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[StarBlazers1]

I would rather Xbox wait until Next year or even Spring '18. Come out with a Greatly improved box with crazy specs and fully tested with all current games and BC. They should stay away of the Clusterf*ck of a Holiday season that may occur with the possibilty of having NX, PS4K and PSVR in a 4-6 month period. Make it so they are the only hardware launching during their own launch window and spec it higher than their competition.

A redesign should hit a mass market price of $199(Though $249 is more likely) and give them a big sales bump until then.

 

[Boke1879]

You say this as if Sonys idea is a good thing and guaranteed to be a sucess

Sonys idea imo has little risk involved and really doesn't matter if it lights the world on fire. The ps4 will still continue to sell just fine

 

[ekim]

hm... (he knows his MS stuff)

 

[Dovahking]

hm... (he knows his MS stuff)

Who is he ?

 

[mckmas8808]

So it's a Xbox Slim then right?

 

[Detective]

Why in hell would they want to support Steam on their Xbox console?

To sell hardware? People who can't build a nice rig can use their box as an example .

they want people to buy it though

Premium my friend. Premium.

 

[bidguy]

not an upgrade then huh ...

 

[ekim]

Who is he ?

Brad Sams. (https://www.petri.com/ - partner site of Thurrot.com)

Brad brings to Petri a profound background in all things Microsoft and has been cited by numerous publications for cracking open the Redmond nut and exposing the internal workings of the company.

 

[JimiNutz]

Rather than releasing these incremental consoles MS should release a MS branded PC that you can update every 2/3 years with new components. Make PC gaming easy for the masses and allow Sony and Nintendo to fight out the console space.

Xbox gaming should become a service along with Windows and MS can release official branded components to make updating your Xbox nice and simple.

 

[chadskin]

hm... (he knows his MS stuff)

Certainly doesn't sound like a profoundly upgraded console to me.

 

[ekim]

Certainly doesn't sound like a profoundly upgraded console to me.

I made a follow up question about this.

 

[Bsigg12]

hm... (he knows his MS stuff)

Good stuff. E3 is gonna be good. I really hope Halo 5 gets updated to take advantage of whatever it is they're putting in this box.

 

[Maroon Gamer]

WHAT A DAY

E3 is gonna be legendary

 

[LewieP]

I'm fairly confident that they'll never ship an "Xbox" device that has full Windows 10 support, and lets you run all Windows apps (including Steam/Steam games, or just any games they aren't getting a 30% cut on).

I'd love to be wrong about that.

 

[Dovahking]

Brad Sams. (https://www.petri.com/ - partner site of Thurrot.com)

OK seems legit.

 

[Pineapple]

A potential problem I see for Microsoft with this is convincing consumers that this is just an upgraded version of the Xbox One. The "PS4K" name is perfect, as it clearly indicates this is a version of the PS4, while also denoting an improvement of some kind.

With the One, I'm struggling to see how Microsoft could name this system without confusing consumers that this is an entirely separate system from the One.

The One Plus? One Elite? One Gold?

I think that will be the main challenge for Microsoft for their upgraded One, because as we know, branding and marketing is everything.

As a side note, how exciting is this? A beefier PS4 with a GPU that rivals a 970, an upgraded Xbox which will, presumably, have similar specs and performance, and Nintendo's NX. All coming well within the next year.

 

[Compsiox]

I won't be buying anymore consoles but I'm excited to see what this means for PC gaming. Hopefully graphics get taken even further.

 

[Bsigg12]

I'm fairly confident that they'll never ship an "Xbox" device that has full Windows 10 support, and lets you run all Windows apps (including Steam/Steam games, or just any games they aren't getting a 30% cut on).

I'd love to be wrong about that.

No but they are adding UWP support this summer where we'll start seeing a lot of Win10 apps making their way over to the Xbox One. It kinda reminds me of an extension of Win10 mobile.

 

[Zedox]

They already said that all new substantial hardware upgrades will be with Redstone 2 next Spring. They'll probably do a new Suface, but not a Surface Pro or Surface Book until next Spring. So does this mean they wait until then for a Xbox 2? Dunno?

Yea, I actually expect the next Xbox One to come out with the rest of the hardware refresh from Microsoft. It would make sense to me as I've heard that MS wants people using UWA frameworks starting Fall time (I read that from someone here who was a dev I believe). That would coincide with what Sony is doing with "Neo" mode. I could totally be wrong but it would make sense that they want developers to use UWA for all future games. I guess this is probably another reason why Scalebound got delayed (including having too many games in the fall and trying to get a PC release).

E3 is going to be interesting this year. And here I was expecting a lot more games, and ever since Phil stated those words...shit just got real. Exciting times to be a gamer.

Totally off-topic...Shenmue comes out "next year" (maybe). w00t w00t.

 

[EvB]

I made a follow up question about this.

This fits with the Premium and Base options on the Wifi chip.

Revised hardware and then an elite unit.

Question is whether both will be more powerful or just the elite

 

[ekim]

This fits with the Premium and Base options on the Wifi chip.

Revised hardware and then an elite unit.

Question is whether both will be more powerful or just the elite

Now that you say it - yeah. Didn't it say that the premium unit has an Audio chip? If this was related to the whole system, maybe one of the SKUs has a microphone included (for cortana)

 

[Theorry]

This is like end 2012, beginning 2013 all over again. I like it haha.

 

[G_Berry]

If this thing has steam support its all over.

E3 is going to either be epic or an epic let down.

 

[intheinbetween]

uhm that Elite v2 comment doesn't sound crazy at all. if you look at the current Elite SKU it includes a slightly "upgraded" XB1 (1TB Hybrid SSD) and the Elite controller (which improves every single aspect of the regular one)

 

[PanicFreak]

A potential problem I see for Microsoft with this is convincing consumers that this is just an upgraded version of the Xbox One. The "PS4K" name is perfect, as it clearly indicates this is a version of the PS4, while also denoting an improvement of some kind.

With the One, I'm struggling to see how Microsoft could name this system without confusing consumers that this is an entirely separate system from the One.

The One Plus? One Elite? One Gold?

I think that will be the main challenge for Microsoft for their upgraded One, because as we know, branding and marketing is everything.

As a side note, how exciting is this? A beefier PS4 with a GPU that rivals a 970, an upgraded Xbox which will, presumably, have similar specs and performance, and Nintendo's NX. All coming well within the next year.

I'm pretty sure that Microsoft would want to disassociate the new Xbox with the Xbox One. They just have to nail the communication but, given their recent history, I have my doubts that they will.

 

[JimiNutz]

If this thing has steam support its all over.

E3 is going to either be epic or an epic let down.

No way will it have Steam.
MS want Xbox to be its own service.

 

[AtomicShroom]

I actually think PS4K is a response to W10, it basically changed the console space since most likely MS won't ever change the OS in their console (or at least won't until the whole MS migrate toa new version of Windows. It guarantees a continued compatibility to the console similar to PC and Sony couldn't stay behind.
Probably they are developing the X1.5 alongside developers to take full advantage of UWA.

Uh, you're delusional. No one in the console space is afraid of PC gaming. It may have had a slight boost in popularity lately, but its sales numbers are still marginal at best. They're more afraid of Nintendo than PC gaming. They're more afraid of Apple entering the console business than PC gaming.

 

[Mixolydian]

Now that you say it - yeah. Didn't it say that the premium unit has an Audio chip? If this was related to the whole system, maybe one of the SKUs has a microphone included (for cortana)

I would love this. I've always enjoyed the voice commands, but couldn't care less about the Kinect. Having a system with a mic built in would be welcome.

 

[Pineapple]

Another thought - I'm willing to bet that Microsoft doesn't want to have their new version of the One viewed as inferior to Sony's new PS4 in terms of power - they've already seen how that perception has negatively affected sales.

I'm wondering how far Microsoft is willing to go to make the Xbox 1.5 more powerful than the PS4K. Would they be willing to sell the console at a loss just so they can claim that their new version of the One is the most powerful system on the market?

 

[bidguy]

uhm that Elite v2 comment doesn't sound crazy at all. if you look at the current Elite SKU it includes a slightly "upgraded" XB1 (1TB Hybrid SSD) and the Elite controller (which improves every single aspect of the regular one)

but why would they release another elite ? would it be worth it with just a few little tweaks ?

i really dont think so... id definitely skip a new revision without power upgrades but id be all over a big power spike

 

[Bsigg12]

uhm that Elite v2 comment doesn't sound crazy at all. if you look at the current Elite SKU it includes a slightly "upgraded" XB1 (1TB Hybrid SSD) and the Elite controller (which improves every single aspect of the regular one)

I doubt Microsoft would just release a slim model or something without seriously taking a look at what they could go through and upgrade while still keeping them at the $399 base price for something new. They have been raked over the coals these last 2 and a half years for having a weaker console and I don't expect them to let that happen again, even in revisions.

 

[G_Berry]

No way will it have Steam.
MS want Xbox to be its own service.

I know, but could you imagine?!

 

[Compsiox]

No way will it have Steam.
MS want Xbox to be its own service.

I hope they're just like fuck that. Completely open platform now.

 

[qa_engineer]

If I were MS :
oculus support
Steam support:
Cross buy xbox and Windows 10
Elite Controller


A leap in hardware upgrade. A big one.
Sell X1 for 249

Forward compatible games.Just like PC. The game performance Will depend on your hardware.

Name it Xbox 10 or X

4k gaming.

Price 599

Again, just like PC. Medium to Ultra. Same game.

Don't forget to include the money tree and fountain of youth.

 

[Yoday]

Now that you say it - yeah. Didn't it say that the premium unit has an Audio chip? If this was related to the whole system, maybe one of the SKUs has a microphone included (for cortana)

I've been wondering about this a lot. Kinect is more or less dead, but the voice recognition is awesome, and cortana is just going to expand on it. I'd really like to see them just build a microphone into the box along with any additional processing chips that would be needed. I can't imagine it would cost that much to include a microphone directly in the system, and it would be a pretty big selling point if it doesn't Jack up the cost like Kinect did.

 

[cilonen]

Agendas?

Yours has been obvious for some time.

 

[AstroNut325]

Why are people confused by Spencer's statement? It's even in the article of the OP. He clearly just didn't like the name 1.5 and was trying to suggest that whatever they make would be substantial enough to be worth more than the 1.5 nickname.

Yup. Phil hasn't said they're not going to an iterative model. He just wasn't a fan of the naming.

 

[ekim]

 

[azertydu91]

Another thought - I'm willing to bet that Microsoft doesn't want to have their new version of the One viewed as inferior to Sony's new PS4 in terms of power - they've already seen how that perception has negatively affected sales.

I'm wondering how far Microsoft is willing to go to make the Xbox 1.5 more powerful than the PS4K. Would they be willing to sell the console at a loss just so they can claim that their new version of the One is the most powerful system on the market?

What's troubling me is that in this case there will be an even bigger delta between xbox 1 and 1.5.
Can't that be a problem a cut some games from releasing on Xbox 1 in favor of its upgraded version?

And the next thing that troubles me is be even more powerful than ps4K wouldn't mean anything on this specific case where its just an iteration to have 4k capabilities or better framerates.
Once those goals are reached why being more powerful ?
Ultimately these 2 upgraded consoles + will just be limited by their orginal Ps4 and Xbox one compatibility

 

[Steverulez]

😕

 

[intheinbetween]

but why would they release another elite ? would it be worth it with just a few little tweaks ?

i really dont think so... id definitely skip a new revision without power upgrades but id be all over a big power spike

well, my point is, by Elite v2 they could mean upgrading: CPU, GPU and memory, then keep the rest of the current Elite SKU. I guess they could sell it for $499-599

 

[SilentRob]

Yes but that was only to disparage a competitor. It sucks when Sony does it, but it'll be totally awesome when MS does it.

I mean, he literally said it would suck if Microsoft did it.

 

[Nikodemos]

If last year we had the E3 of dreams, this year we'll get the E3 of suprarealist whack you dream after eating too much ultra-spicy Indian food the previous evening.

 

[TheChewyWaffles]

Yes but that was only to disparage a competitor. It sucks when Sony does it, but it'll be totally awesome when MS does it.

No he just doesn't like the negative connotations of "1.5". He wants an upgrade to be more impactful than that.

 

[justsomeguy]

Generational console looks dead. Upgrade is going to be new consoles going forward.

What's the difference between a upgrade console and a new upgrade console?

Forward/back compatibility

 

[Yoday]

Another thought - I'm willing to bet that Microsoft doesn't want to have their new version of the One viewed as inferior to Sony's new PS4 in terms of power - they've already seen how that perception has negatively affected sales.

I'm wondering how far Microsoft is willing to go to make the Xbox 1.5 more powerful than the PS4K. Would they be willing to sell the console at a loss just so they can claim that their new version of the One is the most powerful system on the market?

I think they are willing to sell at more of a loss than Sony, that's for sure. MS is super focused on user engagement now, and the rise of digital sales means each user is worth a hell of a lot more than in the past. They also want as many people as possible using W10 in as many ways as possible. This new box will likely be hitting the same time they start making their big UWP push, so they are going to want an attractive yet affordable way to get people into that ecosystem, and Xbox is a pretty good way of doing that.

At the very least I bet MS goes with a larger APU than Sony does, just like they did with XBO (but minus the ESRAM).

 

[Dovahking]

 

[ekim]

what does he mean with "have a few small pieces"? Does it mean he has some small pieces of info or the updated box will have few small updates?

 

[The Lamonster]

Could this be some kind of add-on like the N64 expansion pack?

 

[Yoday]

They've got something cooking, but MS seems to have a pretty good lid on leaks lately. Hell, the only thing I remember being leaked last year was Gears Ultimate.