Microsoft Confirms New Xbox 720 as ‘Infinity’; Release Date in May 21?
Xbox Infinity is the official name of the successor of Xbox 360 previously referred to Xbox 720 and Durango, according to reports.
The upcoming game console is supposed to be launched at an unveiling event on May 21. Xbox Infinity branded advertising and marketing material appeared online late last month with the teaser tagline "Infinite entertainment. Infinite possibilities".
Moreover, the alleged pictures of the console showed the familiar Xbox logo partnered with the infinity symbol in the associated console green. Several online critics suggest the Xbox Infinity logo images were not created by Microsoft due to the lettering not being in a straight line.
Reports claimed that the release date of the upcoming Xbox 720 will be delayed as Sony has an exclusive license over the use Blu-ray technology in game consoles.
This rumour comes from the website Mondbox which received the information from a source working in a large Italian commercial chain. Apparently there is a clause in the Blu-ray licensing terms that gives Sony the exclusive rights to implement Blu-ray in game consoles. Sony's Playstation 3 console supports Blu-ray, while the Xbox 360 lacks support for it.
Normally referred to as the Xbox 720, the Xbox Infinity will be showcased at a "special unveiling" by Microsoft's President of Interactive Entertainment Don Mattrick and the Xbox team. The next-generation Xbox launch should be used to unveil the new console, which is tipped to have the same eight-core x86-64 AMD Jaguar processor with 8GB of RAM as the PS4 console revealed in February.
Rumoured to play host to two separate CPUs for dedicated gaming and multimedia processing capabilities, the Xbox Infinity could also have the new Kinect 2 motion gaming peripheral, Xbox TV streaming service and 3D technology.
The Xbox 720 always-on DRM connection has recently been debunked by an apparently legitimate internal Microsoft email, which also tipped the next-gen console to pack a Blu-ray player and HDMI input connection.
The next generation of Xbox console is expected to be announced on the 21st of May this year and was expected to be launched during the holiday season. The new Xbox might not become available earlier than the first quarter of 2014.
However, Microsoft will face stiff competition with the release of Playstation 4. Sony's upcoming next generation console is scheduled for release the holiday season of 2013.