The big three knows the huge future of gaming, it's the entertainment of the future, so no matter how much loses they're making now they're all in it for the long run with their eyes on the prize, and the fact is like almost evrey thing in live, we need competition, it's good for us consumers.

*720 this!, 720 that!.
*360 is doomed this!, 360 is fail that!.
*360/natal super console will screw owners this!, natal+360 master console will fuc* most owners of the old console that!.
*360 will have blu-ray this!, 360 will need blu-ray that!.

See the pattern? if you don't all the speculation has to do with wishing the 360 was out on the market making up fud hoping MS loses or leaves this generation so it won't be in second place.

2 years im guessing, that will just be its annoucement at E3 2011 release date of late 2012 or early 2013

The only thing about Blu-Ray in a 720 is this. Blu-Ray is heavily associated with Sony. It would be like a PS4 operating off of windows. Sony doesn't own Blu-Ray, but has heavy ties in it.

Of course they will - the question is...

What will the specs be.

Nintendo's success at iterating existing tech has worked very well for them.

I would anticipate that both Sony and MS will come out with similar hardware in the next gen to their current consoles. We're already seeing smaller graphical gains in each generation jump, so adding value for the customer, and ensuring profitability for the manufacturer will be key in the next cycle.

It seems a no-brainer for Sony to chuck a couple more Cell's and a newer Nvidia card and a bit more RAM in to the PS4 and it's good to go. This may be iterative (and therefore ensure backwards compatibility), but adding another Cell or two would significantly increase performance for not a lot of cost. They could potentially remove the Nvidia GPU and defer all rendering to the Cell's, but I'm not sure this is a great idea (but was in the original PS3 project plan).

MS have a slighlty longer or more difficult path as their tech (and this is no disrespect) is a little 'older'. MS will need to think carefully whether they need to fit a Blu-Ray drive to the next Xbox - or if the market truly is ready for a 100% download model for games.

I have a feeling MS may go with the newer Intel technologies such as Larabee for the next Xbox - but it's hard to say. I'm not sure adding any more Xenon's would do the trick as the CPU landcape - with GPGPU's and 'Cell style' architectures seem to be gaining momemtum.

I don't see either MS or Sony doing anything radical in terms of hardware/architecture in the next jump (not as raidcal as the change from PS2 to PS3 architecture anyway).

To start, the author of the article takes Microsoft's earnings information completely out of context.

If the other had bothered to perform his research into MS's earnings statements, he would have discovered that the Xbox360 and related products are actually doing quite well and that the loss in E&D and primarily be attributed to Headcount increases in the Windows Mobile Device Platform group.

In addition, Microsoft calls out decreased costs of revenue (hence progress toward profit or increase in profit on the platform) associated with Xbox360.

http://www.microsoft.com/ms...

"Research and development expenses increased $252 million or 16%, primarily reflecting increased headcount-related expenses associated with the Windows Mobile device platform, driven by recent acquisitions. Cost of revenue decreased $326 million or 7%, primarily due to decreased Xbox 360 platform costs."

If Microsoft hadn't ramped up WinMo development efforts, E&D would have seen a profit of roughly $122 Million. Given that they also call out Zune and PC hardware having massive decrease in revenue, those likely cost the E&D division additional profit potential. When they do call out Xbox revenue decrease, they point out the price drop and also mention that Xbox Live revenue increases offset most of the 360 price drop revenue decreases for the quarter. They do not make any related assertion for Zune of PC Hardware out of E&D

"Revenue from our non-gaming business decreased $292 million or 12%, primarily reflecting decreased Zune and PC hardware product revenue."

While Microsoft did layoff approximately 5,000 employees in the past 6 months, very few came out of E&D, thus while revenue has decreased, operating expenses have not dropped nearly as much. In the case of WinMo, they increased drastically.

All in all, what this means is that Xbox is doing fabulous. One could argue based on the data provided, that without Zune and PC Hardware wrapped into E&D with Xbox, that you could have seen profits from Xbox360 upwards of a $600 Million profit for just Q4 FY'09.

While it makes a nice headline to twist and turn a companies financial statement to your preferred platform's benefit, it does a great disservice to the community and your own reputation to do so.

If the next xbox dosen't have any RROD, Im in.

Sorry, but comments like that are simply flame bait. Not needed at all.

As for the article in question... Does a bear crap in the woods?

Sorry but that is the most retarded question I have ever seen??

- no next generation they are going to introduce the 1st gen xbox
- no next generation they are going to introduce the saturn
- no next generation they are going to start building cars and jump out of the console market

For flocks sake, of course they are going to introduce a new console when ever the "next" generation starts!!!

If these so called journalists had any sense, the title would be more thought provoking like "when will MS introduce their next gen console?"

M$ lost last generation and right now whil they are enjoying a second place they arent moving or pushing the gap instead its closing. M$ cannot afford to loose this generation. with the replacement of the rrod they have lost over a billion dollars and that number continues to climb.
Sorry xbots fan but natal wont drive sales it will be a fun gimmick but like the wii without hardcore titles and integration that is seamless the people who buy most of your titles will surely not.

To me it seems like xbox in a way fu1ked the game industry.they started charging all this extra crap everything on the 360 cost even batteries.
then they brought a half done system with design flaws. that is just bogus as hell right their. (the stamp of american products).
plus they dony make blu- ray or bigger disk. this is also jacked up.
do you kno whow good games would be if they were on the ps3 only. the games would be huge and less need to keep buying dlc to keep content fresh.
Xbox live the best part about his service is that you can talk to people while playing which this software would be a great addition to the ps3 also. But instead its filled with a bunch of kids that parnets need to wash there mouth out with soap.

It just doesnt make sense why sony and m$ is competing when M$ could just be ranking in the cash from software. instead of losing trying to compete with sony in a game that say whatever you want but sony is winning right now.

Sony is winning because the cheapest ps3 cost 400 and alot of you out there are praying on a price cut. as long as sony doesnt cut the price they stil got you in their corner like it or not. so their for until the xbox starts to show more promise that it can sellat the rate of the ps3 dont plan on a price cut.

The reason why you hear CEO's trying the get sony to pric cut is because they want a hundred million systems out their. They dont really see this happening with M$.So M$ is great for them right now but they all know most people are going to buy ps3 when they can afford it.

Sony was smart introducing the ps3 with a 10 year plan and hard tech. this is hypothetical totally but ask your self this if natal is a failure, not meaning it doesn't sale but it doesn't push systems,the software that comes out could be better, doenst have lasting appeal. should m$ hang it up right their.
Pride may get in the way but i think it would be time to call it quits. 2 losses this far in the game just can't happen

they are getting paid off every movie blu-ray sale everything.
who you think developed blu ray. if M$ sales blu- ray in windows or what ever format they sale it in will be significant to sony . hell if you collect 25 cent on 4 million people how much money is that. exactly that is still a major boost of free revenue.

face it people M$ jumped ship early and it paid off in the short run but now it is bitting them in the a$$

in the next gen PS4 well actually be the new wii, except it will actually have hardcore games and such and it will have tremendous sales by how cheap it will be because of how they are in that blu ray group with thoses 15 companies, it would cost Microsoft more to make a console next gen.

the ps4 will sale as well as the ps2 last gen the wii well fade off as a fad.

look at the history of MS game consoles.

I purchase all consoles going back to SNES on launch..been lucky and persistant..

Xbox released, abandoned at least 1 if not 2 years before its time
360 released, gimped with tiny HD, no HD drive for games or movies...
you bet they are gonna bail on the 360 as soon as they can to remain competitve by jumping ahead...

Not until 3D TVs hit the mass market will there be a new Xbox system. Around 2013-2014, is what I hear.

the 360 made profit blip doesnt know how to read

If Microsoft rushes to release a new console, then they would have accepted defeat this generation. If the xbox 360 is really what you guys make it out to be, then there should be no worries, right? Lets see how the 360 will stand up to the ps3 a few years from now. Unless of course it is true that the 360's hardware is close to its limit. Unless of course the 9GB dvd storage media was truly a limitation. Unless of course MS knows that the purely digital download it is pushing for right now is not feasible in the near future. Unless of course MS knows that they need bluray. Am I the only one that feels like releasing a new xbox soon will be like a slap in the face of all those who patronized microsoft and bought (several) xbox 360s. Even if MS decides to release a blu ray add on, do you think they will do it for free? Do you still think the xbox 360 is a cheaper alternative?
I'm not being a fan boy or anything, but I am being realistic. Games are taking up more and more space. You might not see it now, but it will be apparent soon. You cant keep compressing forever. Look at forza, its gonna be on 2 dvds. Sooner or later, most 360 games will be on multiple dvds because the developers NEED the extra space to put more good stuff into 360 games. Switching dvds might not be such a hassle, but do you think a multiple disk game will cost the same as a single disk game? MS can do what they want, but I'm sure if they could go back and do things differently, they would. With the benefit of hindsight, they would have done more hardware testing before release, and would have at least selected a storage media that would hold its own throughout their products "10 year life cycle". Call me whatever you want. Go ahead and click disagree. But I am happy I stuck with sony on this one.

HALO REACH is in 2010

my guess is a new xbox in 2011.

swapable internals to keep consoles around much longer (ala PC).

After 4 years have a new device you swap out to keep your games ready through another gen...

I mean, console gaming has already dabbled with this... although several if not all were failures...

Sega 32X, N64 HDD (never seen the light of day) was shown in a old EGM I read back then... showing Zelda to be using it, That red graphics booster thing that went into the front of the N64 (although didn't do anything, came with DK).

If you think of the most successful thing this gen that's swapable that furthers your gaming needs is HD's. MS and Sony both offer swapable ones. Sony has the edge cause you can get wayyyyy more gigs for your console than, MS's... but MS actually profits off of their self marketed HD's.

But with them dabbling with swapable HD's, I can't help but to think... swapable/updated innards is going to be the way of the future, and thus bring consoles even closer to joining the PC ranks!

The guy can't even spell correctly.

Well....with all those defected xboxes they might have to release a new one

msoft know how lucrative the gaming/home entertainment market is and with the 360 they have a chance to crush the last gen leader, sony.they have stated time and again that their in it for the long haul and with 14 BILLION overall profits for the year they have the capital to eventually rule the market like the ps1/2 did.msoft have a well known brand now and cant afford to let a rival put 150million internet capable consoles in homes.this could also effect their windows market share in the future a reason many have speculated why they entered the gaming space in the first place.remember sony loyalists this IS NOT SEGA but the worlds richest most sucessful company in history.

I'm a 360 owner and fan myself (gamertag: Darkridehex66, say hi sometime) but I'm also an informed gamer. I have no idea why this topic is so taboo, why people are so afraid to even discuss such an important question. I suppose the first guy that suggested Sega should get out of hardware was probably treated the same way.
Truth of the matter is the 360 has no hope of breaking even at the current rate, and Microsoft knows it. Natal might help them take some of the shine off the Wii, but considering the Xbox is much cheaper than the Wii and the Wii's walking all over it, it's not very likely we'll see consumers swayed this generation. Last year I took part in a conference call with some financial analysts that posed the same thought, it's time for Microsoft to ditch the hardware and focus on software again, their traditional strong suit. They have a responsibility to their shareholders and they can't ignore what a tremendous sinkhole the 360 has been. You can argue about the shape Sony is in all you want, but at the end of the day it doesn't make one iota of difference to the issues facing MS's Entertainment division.
As gamers, we shouldn't be afraid to discuss change.

It's inevitable, but in the meantime, it looks like they'll be pushing NATAL as their "next console". If you think about it, those games are probably not going to be compatible with both the standard controller and Natal, they would have to treat it like a new console.

That blue look would look good on MS they should change symbol to that :D.

I know alot of people going to say the Xbox360 is a console for this generation.But you are wrong the Xbox and Xbox360 was both release during the last generation or the PS2 era.So at the time Microsoft only had to worry about the PS2.So all they had to bring to the table was better graphics and a great online service.

Now we is in the third generation of consoles with only 1 console and that would be the PS3.The way I see it Sony started the next-gen conversation with the very first playstation.This article is not about sales or games but about the hardware that sets consoles apart and so far this generation the PS3 is ahead of the game.

I may get some disagrees and some people may agree to what I wrote.As long as you respect my opinion then its all good.If you dont like my opinion then tell me yours without bring sales or games into our conversation.

MS can get more first party developers then they should be fine.

A console can not depend on 3rd party developers alone.

for cereal

"Xbox720 with blu-ray, and natal built in.

With gear of war 3, and Halo Chronicles at launch. This would make the biggest launch in gaming history!."

Hell yeah and it will kill Sony and is Pshit4 for sure!

In other words...more or less its rubish. When he said "With their games division continually to report a loss, I don’t think Microsoft will and can afford to continue to operate at a loss next cycle" he cemented his opinion as worthless. Does he read news? The last 2yrs the games division has been profitable. As in making money not losing.

Gamesonsmash...you need to do some research before you type.

Has anyone notice MS has a new game engine coming out, Natal, IBM is making new chips for 360, Come on are we all that blind. There is already talk of a new 360. Xbox will drop there new system Holiday 2010.......

Thanks for your input but what games am I playing and how am I doing fans a disservice.When you mention in the first 2 years games looked better on the 360 is you talking about multiplatform games.Because if so your statment ranks hollow with me because for 1 the 360 is much much more easy to make games for and 10/10 those games are ported to the PS3.If those same games was ported to the 360 will you still stand by that statment.

So my PERSONAL opinion about this topic makes me bias.Yes the 360 have some great looking games but the reason they look so great is because we was comparing them to PS2 games.Now with the tech that the PS3 have and the fact companies is finally using we are seeing what could be done of this generation consoles.

As a gamer I would love to see inFamous,Killzone2,MGS4,GOWIII ,UC2,and MAG be played on a Xbox console but at the moment those games are not released on the Xbox.I also would love to see Gears of War 3 come to the PS3.No telling what might happen in the future one day I might be able to play an Xbox owner online while playing my PS3 or PS4.

BUT ONCE AGAIN THANKS FOR YOUR INPUT ON THIS TOPIC AND I HOPE WE CAN KEEP THIS CONVERSATION GOING WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS.

Ya they will continue, they make money with games, not console. They can't let sony win, that is why they are in the console war.

yes.

is because Microsoft had to release the Xbox360 because the Xbox was a slap in every gamers face including mine.After I brought the first Xbox and with the little games that came with the system Microsoft turn its back on us and release the Xbox360.And with the problems the 360 had after its release with RROD I cant put the 360 in the next gen systems or consoles.And I stayed with my PS2 even though I wanted a 360 because I couldnt trust the Xbox or Microsoft brand anymore.

And now with the PS3 I have no regrets of waiting a extra year for a next-gen console.The reason I brought a Ps3 because it does alot more then play games and watch movies.The fact I can search the internet save me even more money because I dont have to buy and PC or a laptop now.

So what Im saying is this if the Xbox was a last gen console and the 360 is a this gen console then why was the owners having so many problems with it.Yes the 360 was a next-gen console at the time of its release.Yes the 360 have a great onlive service but thats the way thing they have done better then Sony.

And what really bugs me is the price of the 360 how can I consider it a next gen console when its cheaper then the Wii.And you said it yourself that the Wii could be consider as a last gen console.Thats why I'm glad Sony is sticking by there price of the PS3 because you getting more then you pay for.

I HAVE NEVER WROTE THIS MUCH ON THIS SITE BEFORE.PLEASE DON'T TELL ME I'M TURNING INTO A SO CALLED FANBOY LOL JUST KIDDING NEVER THAT JUST STATING THE FACTS AND MY OPINION.

"And yet every xbot wants a Blu Ray player"

I don't want a blu-ray player. :)

of course microsoft will produce a new console competition in any industry is a great thing. it keeps all corporations trying to top one another. i personally see the XBOX 2011, if not then definitely in 2012.

the only thing i have against the xbox is that it brought out a new breed of gamers i cant stand, and the fact the 360 was nothing more than a rush job to beat sony out the door. other than that, nothing about the xbox bothers me. i love my 360, thankfully it has had no problems. however all my friends have been hit with RRoD multiple times, and this new error doesnt help either.

does the 360 have some good games? Yes
is live fun? Yes
is it a good quality console? not so much. had the crappiest craftsmanship quality ever. it had an over 60% fail rate, OVER 60%, thats insane. when they said they got rid of that, then something else popped up. ugh please just trash this model and bring out a new console.

what microsoft is doing with the 360 is like, never flushing the toilet in the bathroom and just spraying a little air freshener. expecting the smell of sh*t and piss to go away

hopefully they put an ounce of effort into making sure the next console functions correctly, so by the end of its life the console becomes something more than a sh*tty patch job.

If the 360 results in an overall profit, then they will continue. If it doesn't, maybe they give it one more shot or call it quits. So far gaming hasn't been very good to them in money speak. But thats more because they just too reckless in spending - I mean $50 million dollar for exclusive dlc? Theres some waste right there.

All MS needs to find profit in gaming is a little common sense and out a lock on the wallet. Focus on profit, not eliminating the competition.

Ill believe an article like this then even considering listening to msoft talk about how profitable there gaming division is. If any has done any research at all you will find that msoft is the biggest liars and smokescreen artist in the world. They have failed terrible in my eyes since the introduction of the orignal xbox! For a company that just monopolizes there industry in software and uses hostile takeovers to make there product number 1, they have done nothing to make there xbox the best other then hiding the failure rate and waisting more money. This arcticle is correct msoft has terrible 1st party games compared to Sony and Nintendo, and just cause there ahead of sony in sales doesn't mean there making money. Why should Sony drop the price like the xbox? They have lowered cost of production and have kept the price the same all the while selling on avg. 160,000 consoles a month!! But every1 thinks sony is failing? Why? The real fact is that msoft is failing terribly and they will hide the that forever. Don't believe everything Msoft says!

Of course they will be ready for the next round. I'm curious as to how the next gen will pan out myself.