System (Un)Reliability: The Microsoft Xbox 360 Case Study

16 percent is a phenomenal rate saying that there are about 20 million created. Arguing about the cooling system makes a valid statement . why should someone have to buy a cooling system for thier XBOx when it already cost about 300 dollars. So what xbox is saying that they shouldnt put much effort into there cooling system pretty much making this product insufficient for its self. its cooling system is just their to fail wtf... Thier is so much profit to be made i ve never seen such a scam for people who do not have thier xbox under this extended warranty. It is believed that xboxs break down more than 16 percent this is obviously true.. why ?having the report only drawn for a limited time period doesnt give a valid statistic. Think about it your xbox isnt going to last like an n64 which still works today..Its DOOmed for failure so u can buy xbox 720 THink about any/ all the other systems that require an added on cooling system... thats right noneee. cooling systems shouldnt be relied on besides the one that is built in to the actual product unless you expect to have your xbox on neglectly 24/7.

FOR REAL GAMERS TO READ ONLY!!! For all the Rookie gamers stop crying, just give your 360 some breathing room and maybe a "intercooler depending on the environment. I''ve got the XBOX360, PS3, and the Wii. Out of all three system I can honestly say I play the 360 more than the rest of my consoles. The graphics are a slight step down from the PS3 true but the 360 is still over all a better console, for right now. For one the PS3 doesn''t have many games for it. For two, most of the good games they have they are also available on the 360. For three the PS3 doesn''t even have the dual shock controller available for the console. How am I supposed to really get into a game when I can''t even feel the action. I mean it''s so basic. I might as well be playing PS1. As far as the Wii goes, it''s a fun unique system, but it gets old real quick. As far as graphics go I feel like I''m playing a game off the GameCube. Actually the Game Cube had a over better library of games than the Wii. All you have to do is just give your 360 some space to breath and get a "intercooler" not one of the cheap ones either and you''re good.

We have had issues with 2512 resistors cracking as they are very large and thin. I dont think glue will help them.

Solder joint reliability of BGA packages is an issue manufacturers of mil-aerospace equipment have had to face for a long time. In fact, it's not just BGA packages, but any type of package that does not have some type of "compliance" in the attachment method. I can remember this problem first surfacing many years ago, going back to the use of LCC (Leadless Chip Packages) on boards. When the solder joints will fail depend on several factors, including 1) the size of the package, 2) the number of temperature cycles, and 3) the temperature swing.

Paul Rako is a ledgend, so true buddy. Greed rules the world! Except in my world. I use a 'Doesnt work, dont pay' policy with my designs. Microsoft use a 'Doesnt need to work, you will pay' policy. Makes me laugh every time I remember that Microsoft thinks people should pay for defective software and hardware hahaha. When they have a working operating system (not one that gets a virus in under 5 mins on the net after a fresh install) then I will pay (by then computers will be out dated). I dont buy new cars that dont work, why should I buy a defective operating system? Microsoft insults the term 'Software Engineer'

Worst customer service I have ever experienced. I have been on the phone with them 7-8 times over the last 3 months. Still no working Xbox. If you have not yet purchased an Xbox, I would recommend you get something else!!

Funny how Bill Gates was running after me with his bugfixes while Ken Kutaragi has me running after him for more nice feature upgrades. I am so done with MS crap. When I saw Vista I almost panicked. Luckily there came Leaopard OSX update. Since last week I got my new MacBook and I dumped my last blue-sceen and red-ring crap with the garbage. My house is now officialy MicroSoft free!

my 360 works perfectly with no downtime although it is running approx. 2-3 hours a day for more than a year now.

I think the YouTube frying an egg in 3 sec on the GPU heatsink say it all.

The issue of "weakest link" can be solved by using some sort of an Epoxy under fill material, which might also help with the CTE mismatch issue. Are they using any under fill material?

You should have mentioned that the "questionable" solder joints use lead-free alloys, a non-eutectic mix of tin (95%), silver, and copper. Unlike 63-37 solder, the new solder does not wet, is brittle, subject to many failure mechanisms like tin whiskers and Kirkendall effect, leading to voids and open circuits. There is an alternative lead-free assembly approach that eliminates solder. It's called Occam--ref . harvey@fabfileonline.com>

Dear LRW, yes I posted a clip of the G4 'repair' back in January: www.edn.com/blog/400000040/post/520006252.html. Enjoy!

Owner of the first X-Box 360 sold at my Gamestop. It went RROD just a month and a half ago. THe problem is getting MS to fix it. After hours on the phone, they promise to send a box to ship it in (in " a week or so"). Then 3 weeks later, no box, and no history of ever talking to them. Started over, now waiting almost 2 more weeks, still no box.

You stated ?The 'weakest link' is the GPU, specifically the solder joints that connect it to the PCB and the progressive degradation of those joints as high internal temperatures cause the PCB to flex.? The Mac G4s, w/dual processors mounted on daughter boards, suffered from a similar fate, requiring utility software to power-down the 2nd processor whenever possible. Is it possible that XBOX?s GPU/BGA/PCB joint failure, comes from excessive temp excursion(s) caused (in part) from excessive current draw from the GPU's output pins ? As in connecting to a monitor which draws current in excess of the design ?