Helping You Unfreeze Your Xbox 360
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console launched by Microsoft Corporation in 2001. In 2005 Microsoft launched its successor XBOX 360 which is a seventh generation video game console. The popularity of these video game consoles can be imagined by the fact that by 31st March 2011 there were over 53.6 million XBOX 360 consoles all over the world. With many attractive features including XBOX live which allows users to play and compete online, this gadget is very popular among children and grownups alike. But as all machines have limitations, this device is no exception. The most common problem faced by the XBOX owners while playing games is that of freezing of the XBOX. The most common question they are found asking to fellow people, on search engines and social networking sites is why is my XBOX freezing...
Indications denoting to the freezing of an XBOX
Display freezes - The screen gets hung up with none of the buttons except the power button working.
Static noise - Sometimes the audio of the console also gets frozen and you may hear a static low horn like sound.
Controller lights - The harmonious action of the controller lights that used to denote processing gives way to weirdo flickering.
Graphic error - You may find haphazard graphics with checkerboard like display in between your game play.
Overheating - Playing for long hours round the clock by gaming addicts may cause overheating of the device.
Error 71 - Display of this error message on the screen displays a general hardware failure.
If simply switching the power off and rebooting is not solving your problem, and in between your play the XBOX is freezing again and again you can follow the following tips before calling/going to a technician.
1. Xbox freezing only on specific games
Many times while worrying over the freezing problem one may overlook this obvious cause i.e. scratch, dirt or markings etc. on the game CD. Clean and reinsert the disc. If the freezing problem is resolved it is fine, if still it is happening at the same area/ same point of time then replace your disc. If the XBOX freezes in different gaming zones/ different points of time then the problem might be in the hard-drive or overheating. If the XBOX freezing occurs for the first time while using a new game it may be due to the requirement of game patching. You can inquire blogs and online forums to see if other people are experiencing the same problem else get your game replaced.
2. If the XBOX freezes only while playing online
In this case the most obvious reasons may be linked with internet connection and speed rather than the console. Check your firewall settings and confirm that the internet is properly connected and delivering optimum speed. If using broadband connection use filters to nullify the affect of the phone calls.
3. Formatting the hard drive cache of XBOX
Hard drive cache is the temporary information stored so that some parts of the game can be loaded quickly. These temporary data may sometimes get corrupted and in a struggling effort to read them the XBOX ends up freezing. Formatting your XBOX cache is harmless in the sense that all your data and games are preserved.
If you need more help check out Microsoft's Screen Freeze Solution. Now I just hope this won't happen with the upcoming Microsoft XBOX, which is rumored to be released between late 2012 and 2013. I can't wait to get my hands on it!