I would consider this a rumor were it not for the picture above. Talks of a cooler, more efficient 360 have been around for a long time now, and it seems we’re finally seeing what is as good as a confirmation that a system somewhat along those lines will hit the market “soon”.
Here’s the word from Engadget:
Ever wonder why Microsoft hasn’t released an HDMI cable for the Xbox 360, or whether the AV port was really capable of digital out? Well, here’s your answer: we landed pictures of what appears to be the second Xbox 360 — the Xbox 360 v2, if you will — codenamed Zephyr. (The original Xbox 360, if you recall, was codenamed Xenon.) The long rumored about and awaited update to the console won’t just feature a new, cooler 65nm processor, it’s also finally added an HDMI port for full digital 1080p pleasure, as well as a 120GB drive, just what the doctor ordered. The 120GB drive may or may not come bundled with the kit, we don’t yet know, just as we also don’t yet know how much a Zephyr 360 is going to run (we imagine it’ll go for the same price as currently so they can keep up a little on their expanding margin). But our very kind Xbox insider seemed happy to let us know we’d be able to get them “soon.”
No word on whether it’s more efficient, but cooler is good. And if anyone doubted the 360 could display 1080p as well as the PS3, put your fears to rest. It will probably do it better.
Thanks a ton to Chris Taran for sending along the tip! You rock.