Microsoft to release HD DVD Xbox in 2006: Toshiba exec

Stan Beer
Friday, 30 June 2006 17:29

Your IT - Home IT

A Toshiba senior executive has predicted that Microsoft will release an Xbox 360 model with an internal HD DVD drive before the end of the year.

According to the general manager of Toshiba Information Systems Division in Australia, Mark Whittard, the high definition video war between Toshiba’s HD DVD and Sony’s Blu-ray formats will spill over into the games console market within months.

“One looming potential war extending from this is the Xbox versus PlayStation,” says Whittard. “The Xbox is coming out with an HD DVD player towards the end of this year. With Microsoft’s marketing engine behind HD DVD, who knows what will happen.”

The Xbox 360 is coming out with a HD DVD player? This is news to us. We were under the impression that there would just be a HD DVD plug-in available.

“I would imagine that there are plans in place to put an HD DVD drive internally in future revisions of the product,” says Whittard. “They’re not speaking about it publicly at the moment but I would expect them to do that and fairly soon.”

Whittard repeated his expectation that an Xbox 360 with an internal HD DVD drive will be available soon during an interview where he refuted claims that Toshiba is selling its HD DVD player at a loss.