TECH NEWS – Some newly surfaced evidence suggests that Microsoft has outsourced the design of the next-generation Xbox console to a different team.

The next-gen Xbox console is unlikely to be designed by the team behind the Series X. An industry insider claims the project has been handed over to Microsoft’s Surface division. The alleged move means that the next Xbox console could arrive much later than the PS6. (It depends on how much the project was brought back to the drawing board due to the design team change.)

Microsoft’s current-generation console isn’t doing too well compared to the PS5, and the worst may be yet to come: the Redmond tech giant expects Xbox hardware sales to continue to decline until 2024.

The company stopped reporting specific console sales figures in 2015. It broke radio silence on this front in mid-2023 when it revealed that the Xbox Series X and Series S consoles had sold a combined 21 million units. That’s roughly half of what the PS5 achieved at the time.

It seems that the company decided to shake up its console division because of these challenges. A recent claim by industry insider Nick Baker suggests this. On the Feb. 10 episode of The XboxEra Podcast (around the 1:57:45 mark), Baker said he heard that Microsoft had given the Surface team the task of designing the next-gen Xbox console. The project was previously led by Jason Ronald, vice president of gaming devices and ecosystem at Microsoft Xbox. Ronald also managed the development of the Xbox Series X/S and Xbox One X during his 17-year tenure at the company.

An Xbox console from the Surface team?! It would make sense

Even if the Series X sold much better than it currently does, the idea of Microsoft assigning the successor to the Surface team wouldn’t be far-fetched. Especially if the latest rumour that an Xbox handheld is in the works turns out to be true. After all, the Surface division specializes in high-performance portable devices. Another question is whether such a radical paradigm shift would even be discussed if the current generation console were to do well.

During his last podcast appearance, Baker also reflected on the handheld rumours, the most recent of which were started by the Xbox News Cast Podcast, or rather, its co-host, MAGG.

In this regard, the insider said that he could not vouch for the veracity of the original report. But he claims to have received similar information from a source. The latter assured him that he was not behind the alleged leak of MAGG. According to the first report, the handheld console will be cheaper and less potent than the next-gen Xbox and will essentially serve as a successor to the Series S. However, Baker’s source claimed that the device will have the exact specifications and will be more expensive.

Given Microsoft’s recent spate of leaks, there’s always a chance that the company is currently trying to tighten the ropes by feeding different departments slightly different information and watching whose version hits the net.

Another less conspiratorial explanation for the controversial Xbox handheld rumours would be the broken phone effect. Provided they are all from credible sources and accurately reported. Looking at the bigger picture, this development is at least consistent with a recent report. According to this, Microsoft has assured its employees that it will continue manufacturing Xbox hardware.

Source: YouTube