Looks like microsoft are insecure and can't cope with the competition against the playstation 3. Sales is all they have. They have no way out of this except releasing a new system that's hardly any more powerful than the playstation 3.

And fazz, it's not 8.5gb, it's 7gb. Xbox 360 games can only access 7gb in dvds for game data whilst the remaining few gb are for security architecture. Not very next gen is it? They've should've gone for hd dvd, that way there could've been no limit for disk space. 

Well, I was expecting a full blown new system from Microsoft in 2010; however this 360 plus still counts as it isn't using the current architecture which everyone else was claiming would be going on until 2014.

Also, I said Gears 3 would be its big launch game. And it's almost a certainty now that Gears 3 will be out soon to help with the sales of this new version.

Plus, pricing appears to be what I predicted.

So, I guess I'm the Man.

My predictions are worthless, not.

MS, Toshiba is already working on DVD 2.0

960p video (Upconverted)
Compatible with older dvd players (in 480i/p)
About twice the size of a dvd9 (maybe more)

Xbox 360 is already compatible with the new spec.

Problem solved.

This article was written by Zach Morris. I wonder if it was the same guy that was on Jimmy Fallon last week.

Rckrz, 17gb? Oh please.

If true, sounds like a disbalance between storage capacity and graphics potential.

The upped EDRam should provide a lot of additional graphics potential, so a true 1080p console like the PS3 in terms of full potential. The PS3 will still have the advantage of more storage (Blu-Ray vs DVD) and higher performance processor (6 cores vs 8 processors for the PS3 with fast local system memory) which may compensate for the 360's newer GPU. The NextBox will then however provide more system RAM than the PS3 and a faster loading internal drive.

Technically the PS3 would be about on par, but IMO Blu-Ray >>> more system RAM for a games console. I hope it's true, as it will up the potential for cross platform XBox/PS3 gaming and I hope PC devs will start to move towards Blu-Ray in the coming years, then the PS3 would have an edge for cross platform PC/PS3 development in terms of game potential.

Thats more then enough now.  ALmost all ps3 blue ray games don't even go over that using little or no compression.

Don't start quoting me on games that do because i know there are some that do like MGS

edit:  single layer BD discs are only 25 gigs.

Rckz, not even games like god of war 3, final fantasy XIII, killzone 2, little big planet, ratchet and clank, etc would be able to fit on a 17gb dvd and would provide more than one measely dvd to store just one game. Today's games are beginning to take up the extra disk space that bluray offers. And I'm not just talking about 25gb bluray disks.

I can bet those games are totally uncompressed. Since they have the extra disc space to do it. I think a good majority of next gen games won't have a problem fitting on 2 dvd's. This standard is already in the works. It will replace the current dvd spec and is backword compatible with the all the old dvd players. (minus special features and resolution upscaling)

DVD 2.0 Format Specification

1. Video encoded in MPEG2 SD
2. HD available via Super Upconversion to 960p
3. HDi interactivity
4. Networking
5. Managed Copy
6. Fully backward compatible with existing DVD players.

Obvisouly BD is going to provide better video, but this is a way cheaper alternative.

Dev still amaze me with the amount they can squeeze on a dvd9

Look at current PC games, there on 1-2 DVDs

And by all means PC supprases console graphics by a long shot.