Whenever you mention the Xbox 360 there is only one thing that seems to come to mind, which is Xbox live. The simple reason for this is the fact the most prominent feature of the Xbox 360 is its integrated Xbox live service. It is through this service that you are able to compete with other players online as well as download content for your Xbox 360, such as games, game demos and trailers as well as movies and TV shows. The Xbox 360 is Microsoft’s upgraded version of the original Xbox, which has since been discontinued and since its release in 2005 the Xbox 360 has gone on to achieve success after success.

When the console was first released it completely sold out in all regions expect Japan and according to official figures released by Microsoft in January 2009, the Xbox 360 has sold 28 million units worldwide. It is also a console that is available in three configurations, which are the Arcade, the Pro and the Elite. Each of these individual consoles also all come with their own selection of accessories.

There are a number of accessories that are available for the Xbox 360 and these accessories include both wired and wireless controllers, headsets that enable you to chat to other gamers, a webcam enabling you to partake in video chatting to other users and dance mats as well as Gamercize, which is used for exercise. On top of this you are also provided with the choice of three sizes of memory cards and also three different sizes where hard drives are concerned; these three sizes were 120GB, 60GB, and 20GB.

The main features of the Xbox 360 are obviously its game playing ability but on top of this you can also use the console as a means of playing DVD’s and CD’s, making the console a very versatile product. However, as I have previously mentioned the biggest achievement where this gaming system is concerned is Xbox live. What Xbox live allows you to do is communicate with other Xbox users from all over the world. You can then play online games with them as well as generally chat to them. However how much you can get out of Xbox live depends on whether you have a silver or gold account. Silver is free and available to all users as it is integrated into the console. It is through this that you are able to create your own user account and join message boards. You are able to access the live arcade and marketplace where you are able to talk to other members. However with the silver account you can’t partake fully in online gaming, you can simply just access games that have limited online functions such as Viva Piñata.

When it comes to the gold account you get a lot more, but you get a lot more at a price. You have to pay an annual subscription that costs $49.99. So what is it that you get for this price? For starters you get a fully integrated online gaming subscription. It also gives you the option of maintaining your profile information and updating your friend list, which will contain usernames, or gametags as they are commonly known, of the people you play online with an chat to. You are also presented with your very own game history. A gold account also allows you to buy and download games straight to your Xbox thanks to what are known as Xbox points, which you purchase and use in conjunction with your account.

Xbox live on the 360 has become one of the most popular game player experiences, and why wouldn’t it? It lets you play against your friends as well as people you have never met and instead of going between playing a game and having a conversation say on MSN, the Xbox 360 and Xbox live allows you to simply combine the two! There are a lot of features to take advantage of with the Xbox 360 so try it out today.