News is beginning to surface regarding a CPU upgrade being prepped for XBox 360 while stories about emulation through Xbox Live Arcade and some pricing rumors for HD-DVD for Microsoft's console are getting people excited about E3 2006.
The Microsoft rumor mill had been quiet for some time but as E3 approaches the pace has once again picked up. The only confirmed story is probably the scariest one for current XBox 360 owners and has to do with a CPU upgrade being prepared for the console. The agreement between Microsoft and Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing mentions manufacturing of CPU products-using 65-nanometer (nm) Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI) semiconductor technology -for Microsoft's Xbox 360 game consoles. Production is expected to begin in the first quarter of 2007 and the move to 65 nm will help keep power consumption and heat build-up within the X360 low. This leaves room for a performance improvement as well as a greater profit margin for Microsoft but there are some problems associated with such a move.
Console manufacturers rarely take advantage of the increased power offered by new CPUs as compatibility issues could arise while current XBox 360 owners would not be very happy to have paid a premium for a slower console.
Moving on to the newest XBox 360 rumors and the main ones have to do with pricing issues as reports from a Spanish forum suggest that Microsoft will reduce the price of the core X360 pack by USD 80 and the premium package by USD 100 in October 2006. The other important rumor, from the same source, claims that MS will release an HD-DVD add-on for X360 that will connect to the USB 2.0 port and will cost USD 100. It is important to note that the real war this time round is not a console war as much as a DVD format war and Microsoft would be eager to offer X360 owners a viable option to owning a next-gen DVD drive as well as a next-gen gaming console. The aim is to have a console - HD-DVD drive combo available in the fall that will still be cheaper than rival Sony's PS3 which will launch on November 2006 with a Blu-Ray drive included.
The final rumor for today has to do with Microsoft's plans to offer emulation for gamers through the XBox Live Arcade service. According to an unnamed MS source Microsoft plans to offer a legal version of MAME while SEGA seems to also be on-board with some of its classic titles. It seems that Microsoft was watching what hackers were up to with the original XBox and took notes.
That's it for today but stay with MegaGames as Microsoft is bound to up the ante as E3 2006 approaches.
