Even though Microsoft has been decidedly cagey about what is actually at the root of the Xbox 360 bricking problem, it has been widely speculated that heat issues were to blame for the more serious and prominent hardware failures. Makes sense really, as heat is basically the main factor that might affect the long term performance of the console. For that reason, Asian website, Tech-On, set a Thermal Design Expert the task of putting two Xboxes (one bought at the end of 2005, one recently repaired by Microsoft) on the examination table to narrow down the cause of the problem.

The result of the analysis seems to confirm what was already suspected – that some of the console’s design features aren’t managing the heat radiation well enough to protect some of the more vital components from long-term heat damage. Some of the more interesting discoveries from the decidedly warranty-breaking investigation are outlined on the turn.

• The temperature of air emitted from the exhaust was about 45°C – about 22°C gap between it and room temperature. The expert explains “it is common to seek a temperature gap of around 10°C between exhaust and room temperatures,”.

One thing I think it’s only fair to add to this statement is that the temperature of the air blown out of my PS3 is probably nearly as hot – I haven’t taken a thermometer to it, but I can easily tell there’s more than a 10°C difference there.

• The cooler fan's maximum wind speed was 1.1 m/s, only 1/2 to 1/3 compared with general desktop PCs. It may be partly because the fan rotation was reduced to lower noise, but it is believed to be a little short on power compared to the console’s size.

• After 15 minutes of normal use, the microprocessor heat sink temperature stabilized at 58°C.

• Meanwhile, the heatsink on the graphics processor LSI shot up to 80°C – some 57°C higher than room temperature. Not much of a concern with the current state of the climate in this country, but across the pond where mid-summer room temperatures might get as high as 35°C, you could be talking about the graphics card heat sink hitting 100°C. Sizzlin’!

• And the difference between the normal console and the repaired one? Err, none. In fact the interior of the fixed model was exactly the same as the other. That could explain the persisting problems then.

Source
Tech-On

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