Basically, come in here, write up your thoughts on the new dashboard and maybe give a score for it.

Here's my review:

I'm really liking it. Kinect is finally integrated quite well into the system and offers a viable alternative to a controller. I just wish I would have gotten voice commands, but that wasn't for this update I suppose. The search functionality is really nice to have as well. Everything feels snappier in fact, I much prefer it to the old dash. The ads aren't half bad either actually. Having game ads is of course the best, so having the ad for In Time show up all over the place is kind of annoying, but pressing an ad for Spec Ops: The Line just gave me a trailer to play immediatly, which is absolutely the way it should be!

Beacons and cloud saves are sweet too, though I haven't really been able to test them.

Final verdict: Pretty damn good, but with a few rough edges every now and then.

I don't have Kinect so I can't give my opinion of that but as for the rest I am very much enjoying the rest of the changes. The whole look of the new dashboard is great, it's much more refined and organized. Beacons are really cool, cloud saves are simply an amazing thing to have and being able to have your account on multiple 360's without having to recover them is just brilliant. Also Netflix has a great new interface which streamlines things rather nicely.

All in all the new dashboard is the best interface I have ever seen for a gaming machine, I don't know how they could really improve it that much from here on out.

Who the hell picked negative in the poll? o_0

There is too much crap to filter through, too many adverts and useless apps, my games list looks odd now. I thought the dashboard was at it's best in 2009 / 2010 when the boxes were blue.

I have been a preview tester for about a month and the new dashboard is awesome. The 1st thing that you have to realize is that to get the best experience for finding content isnt to go into any of the individual apps, but to get used to saying:

Xbox, Bing

Just about everything is accessible through Bing Search. Rather than looking for the next episode of a series you are interested in on Netflix, Hulu or one of the new providers search for it and Bing Search will show you who has it and which provider makes you pay for it. Great that episode is on Netflix commercial free or do I need to watch it on Hulu with commercials or pay for it on another service. Dont hunt for an app. Search using Bing and via voice 1st.

Also make sure to re-configure Kinect. Hint: turn the sound up when you configure the Kinect Microphones. Make it louder than what you usually play media back at.

As for Ads they are not in the way and they related to the content of the area you are in. If you are in Video you will have the large title with content related to new movies, shows available. You also will have a small ad in the lower right. In games the large tile will be content related to new games/dlc etc. In music the same.

Overall this is awesome and since my wife is happy to use Bing Voice Search she really digs using the Xbox now rather than looking for the remote and trying to find an episode of Law and Order:SVU

No Kinect, so just based on looks (pretty much)

So the good part, the system seems to start with Skyrim startable with just 1 click (I know that you can auto-launch, but I don't like that). It looks really nice, I love the metro UI, and would get a Windows phone if not for my google ties

Bad part, I only use my Xbox for games, so don't really care about nearly all of the stuff (PS3 has already got the VoD stuff that the Xbox is getting and that is my default console). Also, why the hell are there adverts on the home page! I can understand if I as browsing the store, but on the very front screen! {for the record, they are advertising BT infinity, a broadband service}

6 peeps :P

OT:

I'm liking the new dashboard so far, I'm still longing for the old school tab blades, but this interface is clean, fast, & I'm liking the search functionality, ads are not in the way, although it's strange that they're there in the first place, seeing how I'm already paying for Xbox Live.

Pro's:

• Clean interface
• Fast
• Search feature

Con's:

• Ads
• Changing the button for game details
• Not all promised services are online yet

Currently 7.0/10, as soon as they add Youtube & other channels, that score might go up.

PS: Microsoft really needs to place Waypoint under "Apps" though, it's not a bloody game!

Much sleeker, and much more responsive with Kinect.

Kinnect is now fully intergrated. Everything can be acessed without any controller.

Also the voice recognition is much more responsive.

Love the Metro UI. It has canged how good phones can be. And actually makes perfect sense on 360. ant wait for Windows 8 now.

WP7 companion app works amazingly well. The intergration with Zune is fantastic, and extra info provided for films like cast, features etc works better and more involving than any disc basedfilm. For exampe Bing is incorporate into the app so you can view other films by the director or cast. Pure and utter win. The future is arriving now.

Everything can be accessed without having to navigate a single menu. Providing you have Kinect. Faster and truly tommorrows technology.


Things I noticed which are intriguing:

under System settings there is a option for choosing a Live TV provider. Currently only Sky in my country, but the fact M$ have included an option section for selecting other poviders shows they intend to bring others in. I hope Virgin Media is added for my country, as thats my provider. And I will absolutely choose them, as they are cheaper than Sky and provide MORE on demand content than Sky.

9/10

Just shows where the Gold Fees go. They have truly provided 360 users with an amazing futuristic FULL entertainment package.

i buy 360 for games,and i don't even care what ads in the front page(because i know i don't buy it),then since the Metro is faster than NXE,so Positive

Just got the Xbox Companion for Windows Phone. I am in my home office and controlling what music is piped through the house with my Windows Phone. 360 and entertainment center are 3 rooms away.