Xbox announcement coming on May 21st, plus further thoughts

Here's what we know.

The next Xbox will be officially announced 5/21, likely for a US Release in the holiday season 2013. We know some of the base specs. But there's so much we don't know. The price. A lot of the features. Whether it requires an always on Internet connection.

And the more I think about it, what may not be right now, may be right for the console long term.

Look, new consoles are going to be pricy. They are using relatively new tech, and the economy of scale means that until they can produce in such numbers to bring the individual pricedown, that it will be pricy. Even at the rumored price point for a full fledged box of $500, it's likely going to be a loss on sale for Microsoft.

And as for the Always-Online version, I still don't like it, but I'm understanding it more and more. Look, we're on the verge of revolutions when it comes to internet connections, even in rural areas, as well as a change in the way we consume content.

Stuff like Google Fiber has the capability to make the current speeds we get look like chump change. They are making the current Internet companies sweat.. not to mention uber-free wifi which is being pushed in some areas. Again, it's not here yet, so it may be onerous requirements now but it may not be at the future midpoint of the next-xbox (NeXBox?) lifespan.

And the media capability, well, you're definitely going to be needing an online connection for that, anyway.. and that seems to be the focus of the leaks so far, it certainly isn't games/gameplay, right now. I saw an article in a pop culture/sports website today that posits the theory that the way we consume media is changing. We used to buy physical items (CD's, audio/video tapes, DVD's), etcetera. Now, we buy a stream of bits and bytes (Netflix, Pandora, ITunes, Hulu, etcetera). And even now, the way we consume music is transitioning again, as streaming audio (where you don't even get a seperate file on your computer) is the fastest growing area in the music industry.

Who's to say at some point, you won't cut the cable cord, and buy channels "a-la-carte".. what if you just want HBO, Showtime, ESPN and don't want things like the Tennis Channel, Esquire TV, or the Fishing Network? If Microsoft is willing to torque off the cable TV companies, would you see such things being available through the Xbox Media Center? Who knows.

But I'll say this. I'm a Gamer. That's a capital G. PS4 talked about all the stuff besides games, which was relegated to a "Oh, here's Diablo III" sideshow in their presentation. All this extra stuff, to me, is nice, but it's definitely not going to affect the console I buy. I buy consoles to play games.

As the line from Jerry Maguire goes:

Show me the money.

And by that, I mean, show me a reason that I'll want to play games on the Nexbox. You only get one chance to make a first impression, Microsoft. Don't blow it.