If they actually spell it "Lite", then I am very disappointed.


Hmm... I wonder what kind of features (if any) they removed to make it small. No HDD support? No disc reader???

Wow. I was just commenting in the 'MS & Sony aren't showing new consoles at E3 - Stupid or Smart?' thread that MS would respond to Nintendo's new console not by releasing a new console but by poo-pooing it at merely a 'current' gen console (as Wii was 'last' gen) and by poaching Nintendo's casual base even harder while Nintendo is focused on core with Wii-U.

A Xbox Lite announcement at E3 would definitely support my theory. It's a great idea. With Nintendo taking their eyes off the massive casual base, and Sony still f---ing clueless as to who those 150m people who bought PS2's were, MS will cement their position as the primere casual system and maintain the Kinect/Lite system well into the 720's life until it drops to a mass market friendly price.

MS has learned a lot and is seeking to avoid another 2b loss with the start of another hardware gen.

If there's a new redesign and/or price drop, 2012 is when it will happen. Unless they want to help the Wii U do well, they, along with Sony, will drop their console prices in order to have their best shot at remaining relevant for the next 1-3 years. MicroSony need to keep their console prices as they are until Nintendo unveils the price point for the Wii U, then drop later in the year to give the biggest price difference possible. Force Nintendo to go higher than they should, then take the budget gaming market away from them.

This would actually explain those rumors floating around about an Xbox with no Disc drive and digital Distribution only.

I would imagine they would want to sell as much of their product to people as they can.  PS3 has been around a year after 360, there's no excuse for a competior to over-take them, considering PS3's history..  They don't care about how many numbers sony are pushing, but, they still want their own numbers to be good, and if their numbers are lower than Sony's, then, it's simply not good enough.

Then, there's also things like exclusives...  I had to wait an extra year for Tekken 6 just so xbox could get a port of the game.  And, this is after I waited a year for the arcade version..  So many missed opprotunities with the PS3, because it failed to capitalize.

You say it's nice to see the sales, yet, how do you think it is to look at those sales, and think about the profit you're getting from those sales?  Fans aren't getting money, the corps are.  So, obviously they do care..

I would be willing to buy a $100 download only XBox. It would depend on size of storage and format; but I doubt this is true because of the ARM part.

IAlso, I don't think current HD sonsoles will ever reach $100. $150 is the lowest they will get imo.

Once the XBox 720 comes out, 3rd party support drops though.
Unless the 720 flops and people keep buying the 360.

What makes you think that?

I think that will be dependant on the price point of the Wii U. If its below $300 and priced competitively with the other two, then you can expect casuals jumping in, otherwise its pretty much up to the hardcore to keep the console afloat for the first few years until the price can drop.

Maybe a MS XBox portable game system to compete against the PS Vita, 3DS and the Apple IPad. Small casual games are highly profitable and have low development costs, smaller number needs to be sold to break even on costs.