Microsoft’s video game console Xbox 360 player both games and DVD, but many have been complaining over the lack of support for the new HD formats. According to a Dutch TV show this is perhaps for the better as they now claim that the optical unit inside the console scratches the discs. The TV show Kassa tested a number of different Xbox 360 consoles and it turned ou that some of them were more prone to scratch discs than others. The reason for this is the different optical units used by the consoles. Microsoft namely uses optical readers from both Toshiba Samsung Storage Technology Corporation (TSS) and Hitachi, and it turns out that the TSS units were the worst.
Microsoft claims not to have received any extensive user reports that strengthens Kassa’s claims, but do emphasize that anyone who has had this problem should contact Microsoft as soon as possible.
The fact that optical discs are worn out gradually is hardly news, but that Xbox 360 would speed up the process isn’t really a good thing. More information about the study and what the damage looks like can be found at Hardware.info.
