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Xbox 720 will be six times as powerful as Xbox 360

by Alistair Lowe on 26 January 2012, 11:32

Tags: Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT)

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It appears very much to be a week for rumours, with details of NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 7XX series, talks of iPhone 5s, Galaxy S IIIs and lightfield cameras; however today is Microsoft's turn with details of the firms latest console, the Xbox 720.

According to gaming news and reviews site, IGN, a source close to the Xbox 720 project has confirmed that the new console will feature six times the processing power of the current-gen Xbox 360 and will likely ship to retailers in late October or early November next year.

AMD Radeon HD 6670

The site's sources also went so far as to confirm that the GPU for the new system will go into production before the end of this year and will be based on AMD's well-established Radeon HD 6000 series, with specifications best matching the HD 6670, a mid-range DirectX11 and 3D capable GPU. Given that the console is likely over a year away from release and, that its graphical capabilities are based on an already last-gen mid-range card, one might wonder exactly what Microsoft is aiming for with its new console, which, unlike the 360, is unlikely to push any performance boundaries upon release.

Perhaps some insight can be gleaned from an e-mail sent to gaming news site, Kotaku, from a Microsoft representative which stated, "As an innovator we're always thinking about what is next and how we can push the boundaries of technology like we did with Kinect. We believe the key to extending the lifespan of a console is not just about the console hardware, but about the games and entertainment experiences being delivered to consumers. Beyond that we don't comment on rumors or speculation."

To this writer, it feels very much as though Microsoft may be looking to take Nintendo's approach to gaming in the next round of the console wars, with focus on enhancing experiential devices such as the Kinect, looking further into 3D technology and the interactions that are possible, whilst keeping the hardware affordable and compact.

On a potentially upsetting note, rumours have also been floating around that the new console may very well embrace Blu-ray technology, a rumour which one would expect to be received positively, however, along with this are suggestions that Microsoft may also deploy anti-used-game technology to prevent the resale or perhaps even lending of games. If the rumour proved true, no doubt it'll create quite a stir amongst the console community; meanwhile we wonder just how far Microsoft would consider going, from online activation to burning discs upon first insert.

With any luck some rumours will prove true, whilst others we pray will prove false, either way, expect more details to emerge in the coming months.



HEXUS Forums :: 53 Comments

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Well, I won't need to buy another graphics card for at least 7 more years then…
Given that a the 1900XT era card in the X360 is still pumping out titles that modern PCs can struggle with I think it's a safe bet to say that efficiency savings through dedicated API/OS and designing for a single system far outweigh sheer power of high end PC cards.
HD6670 level gfx? I certainly hope they are wrong! The console hasn't even gone into production yet and the gfx chip is already nothing special…..

For me, 6 times more powerful should have been the target if they released in 2010…..for a 2013 release it should be 12-16 times more powerful.

Seems they may be going the Nintendo route…
kalniel
Given that a the 1900XT era card in the X360 is still pumping out titles that modern PCs can struggle with I think it's a safe bet to say that efficiency savings through dedicated API/OS and designing for a single system far outweigh sheer power of high end PC cards.

This is why, in part, I don't buy the rumour so to speak.

The 360 had its GPU cut from the high-end offerings and was still relatively cheap on launch.

MS earn enough through their software and services to completely offset any ‘expensive’ hardware and will also have the “Best graphics around” line to boot as well.
kalniel
Given that a the 1900XT era card in the X360 is still pumping out titles that modern PCs can struggle with I think it's a safe bet to say that efficiency savings through dedicated API/OS and designing for a single system far outweigh sheer power of high end PC cards.

… but with a much reduced resolution and image quality? (shadows/water seem to get picked on alot here)

I suppose it totally depends on the cost at launch as to whether this will be okay or not. £400+ could get you reasonable high-end graphics card updates over the same time period.

I'm not really sure how Xbox games are developed, but does the 6670 being DX11 mean that DX11 wil become mainstream for PC games?