Xbox 2 Hardware Details Leaked

According to a report from The Mercury News, Microsoft employees have purposefully leaked details of the hardware technology to be used in the next generation Xbox console. Interestingly the details show a renewed interest in keeping manufacturing costs low – an understandable priority considering the significant loss the company makes on every Xbox sold. The new Xbox will allegedly have no hard drive and may not be backwards compatible with exisiting Xbox software (in part due to the switch from NVidia to ATI graphics technology). The machine is scheduled to have 256MB of dynamic RAM, but apparently Microsoft will consider doubling this, depending on the spec of the PlayStation 3. Indeed the company may also reinstate the Xbox’s hard drive if Sony add a similar device to their new console. The new console will allegedly be powered by three IBM-designed 64-bit microprocessors (as used in high-end G5 PowerMacs) and an ATI graphics chip that is apparently “much faster” than the upcoming R400. The release date of the machine is quoted as autumn 2005. Source: The Mercury News