Xbox Gaming in South Africa

Through the life of the Xbox 360, the components have been changed and upgraded to fix problems such as the RROD, with each major revision being named after their configuration. The Xbox 360 has progressed a long way since the original chipset, the Xenon, which consisted of an IBM 90nm CPU, ATI 90nm GPU and 203 Watt output power supply. The major problem plaguing this unit, and the others to follow, is heat. The evil of the electonics world, and especially those owners of the earlier Xbox 360s, heat is the main cause of the RROD and countless other problems. The latest chipset is the Jasper, which looks to remedy these problems by decreasing power usage, therefore reducing heat.

• Xbox 360 Jasper Chipset
  • IBM 65nm CPU
  • ATI 65nm GPU
  • 150 Watt power supply
  • 256 MB on-board flash, up from 16 MB, to accommodate the NXE update
  • Improved cooling and noise reduction

The major changes over the previous revision (the Falcon) is the smaller Graphics unit, along with a smaller power supply and increased flash memory. The reduction in GPU size and power usage is said to cut down internal heat by a massive 20% over its predecessor. Another helpfull change is the increased on-board flash, which allows arcade users to easily upgrade to the New Xbox Experience, negating the need for a memory card.

The new Jasper chipset is supposedly the answer to the RROD problem (with an improved 'Valhalla' chipset out next year) and hopefully it will also cure the newly introduced System Error - E74. Luckily for most, the extended 3 year warranty keeps us out of troubled water, and if it does happen, hopefully you'll receive a Jasper in return.

So the final question is how do you spot a Jasper Xbox 360? Well it ain't easy as the power supply brick (150w) is normally the best identifier, however, it has been said that units with a Manufacturing date of October 28th 2008 or more should be Jasper units. If possible - as it can be tricky - try and use the peep hole at the back of the packaging, and see if you can spot the amperage on the left of the barcode. It should read 12.1A for Jasper units (the Falcon is 14.2A).