Microsoft Working with Toshiba to Create New Xbox Entertianment Set-Top Hub
By Alexander Grundner |
October 19th, 2007
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Smarthouse has an interesting story today about a new set-top product being developed by Microsoft with the help of Toshiba (ETA: late 2008 – early 2009) that will reinvent the Xbox from a gaming machine with Media Extender-style functionality to an all-in-one HD DVD player, game console, with a new “spin-off” media center interface that includes hard drive functionality. In essence, they’re trying to create an Entertainment Hub. I like to think of it as a full-blown Media Center/Game Console/HD movie player without the need of a PC (of course, it will still be able to network and stream content from Windows PCs and a Windows Home Server). Smarthouse goes on to say that there’s also talk of the hub including a dual HD TV tuner, EPG capability, and support for a new open dock port standard for connecting portable devices like an MP3 player. Maybe they were thinking along the same lines as I was the other day when I pondered why Microsoft doesn’t create a new category device that competes better with the phenomenally low priced, feature packed TiVo HD? I guess we’ll have to see. Until then, the Xbox 360 Elite is still looking pretty damn good. (Thanks goes to reader, Brian Workman, for the news tip!)
Greg Wishart – 52 minutes 21 seconds ago