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Microsoft to End Xbox 360 Production

The console has been on sale for a little more than 10 years.

 & Tom Brant Managing Editor

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It's a day that Xbox fans knew was coming: Xbox 360s will stop rolling off the production line after a little more than 10 years on sale, Microsoft announced today. Existing inventory will be sold until it's depleted.

Microsoft plans to support current Xbox 360 owners, who will continue to be able to access Xbox Live, play Xbox 360 games, and receive support for their console hardware via the Xbox support site.

"The Xbox 360 helped redefine an entire generation of gaming at Microsoft," Xbox head Phil Spencer wrote in a blog post. "I am incredibly proud of all of the work and dedication that went into development of the Xbox 360 hardware, services and games portfolio over the last decade. And I'm grateful to the fans for their continued passion and support."

According to Spencer, Xbox 360 has hosted 78 billion gaming hours, with players racking up nearly 486 billion Gamerscore on 27 billion achievements. Additionally, more than 25 billion hours have been spent in Xbox apps, which include streaming video services like Netflix and Hulu.

Ending Xbox 360 production won't have much of an impact on the console's more than 4,000 game titles. They'll continue to be sold at retail, Spencer said, and of course Xbox One owners can also play them with the backward-compatibility program.

Xbox 360 turned 10 years old on Nov. 22, when its former chief product officer Marc Whitten recalled its humble origins, including a protocol for wireless controllers that was developed before Bluetooth and used an old cordless phone standard. Xbox 360's innovations—though not its long production run—draw a comparison to the Sega Dreamcast, another console that many consider to be ahead of its time. Sega ended Dreamcast production after less than three years.

About Our Expert

Tom Brant

Tom Brant

Managing Editor

I’m a managing editor at PCMag.com focused on PC hardware. Reading this during the day? Then you've caught me testing gear and editing reviews of Wi-Fi routers, printers, laptops, and tons of other personal tech. (Reading this at night? Then I’m probably dreaming about all those cool products.) I’ve covered the consumer tech world as an editor, reporter, and analyst since 2015.

I've covered most major consumer tech events, including CES, Computex, Google I/O, and IFA. I've also appeared on CBS News, in USA Today, and at many other outlets to offer analysis on breaking technology news.

Before I joined the tech-journalism ranks, I wrote on topics as diverse as Borneo's rainforests, Middle Eastern airlines, and Big Data's role in presidential elections. A graduate of Middlebury College, I also have a master's degree in journalism and French Studies from New York University.

The Technology I Use

While most people buy a phone or laptop and stick with it for years, I’m lucky enough to use devices based on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows daily as part of my job. As a result, I cycle through lots of tech in addition to my IT-issue work laptop. (Yes, that's a ThinkPad.) Personally, I’ve also owned a lot of tech products both cutting-edge and cringeworthy, from the Nintendo GameCube and the original MacBook to the Palm m105 and the CueCat.

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