New Xbox next year?

Confusion surrounds announcments from Microsoft about a possible new console that could be released in 2010.

A few days ago, Steve Ballmer, the the company's CEO announced that the new Xbox would include a 'natural interface' and a built-in camera capable of following the user's movements and voice recognition--just like the famous Project Natal, then.

The development was denied almost immediately by Microsoft's gaming arm, which had previously said at E3 that not only would Project Natal function on every version of the Xbox 360, but also that no new Xbox models were planned in the near future. Larry Hyrb, the Xbox Live Director of Programming, also clarified some of his boss' comments, saying, ''we are not even halfway through the current console generation lifecycle and believe Xbox 360 will be the entertainment center in the home for long into the next decade. Project Natal will be an important part of this platform, but we have not confirmed a launch date at this time.''

Without any firm details on a release date for Project Natal, speculation is only likely to continue ...