About the XBox 360 3 Red Lights Problem

This blog is about the infamous XBox 360 3 Red Lights problem - what it is, what causes it, what to do about it, what it will (can) cost you.

If all you want to do is get the darn thing fixed, there's a few websites out there devoted strictly to the XBox 360 3 Red Lights Problem. This one reviews the 4 top products for fixing the problem yourself.

Let's start with Microsoft's official position. This is taked directly from Microsoft's XBox 360 support site:

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CAUSE
The three flashing red lights may indicate that your Xbox 360 console has experienced a hardware failure. Please read the letter that discusses warranty changes for three flashing red light hardware failures. To read this letter, please visit the Microsoft XBox 360 Web site.

MORE INFORMATION
If you suspect that you are experiencing this issue, you can submit a console-repair request online. However, before you submit your request, we ask that you first try the following two steps to verify that you are indeed experiencing this issue:

1. When you turn on the console, examine the light on the power supply. The power supply light should illuminate green even if the three lights on the Ring of Light flash red. If the power supply light is not green, please follow the steps that are listed in the following Microsoft Knowledge Base articles:
906101 Xbox 360: The power supply light is red
906102 Xbox 360: The power supply light is orange
906103 Xbox 360: The power supply light is not illuminated.

2. Turn off the console. Wait 10 seconds, and then turn on the console again to see whether the symptom occurs again.

If your console continues to display the three flashing red lights, your console may have to be repaired. For information about how to start the repair process online, please visit http://www.xbox.com/support and then click "Console Repair" in the upper-right section of the Web page. Note: The online console repair service is currently not available in all countries or regions.

If you would rather contact Xbox Customer Support directly, please visit http://www.xbox.com/support/contact for information about how to do this.

APPLIES TO
Microsoft XBox 360 Video Game System
Microsoft Xbox 360 Hard Drive (20 GB)
Microsoft Xbox

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Now before you go rushing off to the Microsoft support website, let me advise you of a few things:

1. If you XBox is out of warranty, don't bother with Microsoft repairs. It is sloooooow and expensive! Try 2 - 4 weeks and $140. This after spending about $400 on the box itself and who knows what on games.

2. If you're still in warranty, you have 2 choices: 1) Go the Microsoft route (it will cost you only shipping and 2-4 weeks downtime, or check out some of the 3rd part products that have become available to specifically address the XBox 360 3 Red Lights Problem. This website, XBox 360 3 Red Lights has good reviews of the top 4 Do-It-Yourself fix-it guides.