Rumour: Microsoft To Launch Next-Gen With Series X Successor & Handheld Xbox

It makes sense that IF you making weaker hardware might aswell also have a handheld configuration.

Especially now competition isn't just Nintendo but expensive handheld PCs too.

@themightyant agreed there's nothing that can be gained in those "early" 2 years that will offset the PS6 leap frogging.

Unless! The next xbox is upgradable, then they can equal/leapfrog PS6 when it gets annouced.

@themightyant I think Christmas 2027 would be about right. You could even push that to 2028 if we are not getting massive upgrades. That said I do reckon Xbox will shoot early and that it will be a huge mistake. It won't draw the players over and as you say would be eclipsed in about 18months.

If they do go for 2026 then it will be intersting watching all the Pro is pontless crowd suddenly change their mind for what would be a very similar level of power machine.

I don't think a new powerful system is going to sell, or is even needed, but if the handheld is sub $300 I could see it catching on and being somewhat popular. I still think that if they sold a streaming stick bundled with a controller and a month of GPU, that is Xbox branded and not just a Firestick, that you'll see a ton of movement on it if it's priced at $99. That would be the kickoff to streaming truly becoming mainstream.

@abe_hikura Xbox is done being worried about selling the most boxes. A console is a ceiling, the broader market is in PC and cloud, and that is where you're going to find new customers. Consoles just keep the existing base happy and give you another option for playing your games. They're good to have but aren't the only way to attract customers to your brand, just simply a slice of the global customer pie.

Will this be the ‘biggest technological leap seen in console gaming’ Xbox they’ve promised? I think 2026 will be too early, I definitely can’t see the PS6 aiming for the same year. Then again Microsoft are bucking the trends more than ever and maybe moving on to a different strategy of releasing more powerful hardware sooner is possible. The handheld is a given at this point.

With PS5 pro costing what it does, I’m concerned about where console gaming is going regarding the price. More powerful and more expensive may not be the best path to success.

I dont think a next gen system will be necessary for about 3 years. But a handheld in 2026 would be great.

When they say the "biggest technological leap" it will be relating to Artificial/Generative Intelligence.

I wonder when in that time period we will step away from cross gen games with the current last gen. It seems wild to me that we are already are anticipating a generation beyond series consoles when we have still yet to step away from last gen.

I’ll be ready for a new platform in 2026. I just want to be able to play my games in 4k 60 fps with ray tracing. We are no where near that currently. So yes I will be ready in 2026.

Isn’t fifa and madden only 1440p this year. Don’t they both have 30fps cut scenes. I don’t know how people can say 2027 when I’m sure we all have 4k TVs.

I don’t trust Jez Corden as insider. But, if this is the scenario I’ll wait to see the difference in performance to trade my Series X for the new console or just buy the handheld.

Anyway, I’m satisfied with Xbox and I’ll continue with them next gen.

If Xbox are going to release a majority of their games on Playstation, then I might skip an Xbox next gen but if not then a handheld would be pretty awesome!

@abe_hikura @themightyant the rumor is MS is going to lease out the UI to other hardware manufacturers and they can build a Xbox also. So when the PS6 comes out, maybe it does have a slight edge. But Asus builds a more powerful Xbox. Or Dell comes out with a $1000 dollar alien ware Xbox. Cause the next Xbox is said to be even more PC able than the Series consoles. So whatever the base power level is from MS can’t be under done by the others makers, but can be pushed further. Making the console really feel like PC. So i don’t think the “Xbox” will be behind in power, and it will get the software to run the PC version and not the console version. This is a good strategy cause it cut’s down the console software work needed for dev’s.

I really want a dedicated handheld xbox that runs native. I may skip the initial next gen upgrade for that and hold onto my Series X a little longer. I'm not getting any younger so I've been thinking more and more what my exit strategy from gaming may be in the next 10-20 yrs. I'm solely on xbox these days so I just need whatever will play my current library of digital games and I'd be set for "retirement".

Unless it intergrates steam whats the point? I can play most xbox games through the cloud on my s24 ultra will great perfomance...

This is good news. I have less than no interest in a handheld with a tiny screen, cramped controls and compromised performance. I’m not addicted to technology, and I don’t have a 4hr commute. I don’t need to play Xbox on the toilet or on the go. A traditional, powerful, under-the-tv box is all I want.

@themightyant no it wouldn’t hold it back cause the software for say Diablo 4 wouldn’t be the console version, it would run the PC version and scale. That would be my guess. As everything would just be PC software. However you made a point that i too thought about and that would be how well optimized and well would the software run and we see some PC ports having issues from time to time. That is the real deal breaker on this strategy. But this looks to be the direction MS is going and it makes sense. The Xbox will be a lower powered but easier to use PC, kind of like it is now only it will run PC software and the hardware will be open to other manufacturers. In time we will see if this is their winning formula, but i think for the position they are in, it makes the most sense.

I hope they DO start next gen early and take a different approach. They will always be leapfrogging each other with power and performance, and hopefully they do more to differentiate themselves from each other and more unique. I am all-in for a handheld Xbox, especially if they make it capable of natively playing Steam, Epic, and GoG, etc with Game Pass, Id be totally set for my travel and backup device.

The beginning of 2026 will be over 5 years of Xbox Series, and November 2026 will be 6 years of it.

The Wii U was replaced after 4.5 years.

This generation was a catastrophic failure for Microsoft. That they lost marketshare compared to the abysmal Xbox One is unthinkable. People have their head in the sand about this for some reason. Microsoft is looking to change course drastically, and as soon as they possibly can.

Handheld xbox and investing into this very dead eco system makes no sense compared to steam + steam deck, ALL the indies are on steam and often just skip xbox already. The last few years of xbox leadership has felt so out of touch

While new hardware is always exciting, it really does feel like the XSX/PS5 just barely came out. The Switch on the other hand....

Doesn’t matter if there are no exclusive games. There will be a new Steam Deck, there will be a PS6. What will these new boxes offer?

1) Make it pc hybrid with easy to use with controller windows. Also let other companies use your os on their handhelds too (rog ally, legion go ect).
2) Let pc stores in so everyone can bring their libraries from pc stores and add gamepass ultimate as a requirement to play games from other stores (so if they dont buy games from xbox store at least they will pay for gamepass, so win-win).
3) Make it/them powerful and cheaper than an equal powerful pc.
4) If there is a handheld it must have same ram and same power cpu as the more powerful console and have the ability to use external GPUs like rog ally. So everyone can buy the handheld and also be able to upgrade it later so it wont loose ground like the series s did and also have the option for better docked gaming. It may be too expensive to have it at a lower price than the more powerful console but they can make money from docks and external GPUs that will be especially for that console (or why not dock with the more powerful gpu included?).

And thats how you change console and pc gaming for ever and you become the king.

Can't wait to hear more about the handheld system!

The next console cycle should be a gaming Nerds wonderland.

I'm kind of hopeful that both Sony and MS find a way to provide under the TV powerhouse consoles, deliver SteamDeck levels of " I can't believe how well this runs" in a handheld and further improve remote play. Graphics are already great, let's drive home the perfect gaming experience

@themightyant developers are optimizing their games for steam deck and the rest of the handhelds also drivers are releasing for all those handhelds all the time just so they can play every new game better. If the next xbox is a success they still optimize their games and if its powerful it will help too. Sure the ps5 pro may will have better optimization but that wont cover the difference in hardware if its big. Also the handheld will be a 1080p device. Series s is supposed to be a console that targets 1440p, if the handheld is more powerful that series x with all the upscaling options PCs have and aims for 1080p it will be a beast.

Here's hoping that modern AI upscaling and frame generation can make the next generation the one that finally leaves abysmal 30 FPS performance in the rear-view mirror where it belongs. They should have set 60 FPS as the ground floor this generation, but maybe next gen will actually pull it off.

I can see the handheld system doing well. Def seems to be a massive market for it. I have no need for a handheld system. I got rid of the PS portal and don't have a daily commute on public transport. Or any daily commute. 😂 Hopefully the new console isn't that cloud console.

@DeanyBabyy I can play most of the PS5 games worth having on my Rog Ally (without having to use cloud) so whats the point in a PS6 either using your logic.?

@themightyant the only thing I would say is that both Microsoft and Sony probably know what the approximate specs of their next consoles are going to be. The next year or two will most be about figuring out who the manufacturers will be (Sony recently announced who'll be making the chips for the PS6) and what the machines will look like etc. I'm guessing the next generation Xbox will launch in 2027 as well.

Nope, @themightyant! I think you are wrong on this. I think the NeXtBoX will release in the Fall of 2026 as have been rumoured for a very long time, well before this assertion by Windows Central.

It also follows that Gears of War: E-Day, Perfect Dark, State of Decay 3, and Blade will all release pretty much alongside the new console(s). These were the only 4 games in the Xbox showcase that did not have the X/S logo when shown, with the most likely reason being that these are inext generation games.

So, unless you are really suggesting that Microsoft revealed E-Day this year, when the game was not coming out for at least another 3 or 4 years, that is...?

Nope! I've been saying 2026 for months. There have simply been too many rumours citing that year for it to be any other time. Plus Bond made her comment regarding the huge leap in console power last year (I believe), so that would mean that at that time, if we go with what you are suggesting, that she was talking about a console that was 4 to 5 years away from releasing, which simply makes no sense.

I get what you are saying regarding Xbox only having the most powerful console for two years if they release in 2026, and the PS6 releasing in 2028, but then the Series X is currently the most powerful console, and a fat lot of good that has done Xbox! Better to have two years of clear water as the clear leader, than to have difference between the two consoles that are so negligible as to be unimportant. Also, when the NeXtBoX is released, and the PS6 then comes out two years later to take the 'power' crown, then what's to stop Microsoft bringing out their version of a Pro two years after that and topping the PS6 in the process?

Nope! It'll be 2026, mark my words... 😉

The rumours of a handheld and a main console have been circulating for over a year now, so I do believe them to be correct. I'm hoping that the handheld will be regarded as the entry point for Xbox, and that it will take the place of the S. However, what I also hope is that we don't see the requirement for games to be capable of running on both systems in the way we have seen with the S this generation. Don't make it a requirement that a game has to have the same features on both consoles next time, or we will end up with the same debacle we have currently wherein it either is, or at least is perceived to be the case, that the S is holding back the X. Hopefully Microsoft have at least learned from that mistake this generation, even if they have yet to learn from all their other missteps

@themightyant Point 1 doesn't matter, they all just want to sell hardware, not really to sell hardware but to "reinvigorate interest in the brand." But point 2 is a major problem. I think that's a bigger issue for Sony. For MS, Series is stalled beyond recovery, it's lost interest and momentum. If they want Xbox hardware at all they need to "reinvigorate interest in the brand" with "exciting new hardware", and sooner is better. Long term, that's a problem, but Xbox kind of doesn't have a choice. Which is their long term problem, their hand is always forced by past mistakes, which just leads to new mistakes.

OTOH launching first helped with the X360, and if they're trying to cause a disruptive paradigm shift, going first, if it goes beyond specs (adding PC stores etc) could have a perception impact on PS6, IF it's successful. What MS needs most right now is just market growth. Even if PS leapfrogs them after, that initial period of selling as much as they can on hype with no Sony competitor, if they market it right (spoiler: they won't), could get them a foothold in markets they have none in now.

It could also force Sony to overreact and rush PS6, compromising it. Their current management absolutely would do that, too.

I think the problem for MS is it's clear they aren't interested in the "old" traditional console business and are looking to disrupt it (what's weird is that's what they were trying to do in 2001, then somehow morphed into an old traditional console), and the sooner they move onto whatever paradigm they're aiming for (if they can figure out what it is), the sooner they get out of this weird stall and talking out both sides of their mouth.

Will it succeed? It's Xbox, of course it won't But that's not the point....

Also "You'd also lose some of the major advantages consoles have over PC like being able to optimise for fixed hardware, and to subsidise hardware costs. Lastly many think Series S holds back Series X, if you had an even wider set of hardware wouldn't this be amplified?"

Who optimizes for Xbox? Even Xbox doesn't optimize for Xbox. At least the PC optimized version would work as it should on an equivalent PC.

And Phil already said hardware subsidy is over and hardware costs will go up. And then we saw PS5 Pro. Phil called it, and expect the same for XB.

I think the handheld WILL "hold back" Xbox the same way S does. And the rumor that Sony might do a handheld could for PS6 too. I think one thing we know for sure is the industry hit a dead end chasing power above all. Devs are going bankrupt trying to make games to use it, nobody's making healthy profit in the attempt except the established handful and most of them are still selling a PS360 game with bumped gfx. Chasing the graphics dragon may work for Nvidia but it's not working for anyone else. Hardware, even on PC, needs a great reset to be rolled back in what games need. Next gen might be the right time with the introduction of "me too" Switch platforms.

@Real_game_passion Valve doesn't have the reach to put Steamdeck on shelves in every Walmart. Xbox does. That's the key difference. For enthusiasts, Deck, Ally, Legion make sense. For the masses that go to Walmart and see the new handheld console on the endcap and get interested, Deck and Ally never existed to begin with.

@Fenbops Yeah others said it but "biggest tech leap" doesn't mean "biggest jump in raster performance", it's codeword for things like AI or other innovation systems, not raw power.

Pricing, yeah, Phil had said in that interview about the end of Moore's Law and how the console subsidy model is over, and people might have to pay "maybe more than they're used to" for consoles. I'm fully expecting both PS6 and neXtBox to be in the $700-1200 range. And I think that's a falling of point where people stop caring. Consoles were meant to be "cheap" ways to play video games. Once they become major investments and there's plenty of alternatives most people won't bother. Once you get to where consoles are competing in price with PCs, anyone tech inclined will head straight to PC, where the only real negatives were price and convenience, and once they're in similar pricing, the convenience isn't worth paying almost the same to get much less for all but the tech disinclined.

It may be that the future of gaming is 100% handheld hybrids with docks for affordable prices, PCs for enthusiast gaming and a weird niche of "really expensive home consoles" for people with lots of money and little skill and patience.

@sixrings Even the $1600 4090 can't handle 4k60 with full path trace in CP2077 without huge drops. Even FFXVI without RT cripples it to 30fps. Not all the money in the world can fix poor optimization and even decently optimized RT. If you're waiting for that in consoles, set your sights on 2034 or beyond. And also $1200-1500 consoles.

@Jenkinss Lost market share in hardware only, picked up some market share in game sales, subscriptions to Game Pass, game streaming, television/movie properties based on games, monthly active users within their ecosystem, and a huge chunk of revenue and capital compared to years past. Selling plastic boxes is NOT the only measurement of success in the gaming industry.

@themightyant Heck, Xbox doesn't really need hardware at all, to be honest. They just don't because it helps keep the existing crowd happy, and it helps drive Game Pass subscriptions every holiday season. Their biggest area of opportunity to grab new customers is PC/Cloud, but they absolutely should keep hardware around as another option to be an Xbox customer. The console will always be a piece of the puzzle, but not the entire picture.

@themightyant marketing. The new box is an opportunity to reboot the marketing and boost the brand while having temporary advantages to market.

I'm not saying I believe they'll successfully do that, because Xbox. But that's why these companies do it. And realistically there's no way they can reboot the Series, it's already over. They need a new platform to reboot. Especially if it's a shakeup and disruptor somehow (PC integration, handheld hybrid, SOMETHING to disrupt the status quo.) It's all diminishing returns. It's never going to be anything but diminishing returns ever again unless VR hits it big. It's about marketing, and only about marketing forever more.

I still disagree, strongly about "the games" narrative though. I think that's outdated for a different consumer than the current console consumer. Nintendo excluded, because what they have aren't "great games" what they have is "household child-driven, nostalgia-focused legendary brands and characters on a bigger-than-Disney-itself scale." Nobody else will ever be able to leverage IP exclusivity the way Nintendo can, because nobody but Disney itself has IPs of that nature. Even if they sell lousy games (like half the Pokemon games of the last decade) they'll still outsell everything else by double. Let's be real, modern Pokemon is an Xbox grade series.

I don't think the modern consumer is buying it for "exclusive games from the first party". I don't think the modern console consumer could give two flips about "first party exclusives", and I think both Sony and Microsoft are very, very, very aware of that at this point. They know their install base numbers. They know what people are playing. They know their first party numbers are a fraction of their install base. I don't think a dozen TLOUs are gong to move Xbox. It's all about marketing and getting into people's heads why they should play GTA and the like on an Xbox instead of a PS. And that's where they've failed. They haven't really given reasons why people should play it on an Xbox, and everybody already knows everybody they know plays on a PS. "Because Game Pass" and "Because Halo 6" isn't enough of a reason if you just want to play GTA. Which is MOST console buyers. I think people in the lifelong enthusiast circle are a bit behind the current market in the obsession with 1st party exclusives. We're still reliving N64 vs PSX vs Saturn forever and ever.

Interesting. Shooting for a 360 type launch. Early & powerful. Hey, worked once before. Doubt very much that Sony would allow them a full year headstart this time though.

Id prefer we get the next gen in 28-30 and the handheld next year, so hoping this rumor is false

@GamingSince84 I prefer xbox over ps for a number of reasons(controller, os, etc...) despite buying all consoles.

I can second the need for them to keep making consoles. Giving the premium market to a single player is a horrible idea.

@Fenbops completely agree, if by 'technological' Xbox are snidely referring to cloud gaming or some other sort of relatively still niche aspect of gaming, then sure, but otherwise the gaps between each new gen seems increasingly miniscule.
The PS5 Pro price is definitely a concern, too. Assuming the eventual PS6 (or next Xbox) are more powerful than the PS5 Pro, logic suggests they'll also be more expensive... Unless Sony realise they majorly overpriced the Pro and learn their lesson (one can only hope, ay)!

@themightyant I don't think a new traditional console will change course for them, I think they are dropping the traditional console model. In any event games will not save the Series now, it's dead, negative momentum. Games wouldn't have saved Wii U either.

Not like that, just go handheld + egpu dock please. Those who want definitive, next-gen Xbox gaming experience would eat up the cost (assuming bundled handheld console + egpu dock is more expensive than PS6) and broke people like me can buy just the handheld console that can be connected to TV with the included basic dock. They can save some money to buy egpu dock later down the road if they want to.

@Ilyn Whatever the next Xbox console is, it won't be similar to the PS5 Pro. The machine won't be beholden to the same CPU model and clocks, starters.

@themightyant assuming Microsoft’s puts the money into building a console with a lot of head room early on, as sources said it will be the biggest console leap to date. There is no guarantee that Sony has an appetite to make a powerful SOC even two years later. So I hope whenever Microsoft releases the console it will be a power house. As Microsoft has the money for R/D to make a bespoke power house. I just want a good competition from team Xbox. In the meantime I hope that the series consoles can get good first party releases for the next few years to see the tone.

Team xbox needs to come up with a good strategy.. they are all over the place.
Pick you plan and stick with it, research in what you fan base wants and what you need to win people over.
The road that they are on now is not hopefully, for me to buy a next gen xbox.

@Savage_Joe hard pass on consoles in general

Big, better, more power.....

And hardly any single player AAA games (which most of us here on this site are fans of) as the market has completely changed. It's all games as a service, designed for the lowest common denominator. Which Is mobile at worst and steam deck at best.

@themightyant old thinking, their games are launching on Playstation and everyone knows it.

If their next console has backwards compatibility, it may be the one to get. PlayStation just has no games. For me. Yesterdays State Of Play was just utterly dire.
But Xbox are all over the place with no strategy.

What a sad state the console market is in now.

No point when this generation has been very poor and bogged down by series s, also it's just been a generation of lies "4k 60" yet you'll be lucky to get 1080 60.