Expert: Andrew Crome - 7/7/2007

Question
hi-i would like to ask some questions -
How much more powerfull is the xbox 360 than the original?
I have read that it can do 500 million polygons per second and as such the original xbox was 112 ?
So it would be 4 times better-this is fine since the xbox was in my opinion had the best graphics untill the 360 came. I personally was very impressed with the original but since i have not played the xbox 360 i cant make judgement as yet.
How better do the graphics look for a xbox 360 on a ordinary t.v?
thanks

Answer
Hi James,

You are quite right on the 500 polygon per second figure, and this about four times what the original Xbox could do. This doesn't make graphics four times better though - since this is just a "raw power figure". Things like pixel-filling and texture and lighting - at which the 360 is sometimes as much as 12 times (!) more powerful than the original XBox are probably more important.

The question of "how much better" the graphics are, is however completly subjective and dependent on the games. To get the most of the graphics you will need to use either an HD TV or a VGA compatible set, but they are still a very noticeable jump ovber the Xbox on a normal TV. As I said, however, it depends on the game - Gears of War and Viva Pinata look stunning, for example - while things like Gun and Over-G Fighters look like they could almost be running on an original Xbox. Graphics on a whole have been improving, and with the huge majority of games you will notice higher, sharper resolutions, much better texture and lighting and more detail.

Hope this helps

Andy