xbox360 vs HTPC?

Question

I already have a HTPC in the living rooma vista box with tuner card, 512mb dvi grafix card, 1.5MB ddr2 ram, 250gig internal and 500gb external harddrive space... so storage of files is not the major factor...

in the bedroom i have an xp box 512mb ddr ram, 160gb and 80gb internal hd, I would like to upgrade, or add a secondary PC into the bedroom set up (i want the current rig to be set up exclusively for skype, the livingroom PC does that now)

asides from the cost advantage (around $400 for xbox360 and around $600 for a vista machine) are there any advantages with going with an xbox 360 over a new vista HTPC for the bedroom... I know the xbox will act as an extender for my VMC content...

could someone provide pros and cons for using either set up...

I already plan on getting a PS3 when GTA IV comes out.. but perhaps, with an xbox360 set up I will just get the game for XBOX (there is supposed to be exclusive downloadable content for the xbox version anyway)

dont plan on playing games with the pc, and the main function of the new addition, either a second pc in the bed room, or the xbox would be streaming the video content stored on the living room HTPC and from the internet, as well as web browsing...

if i go the PC route, it will be the 4th "desktop" pc in the network. if i go xbox, initial cost will be lower, and i wont have to hassle with the KVM switch, i would only need to change the input on the TV...

Answer 1

Well the nice thing about platforms is you never have to worry about compatibility. With the amount of ram on your machine id upgrade if you wanted to game like the 360 and i dont know the speed of your graphics card but it sounds real good so more ram. Nice thing about pc is next 4 years a new console will come out but you keep your pc. I like to game with computer because i like the extra graphics and the keyboard and mouse. however there are more drawbacks because you cant get say gutairhero for pc. Nice thing though is if you like 360 controller they use usb to you can put it in your comp not to mention the free internet connection instead of paying for live. Over all i think you would save alot more upgrading your pc in the long run and it would be a better investment because you also get the advantages of a faster computer. Oh and pc you can get mods for your game.