14 DAY TRIAL // Before you smash your head into Gamestop's and Best Buy's doors, there are some things you need to know if you intend to buy Microsoft's newly rolled out Xbox 360 Elite, equipped with a 120GB HDD and HDMI enabled. Kotaku's kept in touch with some retail moles, thus being able to bring information on how the product will launch, accessories available for it and terms.
First of all, shipments are very low - about 25 units for each retailer on launch day (Microsoft's not exactly betting on one mile long cues), but don't worry, the site says that employees won't be able to purchase the console "until further notice" (this is with Best Buy). OK, but if I were an employee at one of these stores and my boss told me that I wasn't allowed to get an Elite, the first thing I'd do would be to ask a friend to buy it for me, so how does that help?
Anyway, another important aspect is that Elite accessories aren't street dated, which means that if you hurry up to the Gamestop store round the corner, you may still have a shot. And yes, controllers do count as accessories, if you'd like to have a well contrasted system right away. With Best Buy, accessories don't arrive until Sunday. Also, the ticket system will be used, if there are going to be lines. How big of a line do they expect for 25 systems?
That's about it, phiu! I was getting sick and tired of writing on the "upcoming Xbox 360 Elite from Microsoft." All I'm going to be writing from now on is how much of a difference there is between the Elite and previous SKUs, how it scratches discs better than the Core and the Premium, how it scratches discs better than the Core and the Premium, or how it's HDD sounds like NASA's just launch a shuttle to Jupiter... you know, the typical stuff.