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Adinnieken on 17 November 2012
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fighter said:

Adinnieken said:
The curves won't have that wide of a radius. That takes up too much internal space. A narrower curve would allow for a much better fit on the main PC board.

The PC board can easily be slightly curved itself or just smaller, regarding the loss of internal space due to the curve there is a precedent : PS3 phat

It won't have covered USB slots either. They're too central to the modern console, they require engineering that is expensive, and you can effectively provide them in a sleek form without hiding them behind a door.

360 covers already their front usb slots - would be weird if they ruin such a nice design by letting them open this time

Finally, the Blu-Ray drive won't be slot. While it's sleek and pretty, and my personal preference, slot drives are more expensive than their tray counterparts. There is no distinct advantage to a slot drive, just aesthetics.

again - PS3 precedents

I'm not convinced it'll have that design, despite their confidence. First, to put a HDD on the top of the machine in a vertical position is just screaming bad design. I also think any means of standing it upright will be integrated, rather than a separate feature.

I am neither convinced tbh, on the other hand I believe this might be Microsoft's way of having some feedback on their current design and some of it, if not most, might see the day.

not sure why you would consider the HDD on top as a bad design though, but then again, i could suffer from bad taste

I do like the integrated vent. I just don't think it would be sufficient to keep the console properly ventilated. There is going to have to be a place to have large vents to draw air in, which this seems to be missing.

Very true - especially considering the RROD experience.

my two cents

1.  It could be, but that all adds an expense.  I doubt they'd curve the PC board to fit that shape, so that leaves a smaller PC board.  A smaller PC board means wasted space.  Wasted space means an unnecessary cost.  That's either a burden consumers or Microsoft have to bear and I doubt either would.  You can do just as an effective design with a narrower radius, giving more room for everything inside.

2.  It's a matter of cost.  The axium Keep It Simple Stupid applies.  The simplier the design, the lower the cost and the fewer problems.  Also, a lot of people hate the door cover over the USB slots.  It requires the slots to be recessed, and it makes it more difficult to insert something into the slot.  Surface mount them in a smart way, and it'll look good and be functional.

3.  What prescedent.  The PS3 now uses a cheap-ass doored model.  A tray-load vs slot-load Blu-Ray drive is over 50% more expensive.  It makes more sense to put that money into the actual ICs rather than a blu-ray drive.

4.  The problem with putting the HDD on top, in that position (vertical) is that when the drive spins up there will be a gyroscopic effect.  It may not throw the device off-balance to knock it over, but it could create a vibration.  Even with a stand.  Putting it on the bottom, as it is with the Xbox 360 S, reduces the impact of any vibration the HDD creates.

I'm liking the venting more and more.  It works in any position, though it can be blocked.  It'd have to be 3 sided, not 4.  Reason being is you wouldn't want to draw air into the bottom because of dust if standing it vertically.  It'd also have to be on the front edge, not the side edge, as shown.  It'd be too easy block by setting something on top.  But that would offer the side/front edge a free floating look, which would be cool.