Xbox 360 adds support for flash drives

Posted on 7 Apr 2010 at 10:52

Microsoft announced today that the Xbox 360 can now make use of flash drives for the purpose of storing system data – such as save games, game installs and profile data. Previously, such data could only be stored Microsoft's specially designed hard disks or using Xbox 360 64MB or 512MB memory units.

The Xbox 360 has 3 USB ports, and you've always been able to attach USB removable storage devices. However, these could only be used for media playback of audio, video and image files. The lifting of this restriction means you can store gamer profiles, save games and even downloaded arcade games on a flash drive. You can then take the drive to a friends house and use the content.

This also gives owners of older Xbox 360s, with small 20GB hard disks, a hassle free way to increase their storage space. Buying a new drive from Microsoft is expensive, and you'll need to use the supplied transfer kit to switch your current files to the new disk, so you lose the original disk's storage space.

Flash drive size is limited to 16GB, but that's enough space to install a couple of extra games – saving you from the noise of the 360's optical drive when playing. The 360 will make a performance check on the drive, to ensure its fast enough for this use. You can even set aside a certain percentage of space on the drive for Xbox 360 use, leaving you with space for storing normal PC files.

It's a great extra for those who like to carry their 360 gamer profile with them, and you can find more details at the Xbox 360 page for USB Storage Device Support for Xbox 360.

Author: Seth Barton

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