Next gen Xbox consoles delayed till 2014

With the Xbox turning seven this November, many users of the console are happy that its shelf life of the product was long. However, a mainstream gaming console such as Xbox definitely warrants an update. As per a report by SemiAccurate, the next generation Xbox faces further delay. It appears that it may be launched only by early 2014 due to issues with the AMD chip that is expected to be used in it.

The author of the report notes that the yield rates on the Xbox’s AMD processor chip known as ‘Oban’ are really slow and that Microsoft may not be able to match up to the September 2013 launch date that was provided by them. This may likely prompt the brand to launch it by 2014 instead. They also state that Microsoft may be dual or triple sourcing the parts to ensure that that it is ready to be launched by the September 2013 time frame.

Don't go expecting anything new next year as well

In a recent interview with The Verge, Brian Hall, General Manager of Windows Live, Microsoft mentioned the existence of a new Xbox. Hall referred to “the new Xbox” as one of the many projects that could be integrated with Windows 8. He said, “We’ve had Hotmail and operated Hotmail for about 16 years. We obviously have Exchange, and Outlook, that people use at work. We just decided it was time to do something new and bring the best from each of those and put them together and release it right in time for the new wave of products that we could have coming out with Windows 8, with the new version of Office, with the new Windows Phone and the new Xbox”.

While this was the first time anyone from Microsoft had openly acknowledged the existence of the next generation console, Microsoft later backtracked in a comment to IGN.com, “The comments to The Verge were not understood in their intended context. When Brian mentioned a ‘new wave of products,’ he was referring to the full lineup of products coming later this year from Microsoft, including Windows 8, Office, Windows Phone and of course our fall Xbox update which will bring a host of new consumer experiences like Xbox Music, Videos, Games on Windows 8 and Xbox SmartGlass.”

According to an earlier report, a supposed Xbox 720 “Durango” developer kit was posted on a developer forum and was introduced to the public for a price of $10,000. The developer kit resembles the traditional PC tower running a debug launcher, which caused many people to be cautious and sceptical about whether the prototype is authentic. EuroGamer’s Digital Foundry reached the source of the leak. After following up on the story with multiple developers, who are working on next-gen projects, they came to the conclusion that the hardware was real.