We’re just about an hour away now from the unveiling of the next generation Xbox, but there’s another rumor we should address ahead of the conference. Prototypes of the next generation Xbox are reported to include 3d glasses technology, game streaming services, advanced satellite and cable functionality and finally digital-video recording.
This report comes to us from the Wall Street Journal, and supposedly they’ve received a dozen or so reports from either past or current employees and Microsoft partners. It is vital to note that this doesn’t mean that the final XBox console will indeed feature all (or indeed any) of this technology.
If this report proves to be true, it could completely dismantle previous rumors such as the Stingray – which is supposedly a cut down version o the Xbox 360 minus a DVD drive. Supposedly this console could be linked up to the next generation Xbox to provide full backwards compatibility with retail discs. If you didn’t have the Xbox 720 / Durango and you owned a Stingray, you’d be forced to play via download only. It is worth noting that Microsoft have the Azure technology – which is cloud based computing. This is similar to the tech behind Amazon’s computing services, and Microsoft have made significant strides in the past few years in this field. Indeed, there have been reports of MS poaching quite a few of Amazon’s key talent.
The WSJ also mentions the 3d glases would be specialized, and could feature an ‘augmented reality’. This would blend real world images with the game to improve gameplay experience. It could also tie in nicely to Microsoft’s “console in the living room” idea. Let’s hope it doesn’t turn into a virtualboy type of eye torture device, shall we?
Finally, in regards to the digital video and satellite /cable hookup. The theory is that you’ll be able to link your cable box directly to the input HDMI of the next gen Xbox, and you’ll be able to add various overlays and so on during live TV. Supposedly you’ll also be able to record this feed too. Although, at least in the UK, we can already do many of these features with either Sky or Virgin Satellite or Cable.
In less than an hours time Microsoft will begin to spill the beans on the console, and I for one (and I’m sure many of our viewers) will be anxious to hear all about it. Come on Microsoft, unravel your mysteries to the world!
