Microsoft Xbox 360 Arcade memory doubled, hard drives 25 per cent off

Microsoft Xbox 360 Arcade consoles in the UK now come with double the internal memory previously found in the hard drive-less consoles. The new consoles are shipping with 512MB of memory, as opposed to older Xbox 360 Arcade units shipping with 256MB. So, if you’re about to buy an Arcade console – check carefully to make sure you’re getting one of the new ones.

“We are gradually phasing out consoles with 256MB of memory and replacing them with Xbox 360 Arcade consoles with 512MB memory,” a Microsoft spokesperson told us. “We want to offer consumers a bit more memory at the same low price so they can enjoy more experiences on Xbox Live.”

Of course, Microsoft has already had to increase the memory capacity of existing Xbox 360 Arcade owners by ooffering them extra memory to cope with the “New Xbox Experience” avatar-led update to their user-interface.

The new move may be to prepare in advance for the arrival of technology such as Project Natal, that will further push the Xbox 360 hardware, or it could be to simply take advantage of falling prices in memory.

At the same time, high street retailer Argos has slashed prices for Microsoft Xbox 360 hard drives. According to Electronic Theatre, 120GB Microsoft Xbox 360 hard drives are now only £68 (down from £88, nearly 25 per cent off).