Original Xbox
Hacker ApprovedShares rank 18 of 29 game consoles by recommenders
Fans recommend it for nostalgia, cheap hackable media server builds and classic LAN games, though critics say it struggles with large files and 1080p video.
Fans recommend it for nostalgia, cheap hackable media server builds and classic LAN games, though critics say it struggles with large files and 1080p video.
13 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 11
- criticize it
- 2
- approval share
- 85%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 11 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 5.5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Nostalgia for classic games
“My OG Xbox is queued up ready for a clock capacitor replace so I can fire up real Halo CE any time I want”
Comment from 4 Aug 2026 in “Xbox goes down. You can't play games you own on disc” “I still love my OG Xbox (crystal edition)”
Comment from 12 Jul 2026 in “Xbox 'OG' Adventures” “Peak childhood right there.”
Comment from 16 Apr 2026 in “The Death of Character in Game Console Interfaces” Cheap, hackable media server
“It made a great media server which is the origin of the likes of plex and kodi.”
Comment from 30 Apr 2026 in “PS5 Linux loader goes public, turning console into full Linux gaming PC” “take some cast-off free hardware and a bit of free software”
Comment from 22 Nov 2025 in “XBMC 4.0 for the Original Xbox” Fans still devoted to it
“the original Xbox is one of the very few things Microsoft got right”
Comment from 30 Oct 2026 in “My favourite PowerMac is a Nintendo Wii” “I love that they are still committed to the OG device.”
Comment from 21 Nov 2025 in “XBMC 4.0 for the Original Xbox” “we would take that pimped out machine everywhere”
Comment from 21 Nov 2025 in “XBMC 4.0 for the Original Xbox”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Struggles with large files and video
“the original Xbox can't keep up with the big files”
Comment from 22 Nov 2025 in “XBMC 4.0 for the Original Xbox” “not even being able to play 1080p video puts it underneath most set top boxes you can get today”
Comment from 21 Nov 2025 in “XBMC 4.0 for the Original Xbox”
Other game consoles people recommend
The four most recommended other game consoles, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valve Steam Machine | 326 | 240 | 58% | 12 | 1 mo5 owners | — |
| PlayStation 5 | 121 | 181 | 40% | 12 | 3 yrs8 owners | — |
| Xbox console | 62 | 212 | 23% | 12 | 21 yrs6 owners | — |
| Xbox 360 | 41 | 19 | 68% | 12 | — | Approved |
| Original XboxThis page | 11 | 2 | 85% | 6 | — | Approved |
What people said
11 of the 13 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“the original Xbox is one of the very few things Microsoft got right”
“My OG Xbox is queued up ready for a clock capacitor replace so I can fire up real Halo CE any time I want”
“I still love my OG Xbox (crystal edition)”
“they have vastly more fun all being in the same room playing each other all at once”
“It made a great media server which is the origin of the likes of plex and kodi.”
“Peak childhood right there.”
“the original Xbox can't keep up with the big files”
“take some cast-off free hardware and a bit of free software”
“we would take that pimped out machine everywhere”
“not even being able to play 1080p video puts it underneath most set top boxes you can get today”
“I love that they are still committed to the OG device.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.