MS's next XBOX already looks to have several disadvantages in terms of cost

[mrstickball]

@ Farm -

And I guess the question is that in 2011, how is that licensing fee going to be any different than what Microsoft payed for the DVD licensing on the X360?

"1. They need the beefed up combo to take advantage of the games. Why would sony want a so-so CPU/GPU and an expensive BD drive? Having so-so specs while having a BD drive would be a waste b/c you wouldn't be able to do much at all with the games that you've paid a premium to have storage space on.
2. If MS chooses a proprietary format they won't even be able to play dvds which would be a big mistake. If MS chooses dvd then they won't be able to play Blu games which would make them eat sony's dust

1. What's the definition of "beefed up"? We're talking a console that won't have hardware specifications validated for another 3 years, and will be multiple times more powerful than a Playstation 3. Since that's a near-certainty (provided MS doesn't power it ala a Wii), it's going to have plenty of horse power. Blu-Ray, in 2011 won't be a format that exact some sort of demanding processors by 2011 technology. Your argument has absolutely no merit - Any system will need a good CPU/GPU to run games well. Microsoft won't be at the mercy of a next-gen drive in terms of needing to beef up specifications to run the format. Sony already proved that it's not worth it.

2. You assume the new format would be a closed format that would be either alien to current optical formats, or owned wholly by Microsoft. Neithe is likely. If Microsoft picks a format that isn't Blu-Ray, it'll be a holographic drive like HVD. Such formats could easily have DVD playback. Again, it's a goofy thing to think that Microsoft would pick a format that's incompatible with everything else on the market.