[X360] Exclusive: Microsoft Speaks on Xbox 360, HD DVD Player

[.:|Physalis|:.]

In an exclusive interview with GamePro, a Microsoft hardware manager speaks on the advantages of the company's strategy with the Xbox 360 and HD DVD Player, as well as Sony's weaknesses with the PlayStation 3.

We recently had an insightful discussion with Microsoft's Albert Penello, group marketing manager for the company's Xbox hardware division.

Though the talk mostly centered on the mystery surrounding the Xbox 360 HD DVD player, Penello touched on the next-gen console war and arch rival Sony's ambitious strategy for the PlayStation 3.
On the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player

Bad news: Microsoft is still not ready to announce the final price point of the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player. Good news: Penello eased our price concerns by saying that the 360's HD DVD Player will be " far and away the cheapest [next-gen DVD player]." Penello rammed this point home again and again during our chat, and appeared supremely confident that the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player would be the cheapest player on the market, in his words, "by a wide margin."

And there's more good news -- the HD DVD Player will "be out in plenty of time for the holidays," and the price announcement should come by the Tokyo Game Show or X06.

On DVI and HDMI Output

Penello confirmed that the Xbox 360 HD DVD Player will stick with the 360's standard analog video outputs: component (red, green, and blue plugs) and VGA. Penello addressed concerns over the Xbox 360's analog-only video output, and confirmed that there are "currently" no plans for the Xbox 360 to add HDMI or DVI support. "There's nothing about the Xbox 360 that says it can't support HDMI," Penello told us. "We just didn't design it that way." Penello even took a jab at the HDMI format itself, saying that "HDMI isn't finished...even one of the PS3 SKUs doesn't have it."

On the other hand, Penello was careful not to rule anything out: "one day we might add it in," he offered, referring to HDMI support. But Penello lashed out at criticisms that the Xbox 360's component and VGA outputs are inferior, saying that "the people who are the most impassioned are the ones who know the least about it." When it comes to the different between component and HDMI video, Penello said, "the reality is, for any normal HD owner, the difference [between the formats] is nonexistent."
The current Xbox 360 design isn't changing anytime soon, according to one

The current Xbox 360 design isn't changing anytime soon, according to one
On Possible Upgrades to the Xbox 360 Hardware

We were curious if Microsoft was considering releasing a redesigned Xbox 360 that included an integrated HD DVD drive. Penello spoke carefully: "anything's possible...maybe if HD-DVD takes off," he offered. But does that mean that Microsoft is strongly considering such a move? "Is [integrating the HD DVD drive] technically feasible? Yeah, sure," Penello said.

But Penello wouldn't speculate on anything regarding timing for such a hardware upgrade -- certainly not "until the war is over, and a [format] winner has been determined," he said. And besides, he added, "I want to be able to give people a choice."

"I don't see how the PS3 could ever get to $199 or $149 dollars," Penello argued. "Hard drives don't cost reduce, and these new [Blu-ray and HD DVD] drives are expensive." Now we're getting somewhere: Penello clearly sees a weakness in Sony's hardware-first approach with the PlayStation 3. "We built the Xbox 360 Core system so that we could get to $199 or $149 sometime," a retail feat that Penello thinks is outside of the PlayStation 3's grasp for the foreseeable future. Penello thinks that the PS2's approach is smarter -- they're selling "boatloads" because the system is so cheap to manufacture. "I don't see how the [PS3] could ever get to $129 dollars," he concludes.

[Sirio]

Con il traduttore automatico non si capisce nulla , ma uscira' o no una terza console con HD-DVD integrato ?

[.:|Physalis|:.]

E' una possibilità, per ora remota. Dipenderà se e come HD-DVD sfonderà il mercato...

[Sirio]

E' una possibilità, per ora remota. Dipenderà se e come HD-DVD sfonderà il mercato...

Infami a prescindere allora  :shooter:

[.:|Physalis|:.]