Xbox hardware hackers have determined that Microsoft has finally replaced the clunky optical media drive that was the main source of noise in initial units of the Xbox 360.
Units manufactured after November 2006 sport a BenQ VAD6038, according to the warranty-voiding crowd, replacing the Toshiba/Samsung and Hitachi drives that made early consoles sound a bit like a UFO preparing for liftoff.
Initial reports describe the BenQ drive as "super-quiet" and even a bit faster to load data than the old drives. Early adopters, meanwhile, have numerous options in the retrofit area.
BenQ VAD6038 - New DVD Drive in Xbox360 [Xbox Scene]
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