The New Xbox Experience (NXE) is quite the reimagining of the overall user interface system we have been accustomed to for the past three years. I was lucky enough to have been selected to be one of the preview program participants and have spent some quality time with the new dashboard so I figured that I would share some of my thoughts. There are some similarities to be found, but oh so many differences and changes for the better, so let’s get into it.

Well I am now officially a Playstation 3 owner, as of the release of the MGS4 Bundle Pack. This was a long time coming and with the downfall of HD DVD, I knew the days were limited until I broke down and bought a PS3. With the inclusion of the MGS4 game and the new Dual Shock controller, the time was right.

Primarily, I think the system will serve as a Blu-ray player, but I am optimistic about the coming line-up of exclusive titles coming to the PS3. Either way in spending the last few days with the system I have found it to be a well thought out piece of hardware and a very capable gaming platform, as I have been most impressed with MGS4. Now granted I still have a few gripes with regards to the online play, and not having a unified online gaming experience, but it seems like some well needed changes are coming to address this.

Well my new replacement Zune has arrived and the good news is that this one is functioning normally, at least for the past couple of days since its return. I will say that the turn-around time for the second replacement Zune was quite fast, as Microsoft had stated it would be. With waiting for the return-shipping box and then the back and forth, it was approximately three weeks.

So I am completely enthralled with having a functional Zune 80 yet again. It had been far too long, over two months since I had a functioning device and it is great to be back in the land of portable media playback. Also, to my surprise, Microsoft even sent me a Zune branded sock or pouch/carrying case as a little bonus. I was not expecting anything and would have been satisfied with a functional Zune, but it was a nice touch on their part.

I received my replacement Zune 80 yesterday after having sent in my original for repair about 5 week back. My first Zune became unresponsive and I was no longer able to access the media on the device or connect it successfully with my Vista PC. I went through the whole process with Zune support on reinstalling the Zune software and trying to do a hard reset on the device to no avail.

My replacement device, only being a day old, is now having issues with the battery losing its charge so I now have to send this new device in once again, and then wait for this repair process to repeat itself. Given my experience with this device, it is hard to fully recommend it. Apparently it suffers from various hardware issues such as the aforementioned ones which have kept me from utilizing the device for the past several weeks.

What are the chances? -

My Zune is currently in for repair as it just decided to stop working for some reason. It was a bit of a shock to the system as I had quickly become accustomed to having all my music and media with me and immediately accessible. It was perfect for work, so hopefully it will be back soon and in working order. It’s going on three weeks and I think I’m in withdrawal or something. I have heard it could be up to a month or more for a repair, but hopefully it will not take this long.