Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is one of three major video game consoles of the current console generation, alongside Sony's Playstation 3 and Ninendo's Wii. As a successor to Microsoft's original Xbox console, the Xbox 360 is the first chance that the company has had to learn from one system in creating another. This is due to the fact that the original Xbox was Microsoft's first-ever videogame console, although considering that fact, it was quite an impressive piece of hardware. The 360 takes steps to improve on the ground gained with the original and make headway with some of the weaknesses of the original system. The original Xbox had the most impressive hardware of its generation, but its user interface and overall playability were somewhat lacking and clunky compared to the much sleeker Playstation 2. The overall appeal of the PS2, combined with the fact that it was the successor to an earlier system rather than a debut, meant, in addition, that it had a considerably larger library of games produced, and of, it could be argued, a greater average quality.
The original Xbox was a brand new entry in the console world that
was designed to impress with its size and power, which it certainly
did. But that size left it somewhat less agile and generally capable
than its competitors. The 360 is a much sleeker and sexier
incarnation of the system and it builds on its predecessor in
predominantly those areas. This second generation Xbox is a much
trimmer, more streamlined system to whom game developers are showing
much greater and more thorough attention. It's still got power, but
with more finesse. It fills the role of the middle-of-the-road
system between the unique but underpowered Wii and the massive but
pricey Playstation 3. Microsoft learned well.