Frequently Asked Questions
Microsoft Xbox

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Revision - 3.0

• Microsoft "Xbox"
• Microsoft "Xbox" Timeline
• Most asked Xbox Questions
• An introduction to the X World
• The Big Three Players
• General Xbox questions
• Xbox NV2A/graphical questions
• Video Connectors/Adapters & Output Questions
• DVD compatibility & playback questions
• Xbox input questions
• Xbox Dashboard
• Parental Lockdown
• Xbox Sound Questions
• XBox Music Playing & Ripping Questions
• Xbox Hard Drive Questions
• Xbox Live! & Other Internet/LAN & Multiplayer Questions
• Xbox Developers & Development Questions
• Games
• Xbox technical demos
• Form Factor
• Early rumours
• The X-Launch
• Miscellaneous questions
• Xbox associated acronyms
• The X Men
• ActiveXbox.com Questions

Microsoft Xbox

Most asked Xbox Questions

What is the cost of the Xbox?
The Xbox launch price was $299 in the United States - but has since been reduced to $179 in response to the Playstation 2 price reduction. In the UK It was originally priced at £299.  Microsoft has now reduced the price to £129 (Including one game).

When did Xbox Live launch?
Xbox Live launched in America on November 15th 2002.

How much does Xbox Live cost?
Microsoft charges $69.99 for the starting kit which includes one year of service.  Renewals cost either $49.99 a year or $5.99 a month.

Is the Xbox DVD player multiregional?
No - but buying the U.S Remote & using it on a UK Xbox DOES play U.S region 1 DVD titles but once the Region 1 infra-red box is put into the UK Xbox, the UK Xbox will ONLY ever play Region 1 titles as it places the code on to the hard-drive.

Can the UK Xbox play US Xbox games & vice-versa?
Unfortunately No, the North American box will only play North American games. The regional encoding is set when it passes through certification & in to the authorized replicators. North American Xbox systems will only play NTSC games, Japanese boxes will play NTSC-J games & Europe & the rest of the PAL territories will only play games marked with the PAL symbol.

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An introduction to the X World

What is an Xbox?
The Xbox is a next generation home gaming console which is currently being developed by the largest software company in the world, Microsoft Corporation.

Where is the official Xbox announcement press release?
You can find the Official Press Release issued on March 10th here, at the official Xbox site.

Which Microsoft department will be in charge?
Microsoft's Gaming Group will oversee much of the work. Ed Fries, newly appointed VP, is  in charge of controlling first-party software development. Robbie Bach, VP of the Home & Retail Division, & Rick Thompson are also a part of that team.

Which parties are directly involved in the construction of the Xbox?
Microsoft's has chosen to forge alliances with Intel & NVidia, two highly-successful companies in their respective fields. Intel are the developers of the widely known Pentium® processor, while NVidia pioneer the graphics market with their GeForce® product. Flextronics will be responsible for the manufacturing of the final hardware.

What is the correct way of spelling Xbox? X-Box? x box?
As officially confirmed by Microsoft, Xbox is written as one word only: Xbox.

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The Big Three Players

Who is Microsoft?
Microsoft Corporation are the creators of the Xbox, best known for creating the Windows® operating system line, which now runs on over 90% of the world's computers. They are well known as one of the biggest companies in the world.

Microsoft makes games?
Strangely enough, the Microsoft Gaming division makes games. In fact, Microsoft has taken the gaming market by storm, with such immensely popular games such as "Age of Empires", "Asheron's Call", the "MechWarrior" series, & "Starlancer". Microsoft isn't just confined to gaming software though, they also market "SideWinder" gaming devices, which range from force-feedback steering wheels, to voice comm& headsets.

Who is nVidia?
nVidia is the worldwide leader in graphics processors & media communications devices. The unmatched breadth of NVIDIA's product line enriches 3D, 2D, video, audio, communications, broadband connectivity & high-definition digital video & television for every audience & price point -- from workstations to internet-enabled appliances to mobile PCs.

What is NVidia role for the Xbox?
NVidia produces the GPU (graphics processor unit) for the Xbox, which will essentially be the graphics processor behind the machine. The GPU which NVidia is manufacturing (nicknamed the "XCHIP"), is codenamed "NV2a".

Who is Intel?
For more than three decades, Intel Corporation has developed technology enabling the computer & Internet revolution that has changed the world. Founded in 1968 to build semiconductor memory products, Intel introduced the world's first microprocessor in 1971. Today, Intel supplies chips, boards, systems, software, networking & communications equipment, & services that comprise the "ingredients" of computer architecture & the Internet.

What Is Intel role in the Xbox?
Intel produces customized 733mhz Pentium III chip that is  the processing power behind the Xbox.

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What are the specs of the Xbox?

What Operating System (OS) powers the XBox?
The Xbox is powered by a stripped down Windows 2000 kernel, which is approximately 500kb in size. Mr. Gates has emphasized that the OS does not make the console's load times sluggish like a PCs.

Does the Xbox have a hard disk drive (HDD)?
Yes. The Xbox  has a built-in 8GB HDD that can be used for but not limited to storing game demos, ripped CD's, extra characters/maps/weapons in games. The hard drive is not be used as the installation destination of a game, like it is on the PC, rather it is used as a "scratch pad" to avoid DVD seek delays.

Can I rip music CD's to my hard drive & play them during a game?
Yes. Microsoft has demonstrated this capability with their "Amped!" snowboarding game. Players will be able to listen to their selection of music which is ripped onto the hard drive during play. Many other gaming studios have stated their intention to include this feature in their games. Check out our ripping FAQ.

What does the Xbox look like?
The Xbox console & controller design was officially unveiled at Consumer Electronics Show 2001.

How long does the Xbox take to boot?
Less than 2 seconds. Games around 15-20 seconds

Why is the Xbox so large compared to other consoles?
It contains more components than most other consoles: no other console on the market comes out-of-box with a hard disk drive & an Ethernet port, although the Playstation 2 does come with an empty hard drive bay.

How does it compare to the competition?
Ask a hundred different people, & you'll get a hundred different answers. People choose to purchase different consoles for different reasons, although, most people choose their console preference based on the exclusive games on that platform. Although this FAQ writer maintains the contention that the Xbox demolishes the competition powerwise, this is purely our own opinion, & should be taken with a grain of salt. There is no "best" console, only a "preferred" console. Games are what matter.

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What is a GPU? What is NV2a?
GPU is an acronym for "Graphics Processing Unit", which is the chip that performs most the graphical calculations. The Xbox's GPU is called the "NV2a", & is being developed by nVidia.

How powerful is NV2a?
Bill Gates stated that the graphics chip would do 1 trillion operations per second. According to the official Xbox site, the NV25 produces churning of 300 million micropolygons/particles a second, 150 million transformed & lit polygons a second, & 100-200 million polygons per second sustained performance (with shading & texturing applied).

Is the NV2a the same chip in the GeForce3?
No. The GeForce uses an NV20.

Why do some people label the NV2a as "NV27.5"
This was related to an earlier statement by J. Allard concerning the xbox's GPU.

"Well what we've always called it officially is the NV2A. A lot of people have called it the NV25, but nVidia told us to call it the 2A instead & there are two reasons for that: one, the NV25 in the event that nVidia wouldn't use that part would be a PC part & it would be put in here. The second thing is the part that we have in the box is not just a super clocked NV20 but it actually draws some of the geometry features out of the NV30. So if you put a label on it, it's really an NV27.5 or somewhere in that range in terms of the family. But it doesn't really have an official name so we're settling on the NV2A & calling it a day at that. As you know we upped the CPU & downgraded the GPU recently but we'll still have the three times performance we were shooting for.

Does it have HDTV support?
Yes, via the Xbox High Definition AV pack. This needs to be purchased separately.

Does the Xbox support FSAA & TC?
Support for Full Scene Anti-Aliasing & Texture Compression is a GO for the Xbox. FSAA needs to be seen in motion to be fully appreciated as it eliminates the pixel popping & jagged edges in many of the games on competitor consoles. The first title on the Xbox to use FSAA was Azurik.

Is FSAA be performed in hardware or software?
It is performed all in Hardware.

Is the GeForce 4 faster than the Xbox GPU?
Yes it is, but only by a little. You also have to take into consideration that the GeForce 4 is going to be run on the graphic intensive Windows systems so the performance still may not reach that of the Xbox.

Does The Xbox support Pal 60 in the UK?
Yes! There is an option to have Pal 60 in the Xbox Dashboard. This basically makes it much easier for developers to keep the games at the same speed they were in America (assuming you have TV that supports it), but it is yet again up to the developers to support it - here are the pictures:

The Pal 60 support has both good & bad comments made about it, when the console is set to Pal 60 some games will experience bad frame rate problems, while other games will work fine without any problems at all. So if you experience any frame rate problems, try switching back to Pal 50.

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Video Connectors/Adapters & Output Questions

What AV connectors can be used with the Xbox?

High Definition AV

This console connects the Xbox to high-definition ready televisions that support 480p, 720p, 1080i component video signals, analog audio inputs, &/or digital receivers & contains a TOSlink fiber optic connection. The best type of connection you can get for the Xbox.

Compatible With NTSC Xbox?: Yes
Compatible With PAL Xbox?: Not fully - less video resolution options - 480p 720i 1080i & 1080p are no longer available.

Advanced AV.

This pack works with TVs equipped with AV inputs & S-Video inputs & contains a TOSlink fiber optic connection. Better than both RF & Composite.

Compatible With NTSC Xbox?: Yes
Compatible With PAL Xbox?: Yes

Advanced SCART Cable

The Advanced SCART Cable connects the console to TVs equipped with a SCART input terminal & enables RGB video signals for improved video output. This cable also provides a digital output for use with digital audio receivers. Sound system with Dolby® Digital decoding & a fibre-optic cable required to enable Dolby Digital audio. Better than S-Video, Composite & RF.

Compatible With NTSC Xbox?: Yes
Compatible With PAL Xbox?: Yes

RF Adapter

This adapter connects the Xbox to TVs that do not have audio & video connections. This is the lowest quality cable you can get for the Xbox.

Compatible With NTSC Xbox?: Yes
Compatible With PAL Xbox?: Unknown

Which channel on my TV does the Xbox RF Adapter use?
Channel 3 or 4. This is switchable.

Standard AV Cable

This cable connects to TVs with audio & composite video input terminals. This cable is included with every Xbox.

Compatible With NTSC Xbox?: Yes
Compatible With PAL Xbox?: Yes

Am I able to connect my Xbox to a PC Monitor?
The RGB produced for SCART mode won't work on a PC monitor. While the encoding is compatible, the sync is retrieved from the SCART composite out & is not compatible with most if not all PC monitors.

Are Monster Cables/Other company cables better than the Microsoft ones for the Xbox?
The monster cables are very good & shield out interference, although we would say the difference is hardly noticeable on most televisions. So you will have to make your own judgement on this one.

What kind of optical audio cable should I buy for my Xbox?
Quite simply you only need the cheapest one you can find, you don't need shielding like most video cables do. So go for the cheapest option.

What resolutions does the Xbox support?

Why do some UK games not keep a Widescreen TV in Widescreen mode when they load up, they switch them to 4:3?
The way the DVD-ROM was encoded on start up is the cause of this, some games like Bloodwake, Buffy & Jet Set Radio Future tend to do this. The workaround is to switch the TV back to widescreen via your remote control.

What games support Widescreen?