Microsoft finally sheds light on PSP/ DS killer

[benn]

Apparently, some journo has dug up info on a handheld MS product. They also reckon it will be released by the end of the year!?!?!

After months of rumour and speculation over the existence of a Microsoft handheld, The Seattle Times has revealed that ex-Xbox head honcho J Allard has been beavering away on a new handheld device which will not only take on Apple's iPod head-to-head in the music stakes, but also aim to overtake the PSP as a digital media player and communications device for a complete list of Xbox-branded products.

This dirt has been dug up by Brier Dudley of the Seattle Times in an intriguing article which claims that the Argo will also "Compete with game players from Sony and Nintendo [the PSP and DS which] have long had wi-fi and work as media players, Internet terminals and communication devices."

It's not really clear whether the Argo will be positioned as a games playing device [then how will it fight the PSP & DS? - benn], although it is said to showcase Allard's pet XNA development software and will contain, "a complete line of Xbox-branded digital-media products, including a device that plays media, a software media player and an online media service."

That last note is particularly intriguing, with a new Microsoft audio and video service MS Urge in the works to compete with Apple's iTunes. The Argo, Dudley claims with a fair degree of certainty, will also be wi-fi compatible, hooking up with your PC and Xbox 360, which makes absolute sense in our new wireless world.

full link here:
http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=142719

let's be honest, if it has a fully working version of Halo with wifi, it really will be the end of PSP and DS. They reckon they will exploit the Xbox brand.
what features would you like to see on this device? (apart from Halo over wifi )
benn

[MasterChafed]

i am sorry, but wasnt almost everything about the handheld revealed with their origami project? ntm that they are called UMPC's and they are not designed to compete with mainstream handheld gaming devices. It is ment to be a whole computer in a really small space. hence UMPC Ultra Mobile Personal Computer. isn't this old news?

[benn]

but if it is showcasing XNA dev then surely it would make it the ideal platform for homebrew? and gaming??

[MasterChafed]

hmm, perhaps as XNA is what is used in the 360. the UMPC's that are out now dont use XNA tho.

[mesosade]

brain...frazzled