NViRT

For some time I’ve been needing another 360 for another entertainment center and I’ve had a voucher for a new unit just sitting in my lap. The thing is, I couldn’t take advantage of the damn thing until Monday because since Christmas it’s been impossible to find 360 Pro units in stock anywhere. Anyway, the local “Sell Shit Now” chain had 360 Pro falcons in stock yesterday so of course I mobilized my ass and got one. My verdict? Frickin’ sweet. Not only does this thing run cooler, it’s a bit quieter too. While still not as quiet as the PS3, the 360 falcon is still noticeably quieter then previous 360 units, especially in idle mode. The previous models made this loud “RRRRRRR” noise that was especially annoying when trying to play a movie on the 360. The Falcon still makes noise in idle mode but now its a much more tolerable “FWWOOOOOOO”. The DVD drive seems to be of noticeably higher quality as well. So if you’ve been undecided, now is the time to buy your first or second Xbox 360.
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A while ago I wrote about the XFPS 360 units that allow you to connect a keyboard and mouse to your Xbox 360. These boxes man-in-the-middle attack a wired 360 controller’s protocol to bypass the 360’s peripheral security. Once connected to the 360, the XFPS unit allows you to plug in ps/2 (protocol) keyboards and mice, usb keyboards and mice, or PS2 (gaming system) DualShock controllers. Sounds great huh? Well, it’s not. It’s horrible. Accomplishing anything greater than minor aiming tricks sits near “why bother” even with the sniper model of the XFPS.

If you remember my original review of the XFPS, I talk about how the unit translates input from a keyboard and mouse and literally pukes the translated input at the Xbox 360. So, in exorcist green projectile vomit fashion, you’ll be frolicking around Halo 3 and Call of Duty 4 worse off than you were with those barbaric analog sticks that made you purchase the XFPS in the first place.
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