, if consumers don't like the infamous "greed" of Microsoft then those consumers need to stop buying Microsoft gaming products. Many gamers talk a lot of trash about Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo but that hate sure doesn't show in their sales numbers.

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its anti competitive because they are limiting the choices on their platform and adding confusion for the consumer.

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Originally posted by funksoulb:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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Quote:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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The problem is that this isn't anything close to anti-competitive behavior. Microsoft isn't the only game in town and consumers have a choice of the competitor's systems (Sony or Nintendo) if the consumer does not like Microsoft's lockout policies. I myself find this decision by Microsoft upsetting BUT Microsoft will be punished by the consumer by reduced sales IF the consumer sees this as a big enough problem. On top of that, if consumers don't like the infamous "greed" of Microsoft then those consumers need to stop buying Microsoft gaming products. Many gamers talk a lot of trash about Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo but that hate sure doesn't show in their sales numbers.

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its anti competitive because they are limiting the choices on their platform and adding confusion for the consumer.

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That doesn't make it an anti-competitive practice. There are plenty of examples where companies deliberately limit your choice. It's a standard business practice. If you can only buy an iPhone on one carrier, your choice is being limited. If your printer only takes chipped cartridges to stop you buying cheap ones, your choice is limited. If you can only play songs downloaded from iTunes on an iPod, your choice of which MP3 player to buy is being limited (I know it's not like that now, but it was). Of course, when MS do it, they're "greedy" and should be sued. lol. It may be shitty and it may be a bit late in the day to do this, but anti-competitive it is not.

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Apple are the King of 'Lock-in', you won't get Apple praise from me.

All this wordplay on whether it's anti-competitive or not is moot, what annoys me is that MS are blocking (for instance) 3rd party memory cards. Just because they built the console doesn't make it right. Why the hell would i buy a 512MB memory card when i could buy a cheaper, larger one from someone else. It's a bloody memory card, it's not like it's a hard drive or anything else. It's ridiculous. As it happens i wanted a memory card recently so that i could transfer my gamer profile between my two 360's as it's a pain to have to keep recovering the profile via xbox live. Then i saw that the memory cards were £10 so i decided to stay as i was. Or i could start swapping the two hard drives over.

However i certainly won't be buying a memory card now, it's more of a ripoff than before.

Originally posted by creaky:

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Apple are the King of 'Lock-in', you won't get Apple praise from me.

All this wordplay on whether it's anti-competitive or not is moot, what annoys me is that MS are blocking (for instance) 3rd party memory cards. Just because they built the console doesn't make it right. Why the hell would i buy a 512MB memory card when i could buy a cheaper, larger one from someone else. It's a bloody memory card, it's not like it's a hard drive or anything else. It's ridiculous. As it happens i wanted a memory card recently so that i could transfer my gamer profile between my two 360's as it's a pain to have to keep recovering the profile via xbox live. Then i saw that the memory cards were £10 so i decided to stay as i was. Or i could start swapping the two hard drives over.

However i certainly won't be buying a memory card now, it's more of a ripoff than before.

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What I find interesting is how they do not say why they won't let you use other storage devices other than those made my M$. Everyone here obviously knows why; money money money.

Don't know what you lot are complaining about pricing for it's not as tho you live downunder,on average we pay 2-1/2 times what you'd pay,we're so used to getting shafted we all walk around hunched back *evil smiley*

ughhh Microsoft you make me mad!

Originally posted by scorpNZ:

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Don't know what you lot are complaining about pricing for it's not as tho you live downunder,on average we pay 2-1/2 times what you'd pay,we're so used to getting shafted we all walk around hunched back *evil smiley*

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Originally posted by scorpNZ:

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Don't know what you lot are complaining about pricing for it's not as tho you live downunder,on average we pay 2-1/2 times what you'd pay,we're so used to getting shafted we all walk around hunched back *evil smiley*

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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The problem is that this isn't anything close to anti-competitive behavior. Microsoft isn't the only game in town and consumers have a choice of the competitor's systems (Sony or Nintendo) if the consumer does not like Microsoft's lockout policies. I myself find this decision by Microsoft upsetting BUT Microsoft will be punished by the consumer by reduced sales IF the consumer sees this as a big enough problem. On top of that, if consumers don't like the infamous "greed" of Microsoft then those consumers need to stop buying Microsoft gaming products. Many gamers talk a lot of trash about Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo but that hate sure doesn't show in their sales numbers.

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its anti competitive because they are limiting the choices on their platform and adding confusion for the consumer.

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That doesn't make it an anti-competitive practice. There are plenty of examples where companies deliberately limit your choice. It's a standard business practice. If you can only buy an iPhone on one carrier, your choice is being limited. If your printer only takes chipped cartridges to stop you buying cheap ones, your choice is limited. If you can only play songs downloaded from iTunes on an iPod, your choice of which MP3 player to buy is being limited (I know it's not like that now, but it was). Of course, when MS do it, they're "greedy" and should be sued. lol. It may be shitty and it may be a bit late in the day to do this, but anti-competitive it is not.

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Just because Apple does something, that does not make it legitimate. Apple has done plenty of wrong over the years. So has microsoft, and sony as well. All sides have done plenty to proove that they care far more about grabbing a quick buck than taking care of their customers. This is hardly suprising at this point, and things will only get worse from here. Thankfully, my PS3 does not use memory cards (unless you count USB flash)...so at least there is no fear of Sony locking them out.

Originally posted by emugamer:

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Yeah well when you by an iPhone or printer or download iTunes or whatever, you know what you are getting into. You already know that you can't do A, B or C. This move by MS strips away something from the customer that was there when purchased.

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Yes its anti-competitive. How is this different than sony's psp go, and the downloadable games only available through sony? You can't even sell or trade your downloads as far as I know.
Yes I know this an article about microsoft, but all corporations are doing this now. Either we choose to buy, or not buy. If we choose to buy, then all the b*tching in the world isn't going to change what they do.

Mummy and Daddy foot the bill for this overpriced stuff.

Who cares what Microsoft does?

Piracy issues are one thing. But THIS is BS. I'll remember this the next time I shop for a console and I don't even have any 3rd party storage devices in my 360.

Uao I just thought to subscribe to XBOX live...after this news will delay it or never subscribe in first place.
arale

I wander if this only affects people who use memory card, or if microsoft also intend todo the same with external USB harddrives. I have toyed with the idea of gettgina USB hard drive to put mp3 music on. As the 360 only allows ripping of original audio CD's to its harddrive!

p.s the 360 music program is crap, and really needs more development to make it on par with thier windows Media player

Originally posted by 21Q:

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So wait, will this stop custom hdd's from working?

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funksoulb, how can you say this is not anti-competitive? Just because Apple and others are doing it. I guuess thousands of hackers are working on a sloution.

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Originally posted by 21Q:

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So wait, will this stop custom hdd's from working?

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This is what I want to know too. The info seems vague on this.

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Originally posted by 21Q:

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So wait, will this stop custom hdd's from working?

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Originally posted by llongtheD:

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Yes its anti-competitive. How is this different than sony's psp go, and the downloadable games only available through sony?

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On a similar note, General Motors and Ford are making it mandatory that all V8 and V6 engines installed in their customer's cars be removed and 1400 cc 4 cylinder replacement engines be installed in their place. A small charge of $3,200.00 per change over will be levied. If another vendor is used for the change over or an owner fails to comply with the change over, the vehicle will be made inoperable. This is non-negotiable and is required if the owner wishes to go on operating the vehicle...

[Makes about the same amount of sense as the Microsoft move..]

This is Idiocy, i cant even use my external hdd at this point now things are getting worse whats next taking away the ability to go wireless with our laptop instead of their wireless adapter or even making us buy a custom xbox only wireless router or even locking us out of our own networks so we cant stream music or video from our computers. i already have issues with that since there are no codecs available for most formats on te 360 thats what they should be working on updating there software to benefit the user not taking from us, never again will i buy a console from them i may even switch my computer over to Linux-Ubuntu

yeah i've never had to use a memory card with the 360 but this is just plain ridiculous, it's just like when EA bought out the football license back in 07 cause madden is 60 bucks and 2k7 was outselling madden 3 to 1 and it was only 20 bucks. remember that? knocking 3rd parties out of the game means monopolyyyyyyyy back at it bill gates...no good very bogus of microsoft who also doesn't allow for any good free game content on xbox live

It's reasons like this that I haven't bought any games for the 360 or have even turned it on in over 6 months. I typically only read these articles without ever leaving any comments, but these big companies like Microsoft are so blinded by greed it so frustrating & ridiculous that it's hard not to want to comment. Yes, I can understand locking out modders for many reasons as has been previously mentioned, but non Microsoft memory chips. I mean c'mon on, Microsoft, what BS! What greedy thing will you lock out next time on a future update?
Gamers do I have a choice, but for many of the same reasons or others those choices can be limited depending on what your reasons are to wanting to buy that paticular console in the first place. I was going to make the switch to the PS3 this last summer since I wanted it for Gaming & mostly Blu-Ray reasons, but I chose to build a Home Media PC with a Blu-Ray drive instead and couldn't be happier. I now only focus on PC games as my 360 collects dust & haven't looked back since. Plus, these Multi-Billion Dollar Gaming Console Industries can suck it!

Typical Microsoft Crap - "Buy my higher priced, under-performing devise or We Will Hurt You!"

I am one of the old guys that waited for price to come down and trying to decide if my X-Mas present would be an X-Box or Play Station. This latest bit of user unfriendliness probably just made up my mind.

@warlocks

And sony is so consumer friendly? Either one of these corporations will try and squeeze every nickel out of you.
How many people use these memory devices if they have an xbox with a hard drive any way, I've never needed one.
I do agree its another fleecing tactic to take away support however.

Originally posted by llongtheD:

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@warlocks

And sony is so consumer friendly? Either one of these corporations will try and squeeze every nickel out of you.
How many people use these memory devices if they have an xbox with a hard drive any way, I've never needed one.
I do agree its another fleecing tactic to take away support however.

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Sony has done nothing to dissable the use of accossories that already worked with the unit. Also, they allow you to upgrade the hard drive to any drive that will fit (with a couple of exceptions...but these are not intentional). Xbox360 won't even let you put a 500GB drive in.

I have stopped playing games on the PC since I can't seem to find any titles that are not 'Games for Windows' or 'Live'. The fact that 360 owners put up with the same, in spite of the lesser capabilities of the console and the higher cost of games is amazing to me. Yes, PSN is a lot like Live!, but it has no monthly fee, and most games that you get from the PSN can be installed on 5 consoles at once...Sony even knows about this, and allows it. Piracy is possible on the 360...but the PSN trick isn't piracy, it is perfectly legal, and Sony has never issued any statements against it.

Yes...Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are all big, evil corporations...just to different degrees. Microsoft knows that they can get away with ANYTHING...and even if they are convicted over and over, they still get away with it. Nintendo is generaly a good company if you ignore their generaly fascist stance. Sony is somewhere in the middle...and that makes them the best at the moment IMHO.

Originally posted by KillerBug:

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Sony has done nothing to dissable the use of accossories that already worked with the unit. Also, they allow you to upgrade the hard drive to any drive that will fit (with a couple of exceptions...but these are not intentional). Xbox360 won't even let you put a 500GB drive in.

I have stopped playing games on the PC since I can't seem to find any titles that are not 'Games for Windows' or 'Live'. The fact that 360 owners put up with the same, in spite of the lesser capabilities of the console and the higher cost of games is amazing to me. Yes, PSN is a lot like Live!, but it has no monthly fee, and most games that you get from the PSN can be installed on 5 consoles at once...Sony even knows about this, and allows it. Piracy is possible on the 360...but the PSN trick isn't piracy, it is perfectly legal, and Sony has never issued any statements against it.

Yes...Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo are all big, evil corporations...just to different degrees. Microsoft knows that they can get away with ANYTHING...and even if they are convicted over and over, they still get away with it. Nintendo is generaly a good company if you ignore their generaly fascist stance. Sony is somewhere in the middle...and that makes them the best at the moment IMHO.

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Originally posted by manny2564:

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Wow it's amazing how Micro$oft screws the people who buy their crap over and over.... Get a playstation !!!!!!

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Originally posted by funksoulb:

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Apple do this thing all the time, for example... only allowing their operating system to run on computers sold by them.

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Just one More reason WHY Microsoft can KEEP their X-Box. Would never recommend it, and would never buy it!

Originally posted by creaky:

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Originally posted by ZippyDSM:

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this stinks of anti competitive practices...

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I rarely comment on games consoles but your comment is exactly how i felt when i read the article. It's not even as if it's a modchip or similar, it's a damn memory card!. Greed is the only other thing that comes to mind.

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New Slim PS3 in the States $299 (about $330AUS)... new Slim PS3 in Oz $499AUS... about $170AUS MORE. Yes, they are region locked to games... which cost $10AUS MORE than X360 versions here. So what the heck makes $ony that much more munificent? Pffft.

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Originally posted by xboxdvl2:

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New Slim PS3 in the States $299 (about $330AUS)... new Slim PS3 in Oz $499AUS... about $170AUS MORE. Yes, they are region locked to games... which cost $10AUS MORE than X360 versions here. So what the heck makes $ony that much more munificent? Pffft.

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Jemborg where are you getting your prices i live in australia and im sure a slim PS3 cost more than that??????.i was thinking about buying a xbox 360 but i think if i get a new gaming console i will go with PS3.

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Whelp, guess I'm not going to get the stupid console now. Between this, $ony's new blocking compatibility and other OSes, and the Wii's complete lack of games I want, I guess I'll skip this entire console generation altogether. Looks like 100% of gaming will be done on my PC, and I'll just use media players for my h.264 to my TV.

And it's not at all like getting these would be a financial hardship. I'm just not willing to be treated like this, so won't give these people any business on principle.

Chris, i know that you have a Crazy high import tax @ %10. What are your State/Local Tax rates? Just wondering what other reasons for the price differences.

Originally posted by glassd:

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Chris, i know that you have a Crazy high import tax @ %10. What are your State/Local Tax rates? Just wondering what other reasons for the price differences.

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Originally posted by glassd:

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Chris, i know that you have a Crazy high import tax @ %10. What are your State/Local Tax rates? Just wondering what other reasons for the price differences.

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I suppose it's because ms and sony can get away with it... most xbox's/ps3's are made at mostly the same place, so the price should be the same as the US.

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