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Microsoft says no new Xbox 'anytime soon'

Microsoft confirmed there will be no new Xbox hardware announced either at the E3 video game conference in June or anytime soon.
Written by Adrian Kingsley-Hughes, Contributing Writer
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Hoping that Microsoft will update the aging Xbox 350 games console any time soon? Well, you're out of luck, as Microsoft confirmed there will be no new Xbox hardware announced either at the E3 video game conference in June or anytime soon.

Speaking to AllThingsD, Microsoft's head of corporate communications Frank Shaw dispelled rumors that the six-year-old console would continue to be sold through 2012.

"While we appreciate all the interest in our long-range plans for the future, we can confirm that there will be no talk of new Xbox hardware at E3 or anytime soon. For us, 2012 is all about Xbox 360."

This comes days following a rumor which claimed that the next-generation Xbox console would abandon the optical drive in favor of flash storage. This rumor didn't really make sense to me because it seems counterintuitive for Microsoft to abandon cheap discs in favor of more expensive flash storage 'cartridge' options.

The only even plausible reason why Microsoft might have abandoned an optical drive was because it wanted to have greater storage capacity for games that DVD currently offers, but didn't want to take the Blu-ray approach because that would be putting royalty money into Sony's pocket.

The news is bittersweet. It's bad news because old and outdated hardware is going to continue to stifle console gamers for at least another year. However, it's good news for gamers as their investment in the platform both in terms of hardware and games will stay relevant for 2012.

Hoe soon until we see a new Xbox? Right now, rumors I'm hearing say that we're unlikely to see a new console until at least spring 2013, and maybe even not until 2014.

Image source: Microsoft.

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