More Problems with US launch of XBox 360

Our US correspondent, Edwin Milheim shot us this release about the popular new console. Now we do urge that readers remember that this is occuring in the USA and may have no bearing on the Aussie release:

REDMOND, Wash. (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. said Wednesday it had received isolated reports of technical problems with its popular new Xbox 360 videogame system.
Some owners complained that their systems were crashing during game play, sometimes with error messages popping up. On http://www.xbox-scene.com , a site dedicated to Xbox gaming, a member called jsgongwon reported that he could not finish the first lap of "Project Gotham Racing 3."
"It's a few reports of consoles here and there not working properly," said Molly O'Donnell, a spokeswoman for Microsoft's Xbox division. "It's what you would expect with a consumer electronics instrument of this complexity .... par for the course."
Gaming fanatics lined up for hours Monday to be among the first to purchase the next-generation system, which was in short supply despite its starting price tag of $299.99. Microsoft hopes to sell 2.5 million to 3 million of the new systems in the first 90 days.

O'Donnell urged anyone with Xbox problems to call 1-800-4myXbox or go to http://www.xbox.com . If the problems can't be resolved immediately, Microsoft said it will pay to ship the console overnight to a repair center, overnight it back once it's fixed, or ship a replacement.