Thrush

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It'll be smaller and look better sitting under your telly... but it'll still do exactly the same thing


A new, smaller-sized Xbox is expected to be unveiled at the E3 show in May.

The new version of the Microsoft's mean machine is likely to be closer in size to a PS2 and will lose the curved surfaces in favour of a flat body.

In terms of the machine's innards, it is not expected to differ to the current model, with the only addition being Xbox Live software being pre-installed.

Microsoft are also expected to unveil the first Halo 2 code at E3 - the biggest gaming show of the year. The event takes place in Los Angeles on 14-16 May.

edytwinky

Will it be any cheaper?

Trigger

hmm

Josh H

Great idea.

The current X-box's size and weight are a strike against it for me.

It's too wide to go under the tv with the PS2 and GC, because of the support beam in the middle.

I could cram it in behind the glass doors with the DVD player, CD player etc. But I don't have an empty shelf and it's too heavy to stack on top of something and the beveled top keeps you from staking anything on top of it.

If it's really the size of the PS2 I could just put it under the TV and stack the PS2 on top of it. Only problem would be tangled controller cords, but I can live with that.

If this really comes out, costs $150 or less, and Halo drops to $20 (or is available in a "pick a free game deal") I'd be all over it.

al_bundy

People who have hacked the x-box say it's really a 20Gb drive in there partitioned so you can only see 8GB. My guess is with the smaller on they are going to use a laptop hd. The smaller ones are pretty cheap and will still have enough space on them to hold anything that is needed.

Michael T Hudson

That is intresting, any idea why they would make the drive seem smaller ?

Sherbz

I think it is actually 10GB, and it is either not used or used for loading game information like levels.

Jtnguyen12

Hmmmmmmm... Smaller Version Xbox is better or currently release XBOX is Better ??

Deftones

Yes.

young

i think the smaller/flatter one will be better. i used to have the xbox sort of stacked on the ps2 but it was a wonky setup. (now i have them side by side).

also, it will probably be easier to carry around if you travel.

darkside

Thats exactly what I was thinking. I'm glad they are shrinking it down. I was hoping for something more the size of the PSone though.

Gideon68

If it ever gets to the PSOne size it won't be in the near future.

joltaddict

I hate the beveled top. Im glad theyre getting rid of it. Im not buying another but it bodes well for the next gen.

Keyser Soze

They won't tell the consumer that the new one has a smaller drive, that's now a selling point.

The units out now do have larger drives. This is so you can store many more music on it, have room for loads, have room for downloaded content, etc.

The drives they originally used were probably a little bit larger than they really needed, and they probably got some good PR out of it. People online telling their friends that they are able to rip XX:XX hours of music onto it, etc.

Now that they are trying to update it, make it smaller (and cheaper) it's time for them to cut a few corners.

This is kinda the same thing Sony did with the PS2. When they brought the PS2 stateside, they changed it up the hard drive configuration (to save money) and took the 8meg memory card out of the box; made it an accessory.

They didn't tell the U.S. buyers that they weren't getting the mem card in the box; they just promoted the newer, lower price.

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Trigger

isn't it a little bit early to be drinking heavily?

Keyser Soze

Nope... Im not drunk. Do you think the xboxes really need a 15-20 gig hard drive on them?

I'm just talking marketing. We all know that M$ has to get the price of these things down some so they can at least try to turn a profit on the units.

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evenflow

Devil is GooD.

Jackskeleton

Could just be since the time of the old xbox, the drives have become smaller in size with as much equel space to spare.

Keyser Soze

Nope, go back under your rock.



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sniper308

Hard Drives are cheap, so I'm not sure of cost savings (although any savings means more money in their pocket... and laptops come with much bigger HD's than 8 GB, so size wouldn't be that big of a consideration.

So I'm not sure why a new smaller X-Box would really have an HD with any less space.

People interested in flashing whole games down to the HD are replacing the drives, anyway... so I don't understand why they would put less of a drive in it.

But smaller is good, as long as there are not overheating problems. No, I won't know what to do if a really good deal comes along, buy one or wait for the "new" model.

Trigger

I was just teasing you for the way you said it, not for what you said.

Although - MS is just gonna get whatever batch of Hard drive is cheapest - whether it be 8gb or 15gb... they're not going to be any smaller than 8gb though. Also, smaller laptop drives aren't cheaper than normal ones... they don't perform as well though, I know that.

I've always liked the design of the Xbox personally. This move seems to be more aimed at the Japanese market.

Keyser Soze

Do the same as you'd do on a car purchase. Let someone else buy it new, pay the premium... then get it cheaper w/a few miles on it.

I picked up my xbox with HALO for less than $100.

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Gizmo

I will prob. trade in my old Xbox and get the newer, smaller one, as long as they don't make it to 'cheap'.

dvdsteve2000

You know, I see everyone comparing it to the PS2 in size, but at least you don't have to reach around to the back to turn the Damn thing on like a PS2!! God, I hate that!! I like the size of the PS2, but it's in the middle of my set-up, and reaching in to 'power-on' is a real pain!!

Josh H

Just press and hold in the button on the front to turn off the ps2. Technically that puts it in standby mode, but all that's running is the little light.