Category: Xbox Tip of the Week

Recently, a friend turned to me with a problem with his Xbox 360. When we started talking, he said that the lights on the console weren’t doing anything strange, but there was no picture on his TV. So I walked him through resetting his display settings by starting the console and pressing a certain combo of buttons on his controller. No luck – it turned out his controller wasn’t syncing. So, then, I told him how to sync his controller to his Xbox 360. No luck. He then plugged in a USB controller – still no change, the light on the controller never came on to show it was connected.

In the end, it turned out that he had recently rearranged his living room and the HDMI cable wasn’t snug in the back of the Xbox 360. He had gotten to the point that he had worked with Microsoft’s phone support and they weren’t able to help him, he was about to send the console off for repair – until he decided he could try another HDMI cable. When reaching to unplug his current cable, he realized it was loose.

I would suggest that you check both ends of your HDMI cable (Xbox 360 console and TV), and even use the HDMI cable of another working device such as a DVD player or a PS3, just for testing purposes. Even though the controller issue seems strangely unrelated, it seems that the Xbox 360 must detect that it is connected to a display source before it starts the controller up. Now, even if you have the incorrect display resolution selected, it will at least finish booting up. Not having a video out cable of any kind connected must stop the boot sequence. We learned something new today! And I hope it helps you!

You bought your Xbox 360, and couldn’t wait to play – now you’ve already gained some Gamerscore, but your account is an “offline account” and not an Xbox Live Account! You don’t want to sign up for a new account, because you’ll lose your Gamerscore and Achievements! Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Continue reading “How to convert your offline Gamertag to an Xbox Live account and keep your Achievements and Gamerscore”

Sometimes you have to travel, or you’re out of town. Or, even worse, maybe you had to send your console in for repair. And some times there is a great Deal of the Week, but you won’t be home to claim it – so what do you do?

Microsoft has made the dread of missing out on a good deal a thing of the past. Just hop on to Marketplace.Xbox.com, find the item, and select “purchase.” You’ll be prompted for your Microsoft Account credentials (formerly known as your Windows Live ID), then you can simply confirm the purchase. This will add the game / demo / DLC / avatar clothing item / whatever directly to your download queue. It is already purchased, even if the deal ends in the next ten minutes – you locked in that deal price. Then, the next time you turn on your Xbox 360, it will download to your console automatically!

Did you know that you can use PayPal to pay for things on Xbox Live? It’s easy! All you have to do is go to account.live.com, and add your PayPal account to your LiveID under billing. If you’re already registered with a PayPal account, I’ll walk you through the steps.

1. Visit account.live.com.
2. Log in with your LiveID.
3. Click Billing on the left.
4. Click Payment Options across the top.
5. Click the Add Payment Option button at the bottom.
6. In the window that pops up, select the PayPal radio button near the top.

7. Click the Next button.
8. You will be directed to PayPal – login with your PayPal ID.
9. Verify your information is correct, then click the Agree and Pay button.
10. You will be redirected to the Microsoft site where you can see your information has been added!

That’s it! You’re all set to start making payments on Xbox Live using your PayPal account, whether you’re renting a movie, buying music, or getting a Game on Demand, you can now pay with PayPal!