Connect with us

Editorials

3 Reasons Buying an Xbox 360 Instead of an Xbox One Is A Good Idea

Published

on

Microsoft’s new Xbox One  is meant to be the only entertainment console users need. For gamers there’s a new controller, upgraded graphics capabilities and a spacious hard drive to make playing your favorite titles that much more enjoyable than on the Xbox 360. For video lovers there’s the newly integrated television experience that’s available to all who have a cable box. Of course, video demand services like Netflix, YouTube and Amazon Prime are all available on the system as well.

None of this new functionality, this integrated television port and Kinect 2 sensor come cheap. At $399, the Xbox One is about $200 more expensive than the cheapest Xbox 360 console with an included Kinect sensor, it’s also $100 more expensive than Sony’s PS4. Naturally, that pricing alone has people worried about whether the Xbox One is worth the price of admission.

I happen to think it is. In fact, I suspect there are many Xbox One uses who haven’t turned on their Xbox 360 ever since picking up the Xbox one. However, I honestly don’t think that’s the final nail in the Xbox 360’s coffin. There are still plenty of reasons to pick up the Xbox 360 instead of the Xbox One.

More Games

Xbox-360-Kinect

I can’t stress enough just how big the Xbox 360’s catalog of games is. As the console first made its debut on store shelves in 2005, there are hundreds of titles available for it.

Some of those titles have aged well, especially the first person shooters. Halo and Gears of War are both Microsoft-made titles that offer no equivalent on the Xbox One today. Microsoft has confirmed that there’s another Halo game in development, however its release date is unclear.

Top notch gaming experiences on the Xbox 360 that still hold up well aren’t limited to first-person shooters either. Adventure games like Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag and open world titles like Grand Theft Auto 5, are all enjoyable on the Xbox 360 and all offer users a best-in-class experience.

The best part about picking up the Xbox 360 today is that there are titles for everyone and they’re all getting cheaper. Buying an Xbox 360 today won’t guarantee you next year’s must-have games, but it will guarantee you a seat at the table for nearly all of this year’s must-have tiles.

Entertainment Apps By The Dozen

Netflix for Android

Part of the Xbox 360’s appeal these last couple of years was that at some point it became more than just a gaming console. Sure, firing up Halo was still a priority for some, however Microsoft slowly added a mountain of video and music apps that extended the Xbox 360 experience in different ways. Netflix was the first of these to debut and others slowly followed. Today there is Xfinity, Verizon FiOS TV, WWE and dozens more all available with a subscription to Xbox Live and the corresponding service.

The Xbox One has a platform for content creators to make their own apps as well. The problem is that Xbox One users are still waiting on the HBO Go app they were promised back in November. I know and understand that these things are left up to the content owners themselves and that it’s their responsibility to make their content available to users. The problem is convincing an average user who wants a set-top box with a decent amount of videos games to sit still long enough to listen to that argument.

For right now, the comparison is easy. Xbox One entertainment apps may be able to snap and let you watch video and play a game at the same time, but they are simply too few of them right now to be a better offering than the Xbox 360. There are nearly 100 apps on the Xbox 360. There are 23 available on the Xbox One. Numbers, in this case, don’t lie.

Saving Money

xbox-360

The final reason buying an Xbox 360 instead of an Xbox One makes sense is related to price. The Xbox One is competitively priced against the PS4, but it’s nowhere near as affordable as picking up an Xbox 360. A Standard edition Xbox 360 with 4GB of storage and a Kinect costs $299.99. Ditching the Kinect all together brings the cost down to about $199. More games, a cheaper price and more apps for $200 less just makes sense if your gaming needs aren’t that demanding.

It’s also worth noting that games for the Xbox 360 depreciate in value a lot faster than games for the Xbox One. A pre-owned copy of Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag now costs Xbox One users $54.99. That same game in used form on the Xbox 360 is just $37.99 at GameStop.

Really, it comes down to choice. If you’re making a conscious decision to pick up the latest and great game now so that you’ll get the best experience for years to come, then the Xbox One is a smarter financial decision over the long-term. That being said, if you’re simply looking to play some games and stream some videos, there’s nothing better than the Xbox 360, yet.

14 Comments

14 Comments

  1. GravityStereo (@GravityStereo)

    04/27/2014 at 4:41 pm

    The Xbox one is $499, not $399

  2. lio

    04/27/2014 at 9:41 pm

    xbox one is better trust me!

    • Jill

      04/27/2014 at 9:42 pm

      Of course it is mate

  3. charlesclarke3

    04/28/2014 at 10:14 am

    The actual answer to this is BUY BOTH! You can control your xbox 360 just like a cable box! Despite you should get a media remote for your xbox 360. There’s only so much you can control with an IR emitter. XBox 360 is the best Media Center Extender money can buy, so buying both makes perfect sense.

  4. Rebecca Pettigrew

    04/29/2014 at 6:39 am

    I dunno, we’ve had the xbox one for less than 4 months. We’ve now had to replace our Kinect, twice. The first time, less than 2 weeks after purchase… There are few games available, and HBO Go and Minecraft have been promised but, neither delivered… they can’t even give us a firm release date. Yay, I have a $500 netflix box. My faith in Xbox is dwindling.

    • TheStyfuses

      04/30/2014 at 7:32 pm

      None of the recently released games I’ve purchased have come out on the XBox one… I gave up and hooked my 360 back up in the living room. The XBox one is now a very expensive brick sitting in a dark corner.

  5. ??@??.com

    05/02/2014 at 8:15 am

    SHUT UP! GTA 5 going to release on July in XBOX One. XBOX 360 lags… >.>

  6. Epic Pizza Bro

    05/03/2014 at 7:25 pm

    I was gonna choose from an xbox 360 to a xbow one but since i read this list want a xbox 360!
    PS I want an xbox to play minecraft ;)

  7. Harley

    05/04/2014 at 12:24 pm

    When Xbox 360 first came out in 2005 there was just a handful of games, good games started coming out a year later. The same thing happened with original Xbox in 2001 there was basically just halo combat evolved which was a good game. X360’s life span took too long to end and still continuing. Xbox One seems to have killed traditional consoles all together, But I’m sure good games will surface eventually for Xbone. I usually wait a year or two after consoles release to purchase them. But Xbox brand has gone downhill since 2009 I was a big fan of Xbox. Microsoft should have released a new console back in 2010 instead of an update.

  8. Rob O

    07/18/2014 at 10:29 am

    I’m sticking with my 360 and I’m not going to change my mind ,don’t be dueked

  9. Bobby Shmurda

    08/27/2014 at 10:50 am

    Buy and xbox 360 and games for a good price https://m.ebay.com/itm/251628709264?nav=SELLING_ACTIVE

  10. teboe

    09/23/2014 at 2:37 pm

    I really don’t know what to do im scared if i buy the xbox 360 after 2 years they will not publisch games for the 360 anymore and if i buy the one it will cost my more for the games. Anyone got some advice for my??
    (my englisch isn’t great)

    • Shadow

      11/19/2014 at 5:54 am

      Honestly, I would stick with the 360 for now. New systems are rarely functional or practical the first few years they come out. If the Xbox One was backwards compatible, then I wouldn’t hesitate to buy one at all. The problem I have is the fact that I have several expensive 360 games that I really do not want to have to repurchase. My roommate has a 360 as does my boyfriend, so until I move out or break up with my boyfriend, I have no need of a 360 of my own. We want some of the Xbox One games, so my roommate and I are splitting the cost of the Xbox One as our Christmas present to ourselves. That way, we have both systems in the house, and can enjoy the gaming experience of both.

  11. Helena

    09/11/2016 at 6:32 am

    Xbox 360 is much better than Xbox One. Trust me.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.