Report: Next Xbox To Have No Disc Drive

[King Ragnar]

Has Durango lost its drive?


The next Xbox won't contain a physical disc drive, according to a new report.

A source close to British trade magazine MCV claims that Microsoft revealed this information under what it described as "the strictest NDA" they have ever encountered.

While the console will not contain a disc drive, according to the source, the report suggests it will contain "some sort of interchangeable solid-state card storage, although it is not known whether this will be proprietary or a more standard format such as SD."

MCV is also claiming that a 2013 release window for the hardware has been confirmed.

A move to digital-only distribution would be extremely unconventional for Microsoft; if there is any truth to this report, it would be a major blow for traditional retail. Microsoft has yet to officially deny the story.

In response to the report, Microsoft has said, "We are always thinking about what is next for our platform and how to continue to defy the lifecycle convention. Beyond that we do not comment on rumors or speculation."

http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/122/1220412p1.html

[GreenL420]

Seen this earlier hard to say whether they will go threw with it or not it will be a retailers nightmare if this happens lol

[Omar]

as long as watever they do is innovative its all good ... still feel like the console gaming industry is kinda slow ... i prefer the PC with an Xbox joystick

[Havok]

It's going to have a drive and physical media... what sort is the question. Personally I think they need to go with Blu Ray, if they don't they will be shooting themselves in the feet as Blu Ray is the standard for any serious movie fan. Fuck Netflix, Fuck Hulu, Fuck youtube... if you call yourself even a casual movie fan then you need a blu ray drive, case closed. Of course, if they decide that alienating consumers is a good move, then going with a memory card style cartridge could work great for games. However it's simply suicide to not include a Blu Ray drive in the next generation. Download speeds are not up to par to download games on a regular basis, Netflix doesn't carry anything even remotely recently released, requires a separate account, removes movies on a regular basis, and there are people that still haven't upgraded to HDtv and Blu Ray let alone considering going strictly digital. Trying to force consumers into a digital only console or one that can't play standard media is suicide ala the PSPGo.