The rumoured Xbox 720, codenamed Durango, will be unveiled on May 21 or a month after the earlier announced April 24 preview with the likely release date to come later this year, a new report said.

The fresh pushback, according to The Verge, will shift the focus of the next Xbox gaming console and this time around Microsoft appears bent on previewing the much-awaited specs of its new box via a relatively tame event, to be staged in a small venue.

However, the full unleashing of currently the top gaming system will not happen until June this year as Microsoft is eyeing a glitzy unpacking via the E3 gaming showcase on the same month.

"Microsoft recently revealed that Xbox is part of the agenda for its Build conference in late June, where developers will likely learn about the company's next-generation plans," The Verge said on its report.

Many rumours about the upcoming product, also known as the Xbox 720, are swirling around but one thing is sure, the same report said: it will be one of the peripheral Microsoft attractions with the Windows as the core offering.

A May preview for the new Xbox will surely position it well against rivals PlayStation 4 by Sony and Wii U by Nintendo going into the yearly E3 game convention, experts said.

Earlier, it was suggested that the Durango blueprint for the next Xbox requires an active internet connection for optimal gaming experience, pointing to a scenario of suspended game play during offline modes.

But the more interesting speculation is the supposed bundling of the new Kinect with the Xbox, the hardwiring so deep that the console would be inoperable with the motion-sensor controller.

The updated Kinect will also come with a high-resolution sensor that allows it more accurate reading of body movements by players engaged in a particular game.

It is also widely believed that the user interface of the Xbox 720 or Durango will largely carry over the UI that users have seen with the Xbox 360, promising a smoother transition for users come the expected release date of the console later this year.