16.4 percent failure rate for Xbox 360

Warranty firm SquareTrade has reported that, based on 1,000 warranties, Xbox 360 has a current failure of 16.4 percent, 60 percent of which is the much-publicized red ring of death that we all know and love.

In comparison, from sample sizes in the “high hundreds", PlayStation 3 and Wii failure rates came in at just 3 percent.

SquareTrade CEO Steve Abernethy said "It is reasonable to believe these failure rates will increase over time, since the Xbox 360 failure issues tend to increase with prolonged use where overheating appears the main culprit,".

While the company didn’t track the various Xbox 360 models, Abernethy estimated that “most if not all” of the failures occurred in consoles that contained the original motherboard.

Steve Abernethy went on to say, “The majority of Xbox 360 owners have had a great experience with their consoles."