XBox for girls???

[johde]

I would try to figure you why your daughter wants an Xbox 360. A PS3 may be the better deal. I'm not an 18 year old girl but I'm finally looking at getting a now last gen console.

$100 xbox deal is just the console with 4gb memory. So, you would also need to buy games. Also, 4bg is not much memory is you're downloading games. If you're going Xbox I would strongly consider one of the bundles with a 250gb hard drive. That will give you more room for downloaded content They seem to be about $200-$250. You can install a hard drive into the 4gb model for about $50-$60 just remember it's a proprietary drive.

$200-$250 would also get a PS3 bundle with 250gb hard drive. PS3 is also a blu ray player so one less piece of equipment to possibly fit into a small dorm room when she goes go college.

Comparing subscription services. Xbox live Gold at $60 a year is required both for online plan and to stream netflix, hulu plus, amazon prime instant videos and the like. They also have Games for Gold where you can download 2 free games a month.

Playstation Network is Free for online games and streaming services. For $50 a year you can get Playstation plus which gives you 12 free games in their instant game collection. They seem to add about 3-4 games and remove 3-4 games a month. One person estimated close to $1,000 worth of free games over 12 months. You also get discounts on games and hardware.

If there's an xbox 360 exclusive she want's to play I'd obviously go with that. Otherwise for a "value" prospective PS3 takes the edge especially if she doesn't have a blu ray player.

 

[Chelley00]

Our sons and their friends date girls who play Xbox with them. I think it might be a requirement So, I can see why the DD wants an Xbox. Heck, I even sit down and play with them. Teenage boys hate getting beat by a mom on Call of Duty

We have a Wii and our little kids play it but the teens haven't touched it in years.

However, if it's between an xbox and a chromebook, I'd get her the chromebook for college before an Xbox. It's way more useful.

 

[ceecee]

So if I go with this $100 unit, how much is it really going to cost with the extras that it needs???

 

[luvmy3]

So if I go with this $100 unit, how much is it really going to cost with the extras that it needs???

If she wants to play online you will need Xbox Live, a 12 month subscription is $60 but you can find it on sale for just under $40.
We did have to get a hard drive for our Xbox but I didn't need it right away, and you can delete stuff from it if you need too. I wouldn't run out and get one, especially if she doesn't wind up playing as much after she gets it.
I would also get another controller, and they range in price $20 and up depending on brand and whether its wireless or not.
Does she want the Kinect?

 

[ceecee]

If she wants to play online you will need Xbox Live, a 12 month subscription is $60 but you can find it on sale for just under $40.
We did have to get a hard drive for our Xbox but I didn't need it right away, and you can delete stuff from it if you need too. I wouldn't run out and get one, especially if she doesn't wind up playing as much after she gets it.
I would also get another controller, and they range in price $20 and up depending on brand and whether its wireless or not.
Does she want the Kinect?

What is Kinect? She probably doesn't know either.

 

[Fyrefly]

Of course girls play video games! I'm really kind of shocked you think they wouldn't.

That being said, I would also ask her why she didn't play the Wii. If it's because it's kiddie, there is one answer. The next question I would ask is if she wants to play online with BF. If that is her major desire that screws up my idea I'm about to give you:

Because honestly I think Chromebooks are rip-offs. You can barely use them unless they're online and they aren't good for much IMHO.

A compromise I would look at would be to buy her a nice high end gaming laptop. Do some research on CNet and see what models this year are offering good bang for your buck. Nintendo and Sony are the major offenders for keeping their games on console. If she wants Xbox games she can get them for PC. And then she has something powerful and useful to get her through school.

 

[SandrA9810]

A good high end gaming computer generally weigh a ton, especially when you're toting it around campus. A chromebook or tablet is great for note taking in class and quick access. If she'll be living in dorms, it's unlikely she'll be anywhere without a wifi signal. I use both for school. Tablet for note taking with a good blue tooth keyboard and a laptop for essays that I have to do in word.

As for video games, microsoft has never held a huge interest for me. The original console was the last to be added during that generation. Even then most of the games we had for it were cross platform. But its personal preference on what a person will like.
Her timing just seems to be a bit off, and seems to be heavily influenced by the bf. Who knows if the desire will last beyond the bf.

As for the console, don't waste your money on the 4gig hard drive. That one is just joke and won't hold any games. The hard drive is not standard. Sony uses a standard laptop hard which makes it easy to upgrade. If you really want to get it for her, then go with a used one unless you want a BF deal.

 

[aprilgail2]

I thinking you need to talk to BFs parents too. Is it possible she wants it so that he can play at your house without the ire of his parents.

I am glad they came back to say they didn't see the age because I couldn't imagine calling the parents of my adult daughters boyfriend and tattling on him playing xbox LOL!!

Oh I missed that she was 18, when she said BF parents took his xbox away. Still think they may be in cahoots.

At 17 and 18 I would give a rats behind if they were in cahoots over playing video games, wouldn't even be a blip on my radar!

 

[lucyem]

Of course girls play video games! I'm really kind of shocked you think they wouldn't.

That being said, I would also ask her why she didn't play the Wii. If it's because it's kiddie, there is one answer. The next question I would ask is if she wants to play online with BF. If that is her major desire that screws up my idea I'm about to give you:

Because honestly I think Chromebooks are rip-offs. You can barely use them unless they're online and they aren't good for much IMHO.

A compromise I would look at would be to buy her a nice high end gaming laptop. Do some research on CNet and see what models this year are offering good bang for your buck. Nintendo and Sony are the major offenders for keeping their games on console. If she wants Xbox games she can get them for PC. And then she has something powerful and useful to get her through school.

This.

 

[HM]

My 18yo daughter loves playing Skyrim on her Dad's Xbox.

We mostly use our Xbox for streaming Netflix though.

 

[HM]

A good high end gaming computer generally weigh a ton, especially when you're toting it around campus.

I can attest to this. That's the type of computer my son uses and it's great for games (of which he plays a lot), but he hates having to lug it around his college campus for class.

My DD got a MacBook Air for college use and seems very happy with it.

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

They're very heavy, that's true. You also don't want to assume that because she wants and Xbox that she would enjoy PC gaming just as much. The two really aren't the same thing at all. She may have no interest in PC gaming. As for getting a console, you should be able to pick them up cheap on sale or possibly on eBay as people are trying to make a little money/room for the newer consoles. Holiday season after a new console release is a very economical time to by the previous model.

 

[jrmasm]

Is 4gbs enough memory to play Minecraft and Kinect games on disc? I don't see my daughter wanting to download games at least for a while.

 

[JediBonas]

I agree, most gaming computers are very heavy (I've tried once bringing mine somewhere, never again). Pretty much any computer will play minecraft, that's not a graphic-intense game.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Is 4gbs enough memory to play Minecraft and Kinect games on disc? I don't see my daughter wanting to download games at least for a while.

Yes.

You can add a hard drive later for much less money than buying a larger capacity Xbox. I bought a 320 GB hard drive on Amazon, which currently costs $52.20. You simply open a compartment on your Xbox and drop it in. Super easy, works great, and saves a lot of money.

 

[jrmasm]

Yes.

You can add a hard drive later for much less money than buying a larger capacity Xbox. I bought a 320 GB hard drive on Amazon, which currently costs $52.20. You simply open a compartment on your Xbox and drop it in. Super easy, works great, and saves a lot of money.

Great, thanks!

 

[ceecee]

My 18yo daughter loves playing Skyrim on her Dad's Xbox.

We mostly use our Xbox for streaming Netflix though.

Well, this may be why DH is so onboard to get her an Xbox, he has been talking about streaming! I doubt if DD will ever really be into gaming, she just wants to play a game with her boyfriend. They watch movies together on the phone! I just think this is a passing idea she got into her head when she went out with him this weekend as she has never expressed an interest before. As for the Wii, we got that when it first came out so she was younger then and still didn't use it. The Wii ended up costing a lot more once we added the extra remotes, games, Wii fit, etc.

 

[HM]

Well, this may be why DH is so onboard to get her an Xbox, he has been talking about streaming! I doubt if DD will ever really be into gaming, she just wants to play a game with her boyfriend. They watch movies together on the phone! I just think this is a passing idea she got into her head when she went out with him this weekend as she has never expressed an interest before. As for the Wii, we got that when it first came out so she was younger then and still didn't use it. The Wii ended up costing a lot more once we added the extra remotes, games, Wii fit, etc.

You can stream Netflix and other things on your Wii as well. That would put it to use again.

 

[ceecee]

You can stream Netflix and other things on your Wii as well. That would put it to use again.

I didn't know that, I am mostly computer illiterate, just know what I was trained on at work. DH however should be aware of that, I will check.

 

[AliceandAriel]

DD is 18, she is asking for an XBox for Christmas and she said they are only $100. Do girls actually play these games? The only people we know with them are pre-teen to teenage boys. I bought her a Wii and she never used it but she had to have it. Her boyfriend had an XBox but his mom took it away because he got a C. DH wants to buy it and I don't. What else needs to be bought besides the console. I have $300 in Wii stuff that was never used. She has never played one before and now it's all she wants. She spends so much time on the computer and iphone, one more distraction is not what she needs.

-raises hand-

Been playing consoles since I was about 6, and I'm 22 now. From the N64 (Mario Kart was the freaking BOMB!) to GameCube (little Tony Hawk action, but stuck to anything that was 'entertaining'), PS2, Wii, XBox360, and now PC. I actually just got back into XBox360 with the Disney Infinity goodness, so double win for me.

However, if she hasn't played any other consoles you have currently, I'd be reluctant to get her another one.