A 360 that lasts more than 6 months..?? now that would be new!! And I speak as a single console owner (360)

Your right, if they can solve RROD then Xbox360 might actually be worth something to me. My friend just got it for god knows what reason (Games he wants are on it) and 3 weeks later RROD.
I can't appreciate a company like that, I wouldn't buy condoms with holes in them, why do they want me to buy a system like this?

Wii type controller?

@ Ian above: I bought my 360 In November 2005, and it still going strong. On the other hand, my PS2 from 2000, failed very quickly after I bought it.
If you go to Youtube, you'll find planety of PS3's and wii's that have suffered irreparable failures.

It'll be third party consoles.

In other words, you'll be able to walk into game and buy a Samsung Xbox 360, Panasonic Xbox 360, LG Xbox 360 etc.

Microsoft are going to make a move for a single format with multiple manufacturers, the way almost every other industry works.

@ BrettStocks above, you could be right. Mind you there was talk about that stuff back in 2005. We will see.

if its a motion sensing controller, they will fall flat on their arse... just copying, been done done already,

@ "War"

# 1. Microsft had a motion sensing controller long before Nintendo even knew such a thing existed. It was called the Sidewinder. If anyone is copying anyone, it's Nintendo copying Microsoft.

# 2. The motion Wiimote itself was based on technology that Nintendo licensed from an American company called "Gyration ". Nintendo didn't invent anything.

# 3. I am fairly ssure the "game changing" annoucemnet has nothing to do with "wiimotes". Like someone said above, it probably has to do with Microsoft lcesining 360 tecnology to outfits like samsung and LG, to include in their own consumer electrnics products like HDTV's BD-DVD's etc.

Third Party console ..... sounds like another 3DO flop to me.

@ "L"

# 1, 3DO had close to zero 3 rd party games, while the 360 has more and better 3rd party games than the PS3 or the Wii.

# 2. 3DO was selling for like around $700(equivalent to over $1000 in today's dollars, if you allow for inflation)?
Who the heck was going to buy such an expensive, especially with very few good games?

i dont want third party 360. i want microsoft 360.

why bother letting other companies mess with the 360 line? what if they produce crappy consoles with a 360 name? who will run the quality control? (and yes, with the RROD, maybe microsoft shouldn't be in charge, but imagine that kind of problem from samsung or panasonic- it would be way worse)

i am a loyal ms customer, i hope the 720 (or whatever they call it) is a microsoft console, not a crappy outsourced 360 2.5....

sigh

Probably Live Avatars (Xbox's version of Mii's/HOME)

Microsoft buys out both Sony and Nintendo. The End

@Smithy: Ever heard of the Power Glove?
Also, just because you bought a 360 and it hasn't broken yet, doesn't mean it isn't happening to millions of xbox360s.
@gamertag=machinegunbang: I hope you are kidding.
Microsoft saying they are making something "game-changing" is like them saying Vista is innovative. This is E3, everyone is going to be talking up their stuff, this isn't news.

The evidence is there. Microsoft have always been the ones signalling that they want to make their console 'the standard' rather than another platform.

There was the rumours about it back in 2005, with many industry watchers saying back then, the only reason why other manufacturers were wary of it back then was because of the high cost of manufacture.

Now that the consoles sell for more than they cost to produce, it is sound business sense for manufacturers to join in.

Microsoft have never wanted to have to built their own console, they just wanted the standard. It's the proposal they approached Sony about in 2000-01.

Microsoft would quite happily ceed control of the hardware manufacturing etc so long as they could control the standard and derive royalties al la the DVD Forum from anyone wishing to use it.

It's a similar story with XNA. Everything Microsoft have done with the 360 and its development has been leading to this moment.

Getting other companies to manufacture it would be a good thing instead of MS trying to keep it in house. its better to get the right ppl for the job.

But i wouldn't like to see a "standard", i don't particularly like the PS3 BUT i appreciate that a competitive market breeds great games (and some stinkers lol)

@ Pisswasser, fact remains, Nintendo did NOT invent motion sensing controllers. fact also remains, Nintendo DID license motion sensing technology from Gyration, who still own the patents to those motion sensor technologies. fact also remains that Microsoft DID indeed bring out their own motion sensor controller for PC games long before the Wii came out, Powerglove or no Powerglove.

As for your bleating on about the same tired old rrod, I can turn it round and say that, the fact that some 360's had rrod , does not mean all 360's had rrod. I bought mine on day one of the 360 in November 2005, and its been working like a dream
Not to mention, the new Flacon 360's are every bit as relaible as any other console. Plus of coyrse Microsft has an exrended, unprecendented warranty of 3 years for the older 360's, a longer warranty than any conmsole in history. The PS2 had a pretty high failure trate when it was first launched, and we still didn't get a 3 year warranty from Sony.

On re-reading the title i'm starting to think that maybe the announcement will be more a software one than hardware because if they were going to announce something as big as bringing in 3rd party manufacturers then they wouldn't use the words "game changing", it would be "industry changing" ... hmm

Halo 4 confirmed...

Ah, if only you were all old enough, you would remember MSX :D