Fact Sheet on Xbox 360 Family Timer
The Xbox 360® Family Timer will be available in early December 2007 as a software download via Xbox LIVE®. It will also be made available on all new game discs purchased at retail stores.
Overview
The Family Timer is an addition to the already existing Xbox 360 parental controls, which are designed to help make the Xbox 360 experience safer and more secure for the whole family.
The Family Timer will enable parents to set the amount of time the console can be used by members of the household by day or by week. For example, if a parent has allowed their child to play for two hours a day, they can set the console to allow for only two hours of play per day. After those two hours expire, the child will not be able to use the console again within that 24-hour period, unless additional time is granted by the parent.
The Manage Play Allowance screen.
Features
The Family Timer is easy to use and monitor. Limits can be set on a daily or weekly basis. The console will give notifications at 60-minute, 30-minute, 15-minute and five-minute intervals before the time expires. Parents and caregivers can easily enter the security pass code to suspend the Family Timer functionality, which pauses the timer temporarily.
Access Details
To access the Family Timer, Xbox 360 users can go to the System blade and select "Family Settings," "Console Controls" and "Family Timer." This is the only access point for initial feature setup. Once the Family Timer is set, the parent or administrator can access the feature through the Personal Settings button on the Guide, which will list the Family Timer as an option.
Settings Details
When setting the Family Timer, a parent or administrator has three options for setting limits: Daily, Weekly or Off. The Daily option allows the parent or administrator to set limits on console use per day in 15-minute increments. The Weekly option allows the parent or administrator to set limits on console use per week in one-hour increments. During the inaugural setup of the Family Timer, the system will prompt the administrator to set the clock to the current time and time zone. This will allow the timer to track time appropriately, replenishing the time at midnight if the Daily option is set, and at midnight on Sunday if the Weekly option is selected. The first time any Family Settings feature is accessed—whether it is the Family Timer feature or any other—the console administrator is required to set a four-button pass code. If a pass code has already been set, the system will ask for it to edit Family Settings.
Note that the Timer is set for each console, not for each user profile.
Timer Details
While the console is in use, notifications will appear one hour, 30 minutes, 15 minutes, and five minutes before the time expires. In addition, the Guide blade has a real-time countdown so a user can check the Timer status at any time. These functions give gamers sufficient notification so they can save their game.
Timer notifications in-game.
When the time expires, a pop-up alerts the gamer of the end of the session and offers three options: Add More Time, Suspend Timer or Shut Down Console. To select the Add More Time or Suspend Timer functions, the user is required to enter the Family Settings pass code.
The Suspend Timer function allows parents and/or other users with access to the pass code to spend time on the console without using up the Timer clock.
When the Suspend Timer function is on, the Family Timer is suspended for that session only. Once the console is turned off, the Suspend Timer function will automatically turn off and the console will default back to the predetermined Family Timer settings.
