Xbox Repair - Don’t Do Anything Until You Know Your Options

January 22nd, 2009 by Marc Sandford

by Marc Sandford

Is your Xbox 360 freezing up? Getting the red ring of death error lights? Welcome to a growing international club of frustrated Xbox gamers.

Misery may love company but this doesn’t solve your problem, so how you go about repairing your Xbox will be the subject of this article. In no specific order, they are:

1.) You can return your Xbox to Microsoft for a replacement. If your Xbox warranty is still valid, they’ll do this free of charge. Otherwise, they will charge you well over a hundred dollars.

Note that if you’ve opened your console, your warranty is void. Regardless of whether you were attempting to repair it yourself or had other legitimate reasons, you will lose your warranty.

Returning your Xbox will involve a lot of waiting. Two weeks is normally the average time to get a replacement. There is a very specific packing procedure that Microsoft wants you to comply with for the return of your Xbox.

2.) You can attempt to nurse your Xbox back to health. If this is the first ring of death incident with your machine, then perhaps it hasn’t suffered any real damage. You may be able to avoid future problems by ensuring that your Xbox doesn’t overheat.

Getting too hot is the primary reason for the ring of doom shutdowns. The cooling vents should be kept open and clear of dirt, dust, or obstructing materials. Run your Xbox 360 in an environment that is open and well ventilated. Limit console use to less than 3 or 4 hours.

If you’ve already had lots of ring of death shutdowns, then your machine has suffered a lot of damage. You may not be able to avoid the red ring of death by running your Xbox cool. If your machine has had extensive heat damage, expect the ring of death to happen more frequently with time.

3.) You can repair it yourself. Before you go through with this option, I should remind you of what I’d mentioned before that opening your console voids your warranty. If your warranty is expired or voided, then you’re free to work on your Xbox.

Working inside of your Xbox can be very intimidating. But if you’ve got the right info and a few household tools, it’s not that difficult. The Internet has plenty of info about Xbox repair both free and paid.

The problem with free information is the amount of research that has to be done. There’s an enormous amount of bad advice on the Internet and weeding out good information is time consuming.

There are a number of paid instructional guides available that will show you exactly how to fix your Xbox yourself. Make sure that there’s a guarantee of some kind. Unlike the free information out there, the guarantee introduces some accountability and thus improves your chances of getting information that actually works without damaging your Xbox. It also helps if the guide provides instruction in both video and text formats.

With a bit of luck, one of these options will work for your situation so that you can enjoy your gaming again.

About the Author:

Marc Sandford is a gaming addict and writer. Get more Xbox 360 trouble shooting advice about repairing the Red Ring of Death.