Xbox rumours: Xbox Slim in 2016; upgraded Xbox in 2017; Xbox streaming device for E3

A pair of Xbox rumours have emerged suggesting that we’re on the cusp of an influx of new Xbox hardware.

Kotaku reports that Microsoft will release two new Xbox consoles over the next two years. Later this year we’ll see a smaller, cheaper Xbox One followed by a fully upgraded and more powerful Xbox One in 2017.

The latter machine has the codename Scorpio, and boasts a more powerful GPU. Kotaku also reckons it offers Oculus Rift support, and that Microsoft is pursuing a partnership with Oculus. Development sources have apparently expressed concern that the current plans may result in a few compromises if studios attempt to support 4K resolutions, with load times in particular raising some eyebrows. It’s very early days, however.

Of the Xbox One ‘Slim’, that supposedly houses a 2TB HDD.

Together they form part of Microsoft’s ‘Project Helix’ strategy, the broader aim of which is the converging of the Xbox and Windows platforms. It adds that future titles, including the next Halo, will have a mandated release across both platforms.

An iterative approach to console hardware releases is now also a reality, Kotaku adds.

Meanwhile, in a separate report Verge has claimed that Microsoft will at E3 reveal an Xbox Streaming device. In fact, an online report today claimed that Microsoft will reveal at least two streaming devices” at E3, one of which is said to be a Google Chromecast-like device that would allow Xbox One owners to stream games to another TV and connects to an Xbox One controller.

The other device is reportedly more advanced, with in-built app gaming support for universal Windows Store apps.

It really is nearly E3 time, isn’t it?