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Gates May Announce Xbox 360 DVR At CES

Posted by Zonk on Wed Jan 02, 2008 04:31 PM
from the red-ring-of-content dept.
XBox (Games) Media Television Technology
Via Kotaku, an article at the Seattle Times offers an interesting theory on what might be an important part of Bill Gates' keynote at CES next week. According to Times writer Brier Dudley, upgrades and licensing for the Xbox 360 could be a big new feather in Microsoft's cap: "I've speculated on my blog that Microsoft may be preparing to license the Xbox gaming platform to consumer-electronics companies. In particular, Microsoft could work with Toshiba to develop a digital video recorder with a hard-drive, high-definition HD-DVD drive and Xbox gaming capabilities. They're already allied against Sony and other backers of the Blu-ray DVD format, and Toshiba could help Xbox finally penetrate the Japanese market." Toshiba has repeatedly denied the possibility of a 360 unit with a built-in HD-DVD drive, it should be noted.
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  • If it is true and Microsoft can get good integration with the Zune then it could be a big winner.
    Hack I may even get one if they can get it is HD and will work well with Comcast.
    • If you turn a 360 into a DVR, it makes you have to choose whether to use that HD space on illegal game copies or time shifted video content (or at a minimum on XBox360 HD's).....I say it's a big win for MS because it will increase the dollars they get from game sales or HD sales.

      Layne

  • Makes a scary amount of sense... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Junta (36770) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @04:39PM (#21886648)
    If MS wants to continue their business the way they always have, the xbox and xbox360 may have been part product, and part proof-of-concept to try to sell a sort of gaming-system platform, ala the Windows OS for desktop.

    If Toshiba and others decided to make consumer electronics devices that happened to be 'xbox 360' compliant, or whatever the platform specification of the time happens to be, MS may decide to maintain merely the core platform specification, client software stack, and the server infrastructure of xbox live, without producing many units of their hardware implementation of the platform they dictate.

    Of course, they run the *high* risk of doing so of defeating the whole point of consoles, that every console is the same hardware with the same features so game developers don't have to worry about the complexity of the user having a varying amount of central processor/graphics horsepower/memory/different optical drives. If HD-DVD got integrated and supported as a platform for games to be published on, that would walk the 360 down the path of the computer in terms of having to read 'requirements' on the box before purchase, and licensing could lead to a mess if they aren't careful on all the various components.
    • What about something like the Expansion Pak [wikipedia.org] for the Nintendo 64? There were quite a few games that took advantage of its benefits without being absolutely necessary for gameplay... would a direction like that be possible & adviseable for HD gameplay?

  • Make it Quieter (Score:5, Interesting)

    by kannibal_klown (531544) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @04:40PM (#21886652)
    Between a nice sale and gift card I bought the 360 HD-DVD addon for a song. An HD-DVD player for (practically) free that didn't take up an extra set of Component inputs, how could I loose? Plus I could now watch Heroes season 1 on HD-DVD (I missed all of the first season on TV).

    Unfortunately it didn't take me too long to realize that my 360 is just too flippin' loud to enjoy movies. It's one thing if I'm gaming, but if I'm watching an old classic I'd rather not heard the buzzing of those fans. Since I was already jazzed to get Heroes I decided to return the unit and get the cheap Toshiba HD-A2 for a small price instead.

    If they want to seriously consider doing this, they need to engineer the unit so it's a lot quieter or perhaps makes sure it doesn't get so loud with age.

    • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

      by p0tat03 (985078)
      It's not the fans. It's the damned DVD drive. You would think after making an excellent DVD drive (certainly superior to the rickety piece of crap in the PS2) for the Xbox, they'd do the same for the 360. Nooooooo. The machine itself is whisper quiet (while playikng XBLA games, for example), but once you let that disc spin up, boy, I'd rather be riding in a F-18, bet that's quieter.

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by iainl (136759)
        Did you leave a game in the main DVD drive? There's some really stupid code in the HD-DVD player that causes the DVD to spin up if there's a disc left in there, and it's this that causes most of the noise on my system. As long as I take any disc out then playing a HD-DVD from the other drive is fine on mine. It's still a louder than an A2, mind you, so you're still a bit better off with your new setup.

        • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

          by mingot (665080)
          You do realize that even though it died before the extension it IS covered now, right? Send that sucker in to get it fixed and make a few bucks on ebay.
  • Let someone else lose money selling XBox consoles, so MS can make money licensing the hardware and the games, and game publishers can make money selling the games themselves. So, who in the world would get on board to do this? The only way to turn a profit on the console alone would be horrendous quality.

  • If only... (Score:4, Informative)

    by flitty (981864) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @04:48PM (#21886752)
    It won't be built in. The public image of ANOTHER version of the xbox that is more expensive than the ps3 is too damaging to the brand, even if it has new features. They wouldn't release an 360 at the current price point with the DVR built in, WAY too many upset early adopters who would be RROD their xbox on purpose.

    The only way MS could do this successfully is by upgrading the HD-DVD player, keeping it at the current price point, but adding DVR functionality to the thing, even if it makes the player a little thicker for the hard drive. An "HD upgrade kit" if you will. Then get rid of the old version of the HDDVD player at fire sale prices. That way, the minority of xbox owners that bought the HDDVD players would be the only consumer base that would feel upset, but keeping the price the same would be understandable since the add-on has been around for a while, and it's sales are definately slumping.
    • what if you only want the DVR capability, would you necessary spend the extra on the HD-DVD player... dunno about you but I don't plan on going to HD discs for as long as I can (if ever, i don't wanna re-buy my 100+ dvds)

    • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

      by Erwos (553607)
      Here's my theory: Microsoft understands what a huge screw-up the CableCard initiative has been on the Media Center side. They're going to go ahead and get the 360 certified by CableLabs, and then allow you to buy CableCard tuners, like the existing ATI OCUR and the upcoming BCOR (which would allow for PPV). They'll then allow you to use this as an external tuner for a single Media Center box, kind of like how the HDHomeRun currently works. This allows them to bypass the system-level DRM and certification re

  • Media Companies??? (Score:3, Interesting)

    by gstoddart (321705) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @04:55PM (#21886844) Homepage
    How will the media companies respond to this? I thought they were already fighting the idea of DVRs, or at least trying to get them to prevent commercial skipping?

    Surely the media companies won't want Microsoft to allow this to happen in any form the consumer might actually want? And I'm sure anyone affiliated with Sony won't like the HD-DVD format at all.

    Admittedly, if anyone has the clout to try it's Microsoft, but I'm still skeptical this would take off.

    Cheers
    • I doubt if MS is coming up with this things won't be DRMed to the core and prehaps prevent commercial skipping.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Have Blue (616)
      Remember that the 360 is a closed system. Anything Microsoft decides to put in for the benefit of the media companies, you won't be able to get rid of.

  • What does this mean for console development? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Asmor (775910) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @04:56PM (#21886852) Homepage
    Consoles have always had one major advantage over PCs as a gaming platform: consistent hardware. An Xbox is an Xbox is an Xbox. When producing a game for a console, you don't need to test every possible combination of a dozen video cards, a dozen processors, a dozen motherboards, etc. You test it on an Xbox. It works on your Xbox? It works on your customer's Xbox.

    I'm worried about the possibility of fragmentation that may occur here, if other companies are allowed to make their own Xboxes. Even if there are a set of standards, there's nothing stopping them from skimping on parts, or even using slightly different architectures which throw the whole thing out of whack.
    • The Panasonic Q. It was a Nintendo Game Cube with DVD player functionality added. But the game-playing guts were exactly the same as a regular Game Cube so it didn't interfere with game development.

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by G Fab (1142219)
        Also, Sony made the PSX, which is a playstation 2+DVR media center. Had the first XMB system, too.

        It was a huge flop, but this might not be. If I were to buy another XBOX, I would avoid a Microsoft built one if other manufacturers were known to make these in a more reliable form.

        Thing is, Isn't the PS3 able to be a DVR with a minor upgrade? I think Sony is just waiting on that to keep the Media companies in bed with Blu Ray, but this might push Sony to get that DVR attachment out faster.

        Also, if the XBOX

    • Re:What does this mean for console development? (Score:4, Informative)

      by Liquidrage (640463) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @05:56PM (#21887508)
      "Even if there are a set of standards, there's nothing stopping them from skimping on parts, or even using slightly different architectures which throw the whole thing out of whack."

      Sure there is. Microsoft. There's not a chance in hell MS would let anyone make another one that wasn't 100% compatible with the current ones. There's plenty of room (and common sense) for MS to allow others to make a 360 and to control the specs they are made to.
  • Gates could do all kinds of things at the CES... this really ain't any kind of news.

  • Wow (Score:4, Interesting)

    by obeythefist (719316) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @07:14PM (#21888396) Journal
    Just imagine, a cheap device that is "360 compatible". Plays any Xbox 360 game. Has any set of features any number of licensed OEMs would like to put in. HP could make one. Dell could make one. Panasonic could embed them in TVs.

    If the licensing outlay is cheap and competitive enough, it would kill Sony.

    It seems a bit far-fetched, though.

      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by grapeape (137008)
        Hmm Lets See...

        3DO:

        The most expensive console of its day (and probably of all time if adjusted for inflation)

        Poor game selection out of the gate and little support afterwards.

        Trip Hawking was too obsessed with making it a multimedia setup box rather than focusing on games.

        Advertising was nearly non-existent and focused on the wrong aspects.

        A horrible controller and only one controller port so controllers had to be daisy chained together.

        No real exclusives other than an early jump on Street Fighter 2 turbo.

        3

  • Not happening.. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by rtechie (244489) on Wednesday January 02 2008, @08:44PM (#21889322)
    This simply isn't happening.

    The rumor within MS is that Microsoft would announce another VERSION of the XBOX 360 with PVR capabilities and Cablecard support. It is my understanding that this hinged on getting at least one of the major cable companies (TimeWarner and Comcast) on board. This apparently did not happen. Therefore, there will be no 360 PVR.

    • [3DO] died, because it meant 3DO machines on shelves that cost a grand, and when introducing a console, it's customary to subsidize it somewhat.

      Couldn't a subsidy work here too, though? "If you want to sell Xbox 360 variants, we'll pay you $X per unit to offset some of your costs." Microsoft is "losing" the same amount per unit, whether they build it or someone else does, but presumably they'd see a return on game sales both ways.

      the Xbox360's media service competes with services like Comcast's On D

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by bigman2003 (671309)
      so they can destroy that just like they wrecked personal and business computing

      That comment is so wrong, it's incredible.

      If there is one single company that moved personal and business computing forward, it is Microsoft.

      Say what you want about their interface, their ethics, whatever...no company has done more to move businesses and individuals onto computers than Microsoft.

      The fact that 90% of the computers in the world run Windows should tell you something about their influence.

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