Recently, Sony officially unveiled the PS4 with a lot of fanfare. Now, Microsoft is ramping up the rumour mill with leaks on its upcoming Xbox 720. Lot of details are still in the realm speculation but interestingly some (alleged) differences between the two leading console systems are becoming clearer.
Release Date
According to online rumours, the Xbox 720 is supposed to be officially unveiled in May.
If you want to get your hands on the Xbox 720 as soon as it is released, however, you’ll need to do so in the US, where it should be released by the Christmas holiday. It could take a few more months to show up in Sri Lanka.
Specs
The Xbox 720 is set to be a huge improvement on the Xbox 360, and is somewhat similar to the PS4 in its hardware offering. This could be a good thing because it would make it easier for developers to create games for both platforms.
So far we know that the Xbox 720 will come loaded with an AMD Jaguar-based CPU clocked at 1.6GHz. In terms of graphics, Microsoft is rumoured to be considering something like the AMD Radeon 7790 chip, featuring 12 processing clusters, each with 64 cores (The PS4 comes loaded with a Radeon 7850 card with 18 GCN processing clusters.)
The memory distribution is also important. The PS4 features 8GB of unified GDDR5 RAM that combines system and graphics memory. The Xbox 720, on the other hand, is said to feature 8GB of general system memory and separate graphics memory. Ultimately this means that while the PS4 configuration has a better focus on gaming only while the Xbox 720 also focuses on performance outside the gaming environment.
Controller
Expectations include a new version of Kinect and maybe an integration motion control system for a greater variety of gaming titles. However, few expect Microsoft to completely abandon the iconic control pad.
Blu-ray?
The Xbox 360 was outfitted with a HD DVD drive but given the rising popularity of the Blu-ray format, Microsoft will almost certainly include a Blu-ray drive with the Xbox 720. While DVDs have faster read speeds, Blu-rays have much larger storage capacity and that is particularly important with the latest range of high-def games.
Price
The Xbox 720 is unlikely to be sold for anything less than $300, which is roughly Rs. 37,000 (without any additional fees or taxes). It will almost certainly be more expensive when it goes on sale locally.
Xbox 720 Mini
Some suggest that Microsoft might launch a mini version of the Xbox 720, a smaller device that is capable of streaming games directly from the cloud.
Second-hand games on the Xbox 720
Microsoft might make include a feature that prevents players from playing used games. There security features are already extremely annoying. More importantly, gamers won’t be allowed to sell or trade old titles amongst themselves. To make things worse, rumours suggest that the Xbox 720 might require a constant internet connection.
Verdict
I’m personally not a major fan of gaming consoles : PC’s provide a better gaming experience in my mind. Nevertheless, the Xbox 720 (and the PS4) are going to be superb improvements on their most recent versions. Moreover, it is important to note that these consoles are not just used for gaming anymore, they are also used for a variety of entertainment activities. Accordingly, both Microsoft and Sony seem to focus on different strategies. If you are hardcore gamer who is only interested in the gaming experience a PS4 is probably the best option. However, if you want a more all-round entertainment experience, the Xbox 720 is probably a better idea. We’ll only know for sure when both systems are officially released in the course of this year.
By Navam Niles
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