When Microsoft issued their anticipated fall dashboard update on Tuesday, 1080p support wasn't the only new feature, as several use started reporting ERROR CODE E71, which essentially "bricked" their console, rendering it unusable for surfing Xbox Live or playing games -- you know, everything an Xbox 360 is useful for. Initial reports suggested these problems were isolated to users who'd modified their firmware to play back-ups, but that's not the case.

Microsoft says they're aware of the issue, however, and that "less than 1%" of users have been affected, but even if that number's accurate, that's 1% of the Xbox 360 userbase that won't be playing Gears of War next week. "We're working with those affected to get them back up and running, whether that be by providing another console, or fixing their existing console. We're committed to resolving this issue," said the company in a prepared statement.

"Over the next 24 hours, our product team will be working to ensure that those unaffected remain unaffected." That doesn't help much now, but at least a solution's in the pipeline.

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