The Xbox 360 is the console produced by Microsoft and, unfortunately, it has a bad reputation of having serious hardware problems. The console has been described by many gamers as being too easy to break and the problems regarding disc scratching have been around for a while.

It seems that Microsoft knew about the issues the console had and instead of providing for more palpable solutions, warnings have been issued both in the console’s manual and on the DVD tray.

The problem is that Xbox uses a tray loading mechanism and the discs spin at very high speeds, causing the device to sometimes scratch the DVDs that are inside. Slowing the discs down would have resulted in longer loading times for games and using other measures to fix the problem would have been too expensive, even for Microsoft.

A gamer has sued Microsoft in July 2007 over this problem, as DVDs of games can be very expensive and ruining them can lead to financial losses. It seems that Xbox is advancing in the field of software, with the new Xbox Live Experience, but remains still when dealing with its hardware problems. Even though the Wii and Playstation have given up disc loading trays, it is not sure why Xbox chose to remain with this system.

Currently, Nintendo’s Wii is the leader in the game console market and the battle for second place is taking place between Microsofts’s Xbox and Sony’s Playstation. It would be a good idea for Microsoft to try and deal with its console hardware problems if it really wants to get to the top.