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Xbox (console)

Xbox
Xbox logo
Xbox console with "Controller S"
Xbox console with "Controller S"
Developer Microsoft
Manufacturer Flextronics
Product family Xbox
Type Home video game console
Generation Sixth generation
Release date
  • NA: November 15, 2001
  • JP: February 22, 2002
  • AU: March 14, 2002
  • EU: March 14, 2002
Retail availability 2001–2009
Discontinued
  • JP: June 4, 2006
  • EU: March 11, 2007
  • NA: March 2, 2009
Units sold 24+ million (as of May 10, 2006)
Media DVD, CD, digital distribution
Operating system Custom
CPU Custom 733 MHz Intel Pentium III "Coppermine-based" processor
Memory 64 MB of DDR SDRAM @ 200 MHz
Storage 8 or 10 GB internal hard drive (formatted to 8 GB with allotted system reserve and MS Dash), 8 MB memory card
Graphics 233 MHz nVidia NV2A
Controller input 4× Xbox controller ports (proprietary USB interface), (Wireless controllers not supported directly - third-party wireless controllers require a wired base unit)
Connectivity 100 Mbit Ethernet
Online services Xbox Live
Best-selling game Halo 2, 8 million (as of May 9, 2006)
Successor Xbox 360

The Xbox is a home video game console and the first installment in the Xbox series of consoles manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001, in North America, followed by Australia, Europe and Japan in 2002. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console market. The sixth-generation console competed with Sony's PlayStation 2 and the Nintendo GameCube. It was also the first console produced by an American company since the Atari Jaguar ceased production in 1996.

Announced in 2000, The Xbox, graphically powerful compared to its rivals, featured a standard PC's 733 MHz Intel Pentium III processor. It was also noted for its PC-like size and weight, and was the first console to feature a built-in hard disk. In November 2002, Microsoft launched Xbox Live, a fee-based online gaming service that enabled subscribers to download new content and connect with other players through a broadband connection. Unlike other online services from Sega and Sony, Xbox Live had support in the original console design through an integrated Ethernet port. The service gave Microsoft an early foothold in online gaming and would help the Xbox become a relevant competitor to other sixth-generation consoles. The popularity of blockbuster titles such as Halo 2 contributed to the popularity of online console gaming, and in particular first-person shooters. Despite this and being in second position, ahead of Nintendo's GameCube, sales of the Xbox were always well behind Sony's PlayStation 2.


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