Video guide to the Xbox 360 Elite and how to upgrade to a 120GB hard drive

27 April 2007

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Posted by:Ferry

With the upcoming launch of the Xbox 360 Elite this weekend, April 29th, and new line of supporting accessories like the new 120GB hard drive, Majornelson saw fit to answer what he expects to be common questions about these products. Explained in this video guide are all the facts for potential buyers before they purchase any new items or start moving their information from one hard drive to another. If that’s you, or if you think the new black is just pretty, you’ll want to watch this.


So how does the migration work and what should you know before migrating your 20GB to the new 120GB hard drive? Here’s a step by step instructions guide.

Every Xbox 360 Elite owner who’s a current Xbox 360 Premium owner can order a transfer cable by calling Microsoft as mentioned in the above video, and every Xbox 360 120GB hard drive will come with a guide of its own. That said, it’s convenient to be able to see what you’re getting into before buying anything. So here’s what you’d have to do if you are upgrading to the Xbox 360 Elite (120GB hard drive):

1. Turn off both of your consoles and remove the 120GB hard drive from your Xbox 360 Elite console.
2. Attach your current 20GB hard drive to your Xbox 360 Elite console, then disconnect all accessories from the console’s controller ports.
3. Connect and turn on a controller, which you’ll need during content transfer.
4. Connect one end of the transfer cable to your 120GB hard drive.
5. Connect the other end of the transfer cable to one of the USB ports of your Xbox 360 Elite console.
6. Insert the included Hard Drive Transfer Disc and follow the on-screen instructions.
7. To begin using your 120GB hard drive after content transfer is complete, remove your 20GB hard drive from your Elite console and attach your 120GB hard drive.

If you are upgrading to the standalone 120GB HDD and using your current Xbox 360, the process above is the same except that you don’t disconnect your 20GB HDD and instead attach the transfer cable to your new 120GB HDD. You then put in the software, follow the on screen instructions and when done remove your 20GB HDD and replace it with your new 120GB HDD.

Important Notes:
* This is a one time transfer process, so you need to make sure you are ready to permanently move this content to your new drive before beginning.
* Do not start playing games or downloading content on the new 120GB HDD before migration, as this information will be lost and replaced during the migration process.
* If you want to start using your Elite before you have your migration kit in hand, we highly recommend that you remove the 120GB HDD and use your current 20GB hard drive in its place until you are ready to migrate.
* If you are migrating to Elite, we suggest you watch any movie rentals you may have on your old drive before migrating, as the license for this content is tied to the console it was downloaded on and cannot be moved.
* You should also know that licenses for downloaded content like Xbox LIVE Arcade games and TV shows from Xbox LIVE are tied to the console they were originally downloaded on.
— This means that while all of your Xbox LIVE Arcade games and TV shows will transfer, you will have to be connected to Xbox LIVE (to verify your identity) in order to access that content.
— This process is permanent, so do not transfer your data if it is important to you to be able to access this content offline.
— Consumers that purchase the standalone 120GB HDD will not experience any change in the way they access their data online or offline since they are using the same console and only upgrading to a larger hard drive.
* After migrating, your 20GB HDD will be completely erased, but will remain fully compatible with any Xbox 360. Content can only ever be moved from the smaller drive to the larger one—and only once.
* Depending on the amount of content to be moved, the transfer process can take about an hour, the software will estimate this time before you begin.
* If the transfer is interrupted for any reason, your content will remain on your existing 20-GB hard drive. You can restart the transfer process at any time prior to completion.

More details at Gamerscoreblog.