Is Microsoft up to something?

[kn]

starcraft said:

I think it is quite possible that Microsoft is letting the channel dry up in order to put in place a new model or bundle, perhaps even a smaller Xbox 360 in the near future. It would make sense as it is now some time since the console launched, and significant cost and size cuts must surely have been made by now.

Does anyone agree with me? Why or why not? Care to speculate as to what exactly Microsoft have planned for their console?

I think you are 100% correct.  Microsoft sort of did this last time, didn't they -- i.e. slowed manufacturing/shipping of old MB to get them out of the channel before a price drop.

I think this is a multi-pronged attack:

New motherboard design -- not a falcon "fix" but an entirely new board with shrunk GPU/CPU
Price Drop to $299 for the  "Elite" and no more premium.  Why?  These are the two that are hardest to find -- especially the elite. 

The reason they are doing this is so they don't have to reimburse retailers for a price drop and possibly cause this quarter to be a "loser".

Microsoft is pushing hard for video on demand and the 20 gigger isn't going to cut it.  They need AT LEAST a 60 gig just to have some decent room for movies and such.  Ideally the 120 gig or similar will stay with us as a $299 console...

I honestly can't see any other reason there would be a "shortage" as MS most certainly has large subcons that can crank up production in a heartbeat.  It's a cover for the coming price drop and model shuffle.  Period....

I also expect that they will still offer the arcade but they will quietly untie developers and allow them to build software that requires the hard drive if they can illustrate it as necessary.