Some screenshots of specs.  I would take all this as rumor until confirmed.  

It feels too early even though its been 6 years. lol Time sure flies.

Welp, the sentiment is magnified especially due to the longer usual dev cycles games now experience. We're at a point we're most devs can only get one shot to make it big during the generation before already pre-emptively preparing for the next gen specs.

Also there's the haul ordeal with Xbox flip flop messaging over the last years concerning the brand and it's direction. So then, you gotta ask yourselves the question of the necessity of them making new hardware when their sales are ever so dwindling.

5 years. 

TBH, not even sure why Xbox is bothering with hardware. It is likely to sell fewer than 30 million. 

Kinda pointless I think as most studios are already barely able to make games that fully push the existing PS5/XSX consoles without risking bankruptcy in many cases and needing 7-8 years of dev time. I think what will happen is just devs not even bothering the optimize their games and brute forcing them on a console while not looking that much better than what's on the PS5 (ie: the Monster Hunter Wilds problem where not many are impressed by the graphics, but the game performs like dog shit anyway and it's audience retention is bombing).

Sony working on a portable "PS6" that's only going to be sub-PS5 tier in horsepower is also to kneecap the range of games for next gen as I can see that model actually doing reasonably well which in turn will then force devs to have to make all their games work on that hardware too. 

They need to add another 6 years to the generation cycle

There really is no need at all for new hardware right now. Anyone unsatisfied with the current-gen consoles will be on PC anyway. And since Xbox doesn't have exclusives anymore anyway, seriously, why bother?

I feel like Sony doesn't have the usual hurry to respond to this in some way. The general perception of Xbox as a hardware box has gone down significantly. One might even wonder why Microsoft is bothering with this approach anymore.

I meant from the time the next Xbox releases its been 6 years. That was not clear on my part. My bad.