Xbox 360 dashboard upgrade due today

360 News | Includes 1080p and HD-DVD support.

According to Japanese gaming rag Famitsu, Microsoft is preparing to release a dashboard update today (or tomorrow, if you're reading this in Europe - ah, the logistical joys of writing for a PAL website. Let's just say Tuesday). 1080p and HD-DVD support are top of the list of new features that will, uh, feature in the upgrade, and reportedly there'll also be a 'Start' menu item for XNA-developed games, as well as a number of improvements to the Xbox Live Arcade and Marketplace bits.

Of course, the burning question is: will this update be available to us PAL folk at the same time? Well, it's not quite certain yet; after all, Famitsu did only mention Japan in its report. However, with the US release date of the Xbox 360 Wireless Communicator (an item needed if you want to get your new dashboard working) coinciding with the release of the upgrade, a simultaneous worldwide release for the update looks likely.

More news as we receive it. So tomorrow, presumably. Or today. Whatever.

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20 Comments

LeonJ

5 years ago

Awesome, looking forward to the season udpate, always something new and fresh

thebigm

5 years ago

Update looks good, especially the WMV support.

LeonJ

5 years ago

There was talk of MCE extender supporting DivX/Xvid. That would be very sweet.

ugh the boot

5 years ago

Hey does that mean i'll be able to stream video on my 360 without having Windows Media Centre Edition (previously only able to access pics and music on my computer thru the 360)? That would be awesome if thats now an option.

Karai Pantsu

5 years ago

That would be sweet! Although I couldn't even get mine to access pics/music? I thought that, even with the download, you could only do that with MCE? Perhaps I should try again!

TheAnswer

5 years ago

Looks like a very massive update:

New Features

* HD 1080p video mode support over VGA and component cables.
* Xbox 360™ HD DVD Player support.
* Stream WMV video from a Windows PC running Windows Media Player 11, Zune software, or Windows Media Connect.
* Play video from storage devices such as USB flash drives, Xbox 360 Memory Units, etc.
* Play video from CD or DVD data discs.
* Xbox 360 Wireless Headset support, including battery level indicator in the Xbox Guide.
* Video support for 50 Hz HDTV modes (DVD and HD DVD only).
* Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel support.
* Set up automatic downloads of newly released Xbox Live Arcade trial games.
* Support for upcoming release of XNA Game Studio Express (separate download and subscription required.)
* Stream music, pictures and video from a Zune device.

Xbox Live Arcade

* Lightning-fast enumeration and listing of all Xbox Live® Arcade games on the console.
* Find games quickly with two new sort options: Recently Played and By Category.
* Have all new Xbox Live Arcade games at the ready with auto downloads. Auto downloads optionally adds newly released trial versions of games to active downloads when you enter Xbox Live Arcade.
* View full achievement info in Xbox Live Arcade, including icons, achievement point details, and descriptions.
* Friends leaderboard: Compare yourself with friends and view leaderboard details right from the Xbox dashboard.
* Tell a friend: Send a message to a friend about your newest favorite Xbox Live Arcade game.

DVD Player

* Optionally disable notifications from Xbox Live while watching DVD movies.
* Improved support for audio streams on incorrectly authored DVDs.
* Better handling of unreadable discs.
* Updated count-down timer.
* HD DVD player support.
* Added zoom support for non-anamorphic content.
* Added support to Family Settings to block Unrated Content

Video Player

* Improved support for extended all black scenes in WMV content.
* Added support for Windows Media Video 9 Advanced profile video.
* Screen saver now becomes active when videos are paused.
* Now shares UI and player controls with DVD player.
* Improved video playback while downloading from Xbox Live.
* Added skip controls (forward approx. 30 seconds, back approx. 7 seconds).
* Improved messaging around unplayable video content.
* Added time elapsed and time remaining displays.
* Improved playback of high bit-rate HD content on fragmented hard drives.
* Improved visual quality of video playback.
* Added selectable display modes: default and letterbox zoom.

Localization

* New locale setting for China
* Improved German translations in console settings.
* Improved German translations in memory area.
* Improved Japanese translations in Family Settings.
* Added localized text for all supported languages in pictures area
* Improved Spanish translations in camera effects.
* Improved locale-specific decimal denominators.
* Added localization support for title menu and main menu in the DVD player.
* Added localization support for “Attempting to Read Media” system message.

Memory Area

* Added support for Xbox 360 HD DVD Player content..
* Added new page for viewing content size by category.

Other System Improvements

* Updated support for new Daylight Savings changes coming in 2007.
* Improved support for games to better handle host migration in multi-player matches.
* Improved Xbox Live Vision camera support for changing room lighting while zooming.
* Background downloaded videos appear in video area
* Improved Xbox Live Vision camera support while using VGA.
* Playing photo slideshows from PC now maintains picture folder hierarchy.
* Improved user experience when playing and deleting videos from the Games or Media areas.
* Improved handling of invalid characters during Xbox Live signup.
* Better handling of watermarks in gamer cards.
* Improved text for Windows Media Connect..
* Improved UI performance in Media Center Extender
* Improved connection support for Buffalo WZR-G108 wireless router when using Xbox 360 Wireless Adapter.
* Redownload of deleted Arcade Games no longer re-enumerates all games on the Arcade page.
* Improved visual display of text in themes.
* Improved support for CD playback after signing up for Xbox Live and losing network connectivity.
* Improved support for long names of items memory area.
* Improved handling of gamer pictures downloaded from Xbox Live.
* Improved background download notifications when downloading many small items from Xbox Live.
* Improved support for custom backgrounds after returning to the Xbox Dashboard from the Account Management area.
* Improved network reliability between Windows Media Center Extender on Windows Vista and Xbox 360 consoles using Xbox 360 Wireless Adapter.
* Improved voice chat quality in Xbox Dashboard and in-game chats.
* Improved messaging when failing to connect to Windows Media Center Extender.
* Improved USB keyboard support when using a USB hub.
* Improved consistency of user experience when deleting various types of content.
* Improved handling of low storage space for background downloads.
* Improved handling of Picture streaming from attached Digital Cameras over MTP protocol
* Improved error messaging for optional iPod support download when storage devices are full.
* Improved handling of multi-key repeating for USB keyboards.
* Expanded Family Settings to include support for blocking unrated DVDs and videos.
* Added ability to clear space from storage devices in download areas.
* Added support for low-speed and full-speed USB keyboards.
* Improved CapsLock behavior for USB keyboards.
* Improved look and feel in Xbox Live Marketplace and Xbox Live Arcade areas.
* Added redeem code option to Xbox Live signup.
* Removed system message at the start of new downloads. Messages will be displayed for completed items.
* Added support for CCV credit card validation field in Xbox Live Marketplace purchase areas.
* Updated “More Information” instructions in the Xbox Dashboard for connecting an Xbox 360 console to a Windows PC to stream digital media content.
* Added auto-scroll to long text descriptions in Xbox Dashboard UI.
* Improved support for DVD insertion while playing a video file.

Supposed to be out around 9pm Sydney time tonight

ugh the boot

5 years ago

hey Karai go here and follow the instructions to get access to pictures and music on your computer from your Xbox360:

http://www.xbox.com/en-AU/pcsetup/moreinfo.htm

Basically there are 2 ways to do it. One way is to have Windows Media Centre which basically needs a new version of windows called Windows Media Centre (doh) and the other is Windows Media Connect and that is basically just a program for XP (make sure you have Service Pack 2). You can download the latter from here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/devices/wmconnect/default.aspx

You can also download from that site Windows Media Player 11 which is supposed to have Windows Media Connect built in plus the added functionality of video sharing. I'll basically be trying out Windows Media Player 11 tonight to see if the video sharing works.

sonicwired

5 years ago

Windows Media Player 11 was also released today although I've been using the beta versions for most of the year, it's a very nice upgrade.

I can't really see MS including DivX/Xvid support natively, chances are they would have every media company on their backs. There is already a 3rd party plug-in for Media Center that enables DivX playback support but I'm not sure if it would also enable streaming support.

ugh the boot

5 years ago

I just wish all this stuff was easy as the plug & play camera I just bought. I remember setting up that stupid windows media connect crap and then I had to download some stupid microsoft framework crap that had to be installed before I could use media connect on my PC and then after all that...I can view pics and listen to music! That's it! You can't even make playlists with music on your computer. Now I gotta do some more crap just so I can get videos to work via the same method. Why they couldn't upgrade the dashboard to now support this is beyond me! Basically everyone who has this setup on their 360 should get an update which enables video as well as pics and music. How hard is that? What's the bet that after I install Windows Media Player 11 that it all stuffs up and instead of getting access to video I lose pics and music access!

Karai Pantsu

5 years ago

ugh the boot wrote

I remember setting up that stupid windows media connect crap and then I had to download some stupid microsoft framework crap that had to be installed before I could use media connect on my PC and then after all that...

Yeah, I went through the same but I still couldn't get to my pics and music. I guess it was just some network shonkyness, but after all that I spat the dummy and left it. After the Dash update hits I'll try it again, now that I have more incentive

Thanks for the other post, BTW - I didn't know about WMP11 and will download it when I get home.

ugh the boot

5 years ago

^ I had to download and install Microsoft Framework before I could get Windows Media Connect to run....but yea....just download Windows Media Player 11.....hopefully that does the trick.

Infested Jibbs

5 years ago

Anyone here got a 1080 set??

I wanna hear impressions of how something like.........hmmm......graw(best looking 360 game??) looks in 1080p.

slapshakle

5 years ago

Jibbs wrote

Anyone here got a 1080 set??

I wanna hear impressions of how something like.........hmmm......graw(best looking 360 game??) looks in 1080p.

Yes I have both. I'll let you know once the update is out.

Cerebral

5 years ago

* Play video from storage devices such as USB flash drives, Xbox 360 Memory Units, etc.
* Play video from CD or DVD data discs.

Finally!

Spanca

5 years ago

TheAnswer wrote

* Video support for 50 Hz HDTV modes (DVD and HD DVD only).

God dammit, just when I was getting excited about finally being able to use 1080i at 50hz, it's movies only. ****'s sake.

Jibbs wrote

Anyone here got a 1080 set??

I wanna hear impressions of how something like.........hmmm......graw(best looking 360 game??) looks in 1080p.

I'm pretty sure the game has to support 1080p, so it won't just work for any game. And IMO Splinter Cell looks better than GRAW.

Jellyfish

5 years ago

1080p won't be better than 720p. The pixel effects have same amount of time to be applied to 2.5x? the area.

Ellegarden

5 years ago

nikack wrote

1080p won't be better than 720p. The pixel effects have same amount of time to be applied to 2.5x? the area.

Its not native currently, so basically an upconvertor.

Cerebral

5 years ago

When games (and televisions) start to support 1080p, there's going to be a large difference. Until then, yes, it's upscaling.

realitybites

5 years ago

I'll download the update tonight.

My LCD can only go to 1080i.

GroovySamurai

5 years ago

Dang it, everything was working alright before I updated but now it wont let me connect to my computer. Its passing everything until the last option. So I can connect to live but not too my folders...

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