Topic: Xbox LIVE going up $10 a year

[jlfarris]

I used to watch my shows from hulu last summer.  It has all the commercial breaks but they only last 30 to 60 seconds.  Right now I'm watching Warehouse 13 from SciFi Channel on it.  New episonds are available 8 days after they air.  Right now it's totally free.  Has most any network you want.  Even has some movies.  Again free directly to your pc.

And the version going to the consoles will be the new Hulu+, which is 9.99 a month.  It will give you full seasons instead of past 4-5 episodes.  However, you're going to have to have a subscription to Hulu+ (much like Netflix) in order to use it on the Xbox or PS3.

[pinmonkey001]

I used to watch my shows from hulu last summer.  It has all the commercial breaks but they only last 30 to 60 seconds.  Right now I'm watching Warehouse 13 from SciFi Channel on it.  New episonds are available 8 days after they air.  Right now it's totally free.  Has most any network you want.  Even has some movies.  Again free directly to your pc.

[Aftrthought051]

Hulu is all the TV shows.  I know it's NBC, but it's quite a few other channels as well.  So basically this is all the TV shows that come on, past and present episodes.  While Netflix has older movies on instant, and some pretty recent ones, plus TV shows once the series comes out on DVD.

[OutlawedSaint]

I just did a search for my own answer before posting this because I have never heard of Hulu before....It appears that "Hulu" is another sort of Netflix...if that is not accurate then what exactly is it? And if I am correct why would it be better then Netflix?

[nightstorm56]

Here is juat something to think about when we all say we are paying for features/apps that we don't use.
Sprint has the new EVO, which is 4G. If you buy the EVO, you are charged and extra$10/month for the 4G capabilities. Even if your not in a 4G area and never get 4G service. Well I was in BB last week, all the 4G phones offered by Sprint will have this extra cost.
I think that is BS also, seeing that I am paying for everyone else's 4G connection.

So imagine having to cough up $120/year just to have the latest and greatest. XBL is like that.IMO.

Now let the bashing begin.

Cricket Wireless FTW!
 

[keetedw]

Here is juat something to think about when we all say we are paying for features/apps that we don't use.
Sprint has the new EVO, which is 4G. If you buy the EVO, you are charged and extra$10/month for the 4G capabilities. Even if your not in a 4G area and never get 4G service. Well I was in BB last week, all the 4G phones offered by Sprint will have this extra cost.

Even better than that, books on Kindle might be $2.99 here in the US, but they're only $0.99 in Canada because we pay a surcharge, per book, for roaming fees.  So, even if you have a Wi-Fi only Kindle, you have to cough up the extra to help cover the roaming fees that everyone else incurs.

Plenty of free books to be had, but I was looking to get one, but now...not so sure.

[vegaskiller73]

Here is juat something to think about when we all say we are paying for features/apps that we don't use.
Sprint has the new EVO, which is 4G. If you buy the EVO, you are charged and extra$10/month for the 4G capabilities. Even if your not in a 4G area and never get 4G service. Well I was in BB last week, all the 4G phones offered by Sprint will have this extra cost.
I think that is BS also, seeing that I am paying for everyone else's 4G connection.

So imagine having to cough up $120/year just to have the latest and greatest. XBL is like that.IMO.

Now let the bashing begin.

[Aftrthought051]

 

Suppose to bring better voice quality and maybe "Hulu", but I think Hulu got delayed to 2011.  Mostly fall update is going to be all about Kinect, but there is a rumor of a new dashboard look to go along with Kinect.  Woohoo, it looks purdy but still can't increase my friend list count or have bigger parties.  Lame-O.

[Brisk 69]

Good Ol' Penny Arcade

[Brisk 69]

16-person parties would be awesome also.

 

[jlfarris]

16-person parties would be awesome also.

That would be nice too, so everyone can be in a party when playing a round of slayer in Halo for grins and giggles.  I'm wondering how much that would take to program, especially with the added bandwidth.  Who knows, I hear they are increasing the bitrate for voice chat on XBL, so maybe there going to be able to handle more in a party as well.

Any good rumors on what the fall update will bring?

[keetedw]

16-person parties would be awesome also.

[jlfarris]

We post whenever we find deals on Xbox LIVE in the deals thread under console gaming.  I just got my LIVE card last month from Dell.com for $30 thanks to Olden for posting it.  Cheapassgamer.com is the best site though to check for deals.  They monitor all the sites and then post the best deals there.   

CAG rocks

Amen to that!  I love CAG.

My biggest gripe is that we're in year 7 of XBL and you still have a 100 friend limit on your friends list.  If they bump the price, we should at least get a bump in the friends list limitation.  I like XBL, but I'm a bit peeved that many of the features added haven't been gaming related.  The last major one I can remember is the party system, which I think was 2 years ago (If I'm wrong on this, let me know....I'm going off a very crappy memory here).  Netflix is great on XBL, but FB and Twitter are overkill, along with Last.fm.  They aren't anything you can't have on other platforms for free (or just their subscription price).

Now, don't get me wrong...I'm not going to quit XBL over a $10 increase.  They have to get closer to 100 dollars before I say screw it - Halo and Gears are 2 of my favorite shooters.  However, I'm really hoping to get some good gamer specific features in the fall update.

[keetedw]

Also, just a heads up.  I bought the $40 reduced price year of Gold from M$ and my auto renew was turned back on.

Keep an eye on that if you don't want to pay full price.

[vegaskiller73]

When you subscribe to XBL, either by paying for it yourself or by entering 12-month cards and 3 month cards, you are bound by a contract. That contract states the amount for the 12month period that you will pay. M$ is even bound to honoring that contract price. So anything that you add on now will not be charged extra till that subscription is up for renewal. But we are talking about M$ here.
Also read my post a few back. You can have up to 3-1 year subscriptions on your account. So if you can get some 12-month cards, you'd be get them now.

[Spectre]

At the risk of asking a dumb question...I just entered a 1 year card and a 3 month card....so I am good for another 15 months and they are not going to charge me the extra $10 until I have to renew am I understanding that correctly?

you are correct. 

[OutlawedSaint]

At the risk of asking a dumb question...I just entered a 1 year card and a 3 month card....so I am good for another 15 months and they are not going to charge me the extra $10 until I have to renew am I understanding that correctly?

[Spectre]

We post whenever we find deals on Xbox LIVE in the deals thread under console gaming.  I just got my LIVE card last month from Dell.com for $30 thanks to Olden for posting it.  Cheapassgamer.com is the best site though to check for deals.  They monitor all the sites and then post the best deals there.   

CAG rocks

[Leukoi]

Amazon has the Messenger pack for $54. 

http://www.amazon.com/Xbox-360-Live-Month-Messenger-Gold/dp/B001EKTF60

12 months of gold, keypad, headset, and PGR4. 

[Aftrthought051]

We post whenever we find deals on Xbox LIVE in the deals thread under console gaming.  I just got my LIVE card last month from Dell.com for $30 thanks to Olden for posting it.  Cheapassgamer.com is the best site though to check for deals.  They monitor all the sites and then post the best deals there.   

[Brisk 69]

Got the official email.  Here's the link to lock in another year for $40, direct from M$.  Not sure if the direct link will work, but all XBL users should get the email at some point.

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/pricelock/default.htm

Thanks for the tip, Keet! 

[nightstorm56]

I don't know anyone who pays full price for a Live subscription. 

I do. 

Or, at least, I did and won't be anymore.

[keetedw]

Got the official email.  Here's the link to lock in another year for $40, direct from M$.  Not sure if the direct link will work, but all XBL users should get the email at some point.

http://www.xbox.com/en-US/live/pricelock/default.htm

[Garand]

On a side note, by the end of year I believe, Netflix is suppose to be discless on PS3.  But the online does sound absolutely horrendous.  But then you have ppl like Garand tell you it's not as good as LIVE, but it's still decent for free.  From the way Chris describes it, I wouldn't even attempt to play online. 

Aftr, let me give you some insight as to why I don't get hung up on PSN's faults.  The  obvious reason is that its free and in no way should be compared to something that is paid for.  It doesn't compare, its free.  99.9% of the time, something you pay for is better than something free.  I see no reason in whining about something I'm not paying for.  Its like being treated to dinner by your in-laws but b1tching and moaning because they didn't let you choose the restaurant. 

That being said, here is what my online experience with PS3 has been. First, I only play Sony's exclusive titles online.  I have never had a problem playing Warhawk, Resistance, Resistance 2, Killzone 2, or Uncharted 2 online multiplayer after their launch days.  A couple I have had problems with are LittleBig Planet and Modnation Racers.  Those games have problems staying connected to other players or load times.  Most of those games have clan or party support and I have no problems communicating with people on my friendlist.  Most of them have the official Sony bluetooth and the audio quality is quite a bit clearer than the pack-in 360 one. 

As for Netflix, I've had a couple of issues with it.  Its UI takes a good bit to load and it can sometimes hang or freeze.  I'm guessing that will be cleared up once its part of XMB and not disc based.  It behaves much like the Wii version of Netflix if you've ever tried it but with HD support.

I hope that helps. 

[vegaskiller73]

I read on the XBL forums that you could have up to 3 1-year subscriptions on your account. Now will they charge you more when Nov comes around, IDK.
My contract is locked in till 7-2011. I think Austin's renews in 3-2011. I'm contiplating dropping his cause he don't play much online. But then I have the hassle of dealing with redoing his account when he wants to play online.
I read the "Family Plan" will be the best plan. I think this up in price will also cause alot of gamers/families to go to the "Family Plan". It will be cheaper than having 2 seperate accounts. I'm hoping I can move everything over.