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Originally Posted by Zorilla
My bet is that if there is no inbuilt hard drive as standard then either:
1) There will be an enhanced Xbox2 available for those that need/want the extra storage (leaving the basic model for those who want just the console)
[Not sure on this, but it has been rumoured somewhere]
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Perhaps (see Ryan's link, plus the end of my reply)
I think that would be a better idea than another possibility I've heard: HDD available as a separate add-on [which, IMO, could easily go the way of the MegaCD, 32X, 64DD, etc].
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2) It will link easily to your home PC, so that you can use your PC's hard drive to store large data
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Quite possible, I think, at least for media perhaps. M$ have already announced a "Media Centre Extender" for linking an XBox to a Win XP MC Edition PC.
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3) It will be able to write info to recordable disks
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I don't think so. Apparently the main reasons for (possibly) dropping the HDD are a) cost & b) to help clamp down on the mod scene. I don't think having a recordable drive of some sort would help that.
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4) They will rely on some other form of storage.
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Current rumour is still that they will use some sort of high-capacity flash RAM cards. Not as big as a HDD, but big enough for saves & content etc. Plus it gives M$ the ability to "do a Sony" & charge high prices for memory cards - memory cards which would be essential to own.
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I can't believe that M$ will neglect the need for downloadable content - They have put so much effort into Live that they would not risk it, by removing such an important part.
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True. I assume that if there is no HDD, the alternative storage method used instead would have enough space for DLC (most DLC is quite small, & even bigger things such as the PGR2 Paris DLC etc aren't really massive, & don't need something as big as the XBox 1's HDD)
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Originally Posted by Ryan
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That's not really positive news regarding XBox2 having a HDD, though, IMO.
It's about a possible XBox2
version with HDD & other features, not about the actual XBox2 itself having a HDD. It's also just a concept they're testing interest in via market research.
Original article:
http://money.cnn.com/2004/05/26/comm...column_gaming/
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Originally Posted by CNN-Money
CNN/Money staff writer Chris Morris
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Two months ago, Microsoft spoke glowingly of bridging the gap between the PC and Xbox. Now the company is considering erasing that gap completely.
While Microsoft has publicly avoided discussing its next generation machine, it has been quietly conducting studies on the consumer appeal of a hybrid device that would play both PC and Xbox games.
"We would be remiss if we didn't look at consumer scenarios that take advantage of our strengths," said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of worldwide marketing and publishing for Microsoft's home and entertainment division. "[But] this is one amongst many, many other consumer scenarios that we're looking at."
The B/R/S Group, a California-based market research company that lists Microsoft and the Xbox division specifically as clients, has been gathering consumer feedback on a device it refers to as Xbox Next PC †“ "a videogame console system with a hard drive and a built-in fully functional PC." Mention of the device came on one of several slides shown to focus groups
(snip)
The point of the study that included the Xbox Next PC was to determine what consumers want to see in next generation machines †“ and what they're willing to pay for those features. Gathering pricing sensitivity data for products is one of the most challenging market research projects for hardware developers.
It's important to note that any product looked at in these sorts of studies is conceptual and may undergo dramatic feature changes before hitting the market †“ if, in fact, it manages to emerge from the doors of the R&D labs.
"If you put two and two together, there's no doubt there's a great opportunity to put the two platforms together," said Moore. "Obviously with a company like Microsoft this is something we have to look into and ask about. Is it actionable today? Probably not, but it's something we need to look at."
There is, of course, a greater question of whether consumers would have any interest in a console/PC hybrid. Game machines, historically, have evolved rather slowly. Large leaps haven't been rewarded. Sony learned this lesson with the introduction of the PSX, a combination PlayStation 2/Digital Video Recorder, which sold poorly in Japan and has yet to receive a U.S. launch date.
(snip)
Should Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) move forward with a hybrid machine, it will likely come after a standalone Xbox 2 unit is released. As for when we'll see next generation Xboxes on store shelves - officially, Microsoft isn't commenting, but it has been giving publishers guidance to plan for a 2005 launch.
(snip)
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