What’s the deal with the Xbox 360 Elite

Microsoft will be releasing a new “Elite” version of the Xbox 360 this month. Here’s the brief specs:

• 120GB HD
• 3 core processors
• DVD upconverting player
• HDMI out
• Black color
• Black controller
• get the full specs on the Xbox site

All of this can be yours for around $480 depending on your sources. By comparison, that’s a 100GB hard drive upgrade, HDMI native out, and black color instead of white. For people like me who were a late-early-adopter, we could upgrade our hard drives for about $180.

I’ve got HD out to my TV now, so not sure about the real need or “must have” for the HDMI out. I would have much preferred the black console if I’d had the choice in the beginning. As long as I can upgrade my HD then I’m fine with that, but I’m not running out of space yet, so no big deal. Doesn’t the existing 360 also have 3 Core processors?

But why in the world would they not include the HD-DVD player on the “Elite” version? That just seems like a no-brainer for me if they’re really interested in using this console to further embed themselves into our living rooms.