| Red Ring Of Death - How To Properly Use Your Xbox 360 |
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| Computers - Computers |
| Written by Marc Sandford |
| Wednesday, 07 January 2009 18:28 |
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The Xbox 360 is a fantastic thing to behold when it works. With a performance superior to other machines and with addictive games, it pulls you into this fantasy world and then...three red lights. Just when things couldn't get any better you're looking at the red ring of death.
The Xbox 360 is a fantastic thing to behold when it works. With a performance superior to other machines and with addictive games, it pulls you into this fantasy world and then...three red lights. Just when things couldn't get any better you're looking at the red ring of death. This is a very serious problem that over 500,000 people are dealing with. Once those three red lights turn on, the problem will never go away on its own. If your Xbox hasn't had the ring of death failure, there are steps that you can take to reduce the chances of it happening to your machine. The Xbox 360 was hastily designed and assembled. This caused it to be predisposed to overheating. Therefore, the ring of death is induced by an excessive buildup of heat. To prolong the life of your Xbox, you will need to run it cool. Now, I'm not saying that you should put your Xbox outside in the cold or in a refrigerator. This has been tried and you don't want to do this because the Xbox's internal components were designed to work near room temperature. To prevent overheating, you must always ensure that it is well ventilated. That means not using it in confined spaces such as a crowded entertainment center or storage cabinet. Wherever you use it, make sure there's a lot of free, open, and well ventilated space around it. Shaggy carpeting is bad because it can block the fans in the back. Either prop it up off the carpet, place it on a table, or use it on a firm, uncarpeted surface. The fans in the back can also get blocked if you allow any cords or cables to get all bunched up there. Make sure that you keep the fans free of any debris. Depending on the nature of your environment, human hair, pet hair, dirt, grit, dust, and lint can build up quite rapidly. That's because of all of the air passing through the fans which funnel dust just like a vacuum cleaner. Using some compressed air to clean the fans will easily increase air flow into your Xbox. Don't keep your Xbox running for time periods of excessive length. The interior components will get hot and continue to do so with use. If you are done with your Xbox, let it cool off some by turning it off. People with overheated Xboxes typically ran their machines longer than four hours. If you don't have air conditioning and live in a warm climate, your Xbox will be even more prone to overheating. Under these circumstances, you'll need to further reduce your playing times. Microsoft has unleashed upon the world, a very undependable and 'high maintenance' product. Diligence at keeping your Xbox cool is still not a guarantee of freedom from the red ring of death. However, it will happen if you habitually allow your machine to get too hot. About the Author: Marc Sandford is a gaming enthusiast and writer. Get Xbox 360 trouble shooting information about repairing the Xbox 360 3 Red Lights Error. |