Xbox Gaming in South Africa

The new 'Fall 2010' dashboard update has gone live and is rolling out to Xbox LIVE members around the world, bringing with it a host of new features and changes to the Xbox 360.

The most notable of these changes include Kinect support, along with a new look and feel which is said to improve navigation and responsiveness on Xbox LIVE. Voice chat quality has also been improved, along with tweaks to the in-dashboard virtual keyboard and the wireless setup process.

Below is the full list of features in the new Xbox LIVE update:

• Kinect Support – Kinect support added to the dashboard, as well as Zune, Last.fm, ESPN and Sky Player applications.
• ESPN – A new ESPN application allows Gold members to watch live sporting events and replays. Available only in the US.
  • 3,500 Sporting Events A Year – Access more than 3,500 live and on-demand global sporting events from ESPN3.com a year, including college basketball, college football and college bowl games, MLB, NBA, international soccer and more.
  • Out of Market Games – Catch your favorite college team games. Check out the huge catalog of out of market games and enjoy them on the big screen.
  • The Best Ways to Watch – Enjoy HD programming, DVR controls, plus access to hundreds of clips from ESPN3.com, refreshed daily.
  • Games at a Glance – Keep up on real-time score information using ESPN.com’s score feed without leaving the game you’re watching. View scores for leagues and games currently in the ESPN.com feed and select “Watch Live” or “Watch Replay” to jump straight into that game.
  • Predict the Winner – Pick what team you think will win. While watching selected games in college football, college basketball, MLB, and NBA, you will be prompted to vote for your team of choice. You’ll also see the percentage of votes among the Xbox LIVE viewing community.
  • Voice Chat – Voice chat with up to seven other friends while watching the big game.
  • My Sports – To customize your ESPN on Xbox LIVE experience, click on the “Events, Highlights and More” slot on the homepage and browse by sport to pick a specific league that you want to follow for the season. The league that you select will now automatically display in your My Sports Channel.
• Zune Music - Microsoft has expanded the Zune offering to include Zune Music and Zune Pass.
  • Zune Pass – Zune Pass is a monthly subscription service that gives you unlimited, on demand streaming of millions of songs at launch from all the major music labels and thousands of independent labels.
  • Enhanced search – Search the broad library to find your favorite artists, albums, songs and playlists.
  • Social – Connect with like-minded fans on the Zune online community and get new music recommendations. Zune Social also lets you see friend’s Avatars and listen to their recently played songs or check out their favorite artists.
  • Smart DJ – Instantly create customized playlists by selecting an artist and have Smart DJ find songs that complement your selection.
• Improved Netflix Search - Experience a streamlined search function making it much easier to find the movies and TV shows you want to watch.
• Improved voice quality – The audio codec has been updated to improve Xbox Live Party chat audio quality.
• Improved experience for changing your Gamertag – If the Gamertag you're looking for is already taken, your Avatar will spin a wheel and we will provide five other Gamertag suggestions at a time for you to choose from.
• Streamlined in-dashboard virtual keyboard – The existing QWERTY keyboard in-dash has been made it easier to use for scenarios that involve repeated text entry, for example when signing up for Live within the dashboard.
• Improved Xbox Live Marketplace UI and browse experience – The Games Marketplace has been re-organized to provide streamlined access to games and content, reducing the number of steps it takes to get to a download.
• Avatar changes – Avatars are slightly more proportional so you can better play Kinect games
• Easier to get on a wireless network – A list of all the wireless networks within range will be displayed when you go into network settings. From there, you'll be able to select a new network or further configure the network you're connected to.
• Ability to sign-out other controllers in the sign-in UI – You now have  the ability to sign-out profiles on other controllers in the sign-in UI within the Guide. This is especially useful when playing games like Rock Band.
• New browse experience for 100% completed games – A new and better way to browse completed games.
• Updated Family Settings – The core Family Settings tools for all Xbox LIVE members has been expanded to include:
  • Family Programming – When turned on, Family Programming disables display of all mature content on the dashboard and can be turned on or off with a protected password for individual members (per account). It also highlights all family-friendly entertainment.
  • Intelligent Default Settings – Your Xbox automatically customizes privacy and activity settings for each member, based on age (child, teen and adult). These settings can later be individually customized.
  • Title Exceptions – Allow your family members to play specific games above the console’s designated ESRB/PEGI (etc.) rating as you deem appropriate.

Finally, here's a short Q&A on the update process, provided by Microsoft:

Q: Is there anything I need to do to start the update?

A: Beginning on November 1, 2010, you will receive a notification that an update to Xbox LIVE is available as soon as you start your Xbox 360 console. Use your controller to accept the update according to the on-screen instructions.

Q: What if I decline the service update?

A: If you decline the update, you will not be able to connect to Xbox LIVE until the update is accepted. You will still be able to use all of the offline features of your Xbox 360 console. Xbox LIVE features will be unavailable until the update is complete.

Q: How long will the update take to complete?

A: The time required to complete the update will vary based on your Internet connection speed. However, for most users, the update will require between 5 and 10 minutes to complete. You will not be able to use your Xbox 360 console while the update is processing.

Q: How will I know that the update has completed successfully?

A: Once complete, your Xbox 360 will restart as usual. You will notice a change to the layout of the Xbox LIVE Dashboard, a new color scheme, and new fonts being used.

Q: What do I do if the update does not complete successfully?

A: In the unlikely event that the update does not complete, please visit www.support.xbox.com for information. This is the best resource for resolving any issues with your Xbox 360 console or LIVE service.

For those with a poor connection or no internet at all, you can also download the update with your PC and install it onto your Xbox 360 via a CD/DVD or USB Flash Drive. For more information, check out this Xbox.com support page.