GameCyte

Finally, the first Jasper-based Xbox 360s have appeared on the market. The newest model of 360, Jasper is Microsoft’s big try of finally ending the RRoD issue, and quieting all of the Sony fanboys who still won’t let us forget about it.

So what makes it different, and why might it work? To put it in terms anyone can understand, the new consoles have a redesigned motherboard with several upgrades. First, the graphics chip will consume less power, and also fit more snugly into its socket. (Several 360 issues were caused by graphics chips coming loose.) In addition, the new chips will be smaller, cost less to make, and will run a lot cooler than the previous 90-nanometer chips. The lower costs of the Jasper-produced units have already been evident in stores; just look at the 360 price drops which occurred in September. (Moves old content out of the way, and sets a new cheaper price for the cheaper-to-manufacture Jasper. Win-win.)

The upgrades aren’t just in the chip department, either. In the new Jasper models, all Xbox 360s will come with 256 megabytes of internal flash memory, which will be used to store the NXE dashboard. Thus, even arcade models with no hard drive or external memory will be able to upgrade to and use NXE.

As of now, there’s no way I’ve seen to determine which 360 is a Jasper model and which is an older Falcon-based RRoD candidate. I’m sure in due time people will figure it out, though. I'd also like to point out that Jasper being released just when the RRoD warranty ended for launch units is totally a coincidence. Maybe.

UPDATE: That was fast. While by no means perfect, this will at least give you a clue on your chances of having a Jasper.

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