Rumor: Xbox 360 will have internal HD-DVD drive by late 2008?

Rumors often reflect the demand of the market so it’s not surprising that this one has resurfaced: Microsoft, according to unnamed insiders, plans to release a new Xbox 360 model with an internal HD DVD drive. An intriguing notion but still only rumor for now so don’t get your hopes up just yet.

According to Smarthouse’s source, an unnamed senior Toshiba executive in Singapore says that:

An Xbox with a built in HD DVD drive is critical. They and we are working on it. It also has to be more than a gaming machine. Microsoft recognizes this. A version of the device may also be sold under the Toshiba brand name.

The idea seems to be given strength by a comment from Scott Browning, Marketing Director of JB HiFi, Australia‘s second largest consumer electronics retailer:

The device is … essential for the HD DVD camp. We are told that one is coming. The PS3 has been extremely successful for Sony in getting Blu-ray off the ground and for Microsoft, the omission of a built in HD DVD player is set to hurt sales going forward as consumers are aware that the PS3 comes with a Blu-ray player.

It doesn’t stop with just the internal HD DVD drive: Smarthouse also says that Microsoft may also include an HD TV tuner, EPG capability and a docking port for an MP3 player. Smarthouse suggests that Microsoft is vying to compete with the PlayStation 3’s strengths as a media hub (and, consequently, the Blu-ray format).

The new Xbox 360, if it is indeed in the works, is expected to appear in the market by late 2008 or at the 2009 CES show in Las Vegas. We can expect more news (or more rumors) to surface in the following months. Microsoft recently announced that there’s no new HD DVD drive in the works, but they never mentioned anything about an internal one so it’s not out of the question.

Via Smarthouse

Rumors often reflect the demand of the market so it’s not surprising that this one has resurfaced: Microsoft, according to unnamed insiders, plans to release a new Xbox 360 model with an internal HD DVD drive. An intriguing notion but still only rumor for now so don’t get your hopes up just yet.

According to Smarthouse’s source, an unnamed senior Toshiba executive in Singapore says that:

An Xbox with a built in HD DVD drive is critical. They and we are working on it. It also has to be more than a gaming machine. Microsoft recognizes this. A version of the device may also be sold under the Toshiba brand name.

The idea seems to be given strength by a comment from Scott Browning, Marketing Director of JB HiFi, Australia‘s second largest consumer electronics retailer:

The device is … essential for the HD DVD camp. We are told that one is coming. The PS3 has been extremely successful for Sony in getting Blu-ray off the ground and for Microsoft, the omission of a built in HD DVD player is set to hurt sales going forward as consumers are aware that the PS3 comes with a Blu-ray player.

It doesn’t stop with just the internal HD DVD drive: Smarthouse also says that Microsoft may also include an HD TV tuner, EPG capability and a docking port for an MP3 player. Smarthouse suggests that Microsoft is vying to compete with the PlayStation 3’s strengths as a media hub (and, consequently, the Blu-ray format).

The new Xbox 360, if it is indeed in the works, is expected to appear in the market by late 2008 or at the 2009 CES show in Las Vegas. We can expect more news (or more rumors) to surface in the following months. Microsoft recently announced that there’s no new HD DVD drive in the works, but they never mentioned anything about an internal one so it’s not out of the question.

Via Smarthouse