Crack Xbox 360 modders Team Xecuter are offering up another nifty product for fighting the dreaded "red ring of death" in Microsoft's box of wonder. It's called the X-S, and it'll be available real soon for those who wish to join the crusade against the platform's nasty, crimson gremlins. Information on what it does and where to get it follow after the jump.

Console modding fans may be disappointed that popular modchip creators Team Xecuter have retired from creating products of the sort due to recent raids by the US government on stores carrying the product.

In a statement published in their website, Team Xecuter took a swipe at what they call "crazy times" and said:

We feel our mods are shipped in a legal format with Linux pre loaded and any other products we make contain no copyrighted code and no circumvention of copy protection.

The team assured the public that the modchip division is the only part of their service which will be discontinued. They said that Team Xecuter would instead focus on non-mod operations to deliver products that will enhance the experience for gamers.

It's just been announced on the Team Xecuter forums that a new tutorial for the Blaster360 has finally been uploaded. This tutorial focuses on the Hitachi 078fk firmware update. Team Xecuter also announced that the tutorial is still usable by other Xecuter item users, specifically those who don't have a Blaster 360 and are simply using the Xecuter Connectivity kit.

Team Xecuter's Blaster360 allows Xbox 360 owners to flash their drives with minimal physical tinkering with the Xbox 360 console. The Blaster360 uses a Digital SATA Exchange Circuit, letting users update the Xbox 360's DVD ROM with the latest available firmware. It can also be used to make backups of games to the PC.

To check out the tutorial, click on the via link below. You can also check it out under the Tutorials section of the official Blaster360 website.

The people at Team Xecuter are at it again as the self-proclaimed number one Xbox 360 hacking team announces that its site is up for its new Blaster360 hardware.

   

The Blaster360 is the world's first external DVD connectivity solution. With it, you'll never have to open up the 360 more than once to back up your games. You simply have to open it up once to install Blaster 360 and with the Digital Sata Exchange Circuit, it will be easier than ever to update your DVD rom with firmware to enable your machine to do backups effortlessly.

Team Xecutor also fired back at competitors who have been criticizing it for using parts made in China. The hack team denied this and said "we have always found the quality to be poor hence the cheap nature of many of the goods we have seen from there. All our products are - and have always been - made in Taiwan."

We won't even go into the matter of Taiwan's being a renegade Chinese province or a nation in its own. To check out the site, just go to our Read link below.

Over at Xbox-Scene, there's a new tutorial up for installing Team Xecuter's Blaster 360 modification to your XBox 360 unit.

The tutorial, written by XanTium, includes a healthy serving of pictures and gives you a step-by-step procedure into the inner workings of your Xbox 360, telling you exactly what to do to get your Blaster 360 up and running on your unit.

Some notes to remember though. XanTium says you won't need to solder a thing, so it's pretty easy to install. All you'll apparently need are the tools to open your 360 casing so you can hook everything up to your motherboard, and you should be good to go. In any case, enjoy the tutorial, and let us know how your installation went.

The Soft-Mods blog had a chance to interview Team Xecuter via email, to ask them a couple of biggies: their ongoing PS3 and Xbox 360 projects. On the hardware front, there's the Blaster 360 and PS3 Hyperdrive; on the other side of the fence, Xbox 360 homebrew (presumably non-XNA) and the PS3 Paradox loader.

So besides the Blaster and the Hyperdrive, the team reveals that they've got some "cool things in the pipeline," which they can't disclose until they're sure of a release date. Whether this refers to Xbox 360 homebrew or Paradox is not known, but they're both referred to later in the interview. For Xbox 360 homebrew, Team Xecuter replied that their dedicated team is "so very close, yet so very far away at the same time." Of note is that the team's by far one of the biggies in the 360 exploit department, for those keeping score.

When asked about Paradox, all the team could say is "wait till the European release of the PS3." A little under a month to go, then.

Great news from Team Xecuter">Blaster 360, PS3 Hyperdrive and Paradox loader">Team Xecuter! They just announced that the final version of Blaster 360 is out of beta testing and ready for manufacturing.

For those who haven't heard, Blaster 360 is an add-on to your Xbox 360 that lets you flash the firmware without the need to open your console up. In other words, newcomers to hacks can use this just as easily as pros, once they know the basics of flashing.

It's been a few weeks since they made the finished product, and all that time has been spent beta testing the thing. They've fixed the kinks inside and out, to the point that this new version has zero need for users to cut the case of their console at all!

According to the Xecuter crew, they're currently setting the price to be around US$ 70 because of the development on this premium item. With all the testing they did, it seems warranted. In any case, expect it to be in resellers' hands within the next two weeks, and check our site for updates to their distribution. If you want to know what else they managed to improve during the test process, we've got their forum post linked at the bottom for you. Enjoy!

Buy: [Blaster 360]

Team Xecuter's really gotten everyone intrigued. As the end of the year draws ever closer, mod fans are probably wondering what the status of that nifty new device called the Blaster 360 is. The building process seems to be finished already, so all it needs is an official release date.

Now, while the fellows of Team Xecuter haven't given a final release date, they have opted to answer many of the questions people have about it. You might be surprised at some of the little details in this latest installment of their FAQ.

For those who still don't know what this is or are new to modding, the Blaster 360 is a switching tool, allowing you to flash update your 360's firmware without the need to tinker with the case after installation. It doesn't actually do the flashing for you (You'll still need the requisite SATA or X360 USB for that) but it does make the process a lot cleaner.

For specific concerns, they've also added some clarifications. For one thing, the Blaster 360 has an MS28 on/off switch for flashing the Samsung MS278 drives. Better still are some incoming developments for Hitachi 078 models. While they do mention that their new device can't flash update Hitachi 078 types, they already have a prototype modchip in development that you could buy separately once it's good to go.

Here's the best part: you can dump game data to your PCs with this thing! If that isn't a sweet deal, then we don't know what is.

Keep checking QJ for more updates, as the team will also post detailed instructions for the Blaster 360 very soon.

Buy: [Blaster 360]

Well, those Xecuter folks are at it again. Xbox 360 owners with Hitachi drives will find themselves very pleased with Xecuter's new offering: a modchip for those pesky Hitachi drives.

Yes, ladies and gents of the gaming community. The makers of the XHM Homebrew Modchip project and the Blaster 360 recently announced that due to insistent public demand (they say, "A LOT of emails"), the Team has finished developing a modchip for the 078 Hitachi drive. While details aren't forthcoming as of yet, the team has mentioned that this modchip will be easy to install and ought to have the same features their other mods currently carry.

Rest assured that we'll be checking on them from time to time to have a look at their plans for this new modchip, as well as the final price for the item. Till then, sit tight and rejoice in the news.

Team Xecuter gave word that they have completed their newest addition to their products, Blaster 360. This is a great development for the team as the last time we reported about this was way back in September. Anyhow, this product would definitely make the day of the Xbox 360 modding community as the Blaster 360 will allow you to flash your drives with little to no physical tinkering of your green, mean gaming machine. Translation for the uninitiated - once you've installed it, you won't have to open the case of your Xbox 360 again for you to update firmware.

Team Xecuter also claims that it works with all drives and only takes five minutes of your time to install. Other features included Xbox Mode and PC mode switch, Modeb enabled for Hitachi, Molex Power connector, LED Glow feature, and LED Glow Off/ Led Perm ON/ LED Off switch.

As we have said, the good news is that the Blaster 360 is finally finished. The team would be finalizing packaging and distribution and they also promised to hook us up with info (price and availability) as soon as they know the delivery date and RRP. For now, here are some pics of their finish product.

Buy: [Blaster 360]