THE BUZZ: If you were accepted into the preview program for the upcoming public test of the new Xbox 360 dashboard, the next step of that procedure is now up.

If you head over to connect.microsoft.com and sign in, you’ll get that next set of steps beginning today. In contrast to previous dashboard beta programs, Microsoft is now having participants download an app directly to their Xbox 360, which will then send the company information such as the console’s serial number. Also new this year is that this app will be able to be used on up to three Xbox 360s that you own.

Via Microsoft’s Connect site, you’ll receive a product key that will then allow you to download that app to your console. Once that has been completed, registration will take 3-5 business days—after which you’ll receive dashboard updates “as they become available”.

EGM’s TAKE: The question now is when the beta program will begin, and when it will then go live for everybody. This preview program seems to be launching a bit later than many (including myself) expected, but that could be due to certain components needing more development time before being ready for the preview.

Source: http://connect.microsoft.com