Microsoft executive Sarah Bond may have just confirmed that next-gen Xbox console price leaks were actually true. In an interview, the Xbox CEO revealed that the future gaming console will be a high-end product.
Microsoft Confirms Next-Gen Xbox Console Will Be Very Expensive
During a recent podcast interview, Sarah Bond opened up about the Xbox ROG Ally X and the future of Xbox. Things got interesting when the Microsoft executive responded to rumors about the next-gen Xbox console being more of an expensive “gaming PC” instead of a home console.
When asked whether this was true, Bond confirmed that the new console will be a premium product. “I can say you are right. The next-gen console is going to be a very premium, very high-end curated experience. You are starting to see some of the thinking we have with the next-gen console with the Xbox ROG Ally X handheld.”
This is interesting for a few reasons. The ROG Ally X has a price tag of $999. In early October, a leak revealed that the next-gen Xbox console could cost between $900 and $1.2k based on its specs and hardware. So this could be a nod to the rumored pricing.
Next-Gen Xbox Could Be a Gaming PC Hybrid
This, of course, also lines up with the leaks that claim that the next-gen Xbox console is going to be an expensive gaming PC hybrid. Fans picked up on Bond’s wording of “very premium and high-end” as proof of this. The Microsoft CEO also seemed to imply that the 2027 console will follow the lead of the Xbox ROG Ally X and integrate Windows into the Xbox OS.
However, with Sarah Bond calling it a very high-end product, many have taken this as her also confirming that the rumored next-gen Xbox console price leaks were legitimate. Although she largely seems to be talking about the hybrid nature of ROG Ally X, which is both a PC and an Xbox device. So it appears likely that the next-gen console will, in fact, be a gaming PC hybrid with a hefty price tag.
Xbox’s New Strategy: Targeting Premium PC Gamers
In October, tech insider Moore’s Law Is Dead revealed that the next-gen Xbox Magnus will likely not be competing with the PS6. According to the hardware expert, Microsoft is looking to instead compete with pre-fabricated gaming PCs. The idea is that a $1.2k console is still more affordable than a $2k pre-built PC, for example.
This is also interesting, as there have been rumors going back to May that claimed Microsoft’s next-gen console would launch with the Steam store integrated into its OS. It’s still interesting that Sarah Bond mentioned the Xbox ROG Ally X as an example of what to expect from the next-gen console. After all, for the brand’s first official portable device, they chose to go with a high-end premium product that costs $1k.
In terms of specs and pricing, the handheld is substantially more expensive than the much more affordable Steam Deck. All this to say, while we don’t know the final next-gen Xbox console price, everything is pointing to it being very expensive. It also appears Microsoft is no longer going to be competing in the home console space, but is instead setting its sights on the high-end PC gaming market.
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