I see 4 main consoles:

360 Core
360
360 Elite
360 Halo 3 edition

I'm not concerned with the HD drive package. Other than the 20gb/120gb hard drive difference between the normal 360 and the Elite, is there any appreciable difference? Is the Halo 3 edition just the normal 360 with a green case?

yep green/orange casing and controller. the elite is all black i believe. are you interested in xbox live at all?

Yes. I've got a membership for my original. Would I need anything else for Live?

headset if you want to talk to people. i THINK the halo 360 has a wireless headset. the wired headset that comes with teh mid grade package pretty much sucks fyi. post up what game(*) youre gonna play when you get a chance

Halo 3 is a must, probably the newest Forza, there was something else... Gears of War or something like that.

nice. forza2 is awesome. there is also a game call Test Drive: Unlimited which is a worthwhile investment. the graphics on both games are phenominal

Sorry for the novel.. But I just went through this.

I finally picked up an elite three weeks ago. The premium is starting to show up in stores with HDMI, and therefore the newer mobo that'* supposedly more reliable. BBuy (your fav TV store) in my area has all of the new premium with HDMI output.

It makes sense over the premium if you're gonna get some of the included accessores.

"upgrades" to the Elite over the premium.[list]
-Black, and all accessories are black, including the wireless controller, headset.
-120GB HD ($180 add-on)
-Nice HDMI Cable Included(Can be pretty pricey, what you want for some of the higher resolutions, and a requirement for 1080p IIRC)
- Audio Adapter for HDMI. the 360 uses HDMI 1.2a IIRC, it will not do 5.1 through the HDMI output. If you want to use the HDMI output, and a different sound output (RCA or 5.1 optica) you need this as the standard AV cable cannot connect while the HDMI is plugged in, it'* $50 stand alone.

A core is a waste of time. I bought the elite because of the HDMI cabling issues, and the 120GB, the Black looks a lot better IMO if it'* around standard audio gear. If you have no use for HDMI, think the white is fine, and wont ever get much content (demos can be above 1gig easy) then get the premium.

I got Forza2, Madden 08, Halo 2, and Bioshock so far. Bioshock is amazing, Forza 2 is my new fav racing game (longtime Gran Turismo fan). I'd also recommend you pickup atleast one play and charge kit, since the unit comes with no rechargable battery.

The new heatsink is the most important part. That'* what supposedly fixed the red ring of death problem. Buy an HDMI premium. On the left side of the box, make sure it says HDMI. There'* a sticker on the left side of the box that should say "Zephyr."

Just look for those two things and you'll be alright.

I was thinking I want the 120 gb harddrive. I've heard there is a ton of downloadable content. Or is the 20 gb enough?

Doesn't fix it.... It'* better though. THe issue has to due with heat, and how the board is mounted. The piece it mounts to over times flexes to much and causes some weaker solder to seperate on the chips. Those Intercoolers don't do anything for this. It'* also why wrapping a towel around it for a few days will sort've "resolder" the joints that are broken by heating it up massively again.