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http://gear.ign.com/articles/691/691935p1.htmlRight here

IGN only pulls pranks on April Fools... I have mixed feelings regarding this. First of all, Microsoft's trying to conquer yet another area of the entertainment industry, and that's never a good thing. However, I've grown very fond of my Xbox, and I believe that the 360 will end up being a much better system than the PS3 (of course it won't sell as good, especiallly not in Japan, but whatever), so there's no question that Microsoft COULD get it right. Maybe. And besides, Halo on the go? Count me in!

Here's MS's viral marketing scheme (another thing I like about Microsoft, their marketing techniques are often very unique and fun, like ilovebees)

More info tomorrow, evidently!

Edit

It also seems to be a sort of "do-everything" device, and those NEVER work. C'mon, Microsoft! Pick a market and COMMIT!

Edit

Hmmm... the second site doesn't seem to be loading well... it was working earlier!

This post has been edited by Spiffyness on 1st March 2006 20:47

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The island bathes in the sun's bright rays
Distant hills wear a shroud of grey
A lonely breeze whispers in the trees
Sole witness to history

ICO-You were there-

That thing is hideous.

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This one time I punched a bear in the forehead TO DEATH! I still have the scars on my chest. I am the manliest man that ever did man.

League: Z3roHawk
Steam: Zero_Hawk
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Aw... isn't it cute!

I like the idea behind it. I say Microsoft goes for it. It'll probably end up like their foot pedal controls for the mouse, though.

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Join the Army, see the world, meet interesting people - and kill them.

~Pacifist Badge, 1978

They made... FOOT PEDAL controls... for a MOUSE? *roflspasm*

I don't think this thing will fare quite that badly. Actually I wouldn't be suprised if it ended up being a pretty successful lil' bugger. But yeah, it IS hideous (but the article says that the model is over a year old, so I'm sure the final product won't be like that). Sony learned from the PSP that NOTHING can stand up to Nintendo (well also the PSP's games have been thus far underwhelming), but that doesn't mean Microsoft can't find its niche (read: ONLINE GAMES) in the handheld market.

This post has been edited by Spiffyness on 1st March 2006 21:43

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The island bathes in the sun's bright rays
Distant hills wear a shroud of grey
A lonely breeze whispers in the trees
Sole witness to history

ICO-You were there-

I'm thinking you could actually crush a man with a *scoffs* "handheld" of that size.

However, I say good luck to them. As long as it has good games, bring it on. I'm sure the halo-fiends will swarm it

Well, all it seems like is a mini-PC with slightly more functions than some kind of PocketPC-kinda-thingy. Doesn't really seem all that much like a gaming machine, and then again, Nintendo's DS is getting into the wi-fi business too.

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Quote (Spiffyness @ 1st March 2006 15:43)

Edit

It also seems to be a sort of "do-everything" device, and those NEVER work. C'mon, Microsoft! Pick a market and COMMIT!

I thought the PSP would fail because it attempts to "do everything" But I ended up buying one and it certaintly isn't failing.

Quote (Spiffyness @ 1st March 2006 16:41)

NOTHING can stand up to Nintendo

The unbiased neutrality expressed by this statement is so thick you can cut it with a knife.

I think this is a good thing. MS is not, by far, a pioneer in this market; there are plenty of other fishermen perched on the pier trying to hook in the most fishies. They'll have to crank out some good competitive material to make this venture worthwhile. And be an MS bashing sheep all you want, but MS has done many things right in the past; if anything, they'll contribute a different outlook on portable devices.

All-in-one devices seem to be the rage nowadays. It's like a modern swiss army knife, only without the stabbity-stab...

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"Judge not a man by his thoughts and words, but by
the quality and quantity of liquor in his possession
and the likelyhood of him sharing."

I didn't mean that Nintendo is somehow the best or anything (heck, I haven't had a Nintendo console OR a gameboy since the original black&white GB and SNES), I'm just saying that they have a VERY strong hold on the handheld market that will be hard to top. Just look at how good the DS is doing, compared to the PSP (worldwide, I mean). Honestly, I DO think that the DS is the better buy, for now, because of the games, but PSP has the potential to be better in every way (not Sony's fault that there aren't many awesome games yet). Yet even if the PSP ended up being a much better system, I think the DS will still sell better. It's sortof like how the PS3 will undoubtable sell the best out of the next-gen systems, whether or not it deserves it.

The PSP has been faring better lately, but it's still got a ways to go.

This post has been edited by Spiffyness on 2nd March 2006 22:33

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The island bathes in the sun's bright rays
Distant hills wear a shroud of grey
A lonely breeze whispers in the trees
Sole witness to history

ICO-You were there-

You guys do realize that this is just the conceptual model that was thought up a year ago, right?

I know, but when i saw it, i was like roflol.

Yeah, I saw that. But the fact is the Microsoft is, in fact, making a portable system, and although it may not LOOK anything like that monstrosity, it'll probably serve the same function (I.E. everything).

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The island bathes in the sun's bright rays
Distant hills wear a shroud of grey
A lonely breeze whispers in the trees
Sole witness to history

ICO-You were there-

Knowing Microsoft's record with consoles and software, their handheld is likely to be as cumbersome as a cartoon-style bomb and have roughly the same function. Perhaps it'll even come bundled with a headset/microphone, that way you can take advantage of the voice-activated fuse.

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</technology>

Quote (Spiffyness @ 2nd March 2006 20:23)

Yeah, I saw that.  But the fact is the Microsoft is, in fact, making a portable system, and although it may not LOOK anything like that monstrosity, it'll probably serve the same function (I.E. everything).

But the thing is, this isn't a portable console like the PSP but rather a portable multimedia "hub."

MS hasn't released official details on it yet but the news hint very strongly at it being mainly used as a portable all-in-one multimedia evironment (some have mentionned competition for the iPod.) If it can deliver what it promises, this would be one heck of a nice little device.

This, of course, doesn't bar gaming on it (by far! I'd be surprised if it DIDN'T allow gaming, in fact edit: in fact...). But it's more of a utility system, and definately not the "porta-box." That'd be like saying a CD player is a device used to prevent headphones from getting lost by providing you with a handly hole to hook them into. Yeah, it does that, but that's the tip of the iceberg.

Edit 2: Direct link to a video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB7HIPKF1OY

This post has been edited by Silverlance on 3rd March 2006 01:40

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"Judge not a man by his thoughts and words, but by
the quality and quantity of liquor in his possession
and the likelyhood of him sharing."

1. The concept design looks ugly. Period.
2 (and most importantly) It won't play Halo It says it's not powerful enough. Still and interesting thing to keep track of though.


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Dead Winter. A nice comic.

Quote

Silverlance:
All-in-one devices seem to be the rage nowadays. It's like a modern swiss army knife, only without the stabbity-stab...

Shame that...

On a serious note, I'd rather just have a laptop. I'ts possible to use it as a handheld(ish). Or not. But I wouldn't get one. I haven't got an mp3 player for the same kind of reason. I can still listen to music with my CD player(portable and not), radio etc. Just like I can still do everything I want to do on that thing on a laptop, which will be more than powerful to play Halo.

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The frosty one.

You mean I'm not supposed to play XBOX while I'm driving? How could I be so foolish!

But yeah, seeing a handheld console the size of a "standard" keyboard makes my skin cringe in embarrassment. Given the all-in-one compactness this is going to have, as well as a lot of PC features by the looks of it, it's going to eat money by the bushel. Can't blame 'em for wanting a piece of the market's pie, but this looks ridiculous.

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It's gonna be a glorious day
I feel my luck can change

Well, a darn shame. It does make me wonder who this "close to Microsoft" source is, though. I mean, even if it's not meant AT ALL as a gaming device, Microsoft is freakin' RICH. I just find it hard to believe that they wouldn't want to spend some extra money to make it able to play Halo. It's just not something that Microsoft would do, conserving money like that.

Of course, I don't own any portable systems, and I wasn't going to start any time soon anyway. Not my problem.

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The island bathes in the sun's bright rays
Distant hills wear a shroud of grey
A lonely breeze whispers in the trees
Sole witness to history

ICO-You were there-

Quote (Barrylocke @ 3rd March 2006 08:21)

It won't play Halo

I dunno man, that article isn't very trustworthy. The lack of professionalism makes it very hard to consider anything more than anti-MS fanboyism. "I am everywhere you are... like your BO?" Please. :/

The fact remains that,

Quote ("Silverlance")

But the thing is, this isn't a portable console like the PSP but rather a portable multimedia "hub."

The promo video I linked to makes that obvious. Sure, maybe it can play games, but so can cell phones. The people in that video use it as a virtual notepad which can communicate with other people; that, in itself, is damned cool. Being able to pull my Origami while out eating lunch and scribbling a few notes down for my collegues at work to see in real-time would be more than worth the price tag. It would certainly beat sending myself an email whenever I think of some really good idea for Endless Saga's engine while at work (my memory ain't what it used to be, you young whippersnappers ) It's like a PDA, only bigger, better, but bulkier.

I for one am quite interested in it, depending on how it turns out. Just not as a gaming console. I can see this being a huge success if MS plays its cards right. Not every tech toy has to be a toy. Wether it's more worthwhile than getting a PDA or not remains to be seen.

Edit: Very nasty it's-friday-and-my-mind-is-in-the-gutter typo.

This post has been edited by Silverlance on 3rd March 2006 22:13

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"Judge not a man by his thoughts and words, but by
the quality and quantity of liquor in his possession
and the likelyhood of him sharing."

That thing looks crazy...almost like the igames concept and the russian keyboarding style video games which will have massive computers to run it...

But i digress, i think despite the crazy look, the playability will fit in somewhere and the world will be in peace once more, when the handheld race is at a slow down...

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DrkMagimaster282, shall wreak havoc and destroy...
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April fools is like 9 days away, maybe they're starting early?

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Elena Indurain

Currently Playing: Suikoden II

I read about this in the mainstream news media. It isn't a joke.

The article I read didn't portray this as a handheld gaming machine at all. It's just the missing link between a laptop and that stick-of-Trident-sized iPod.

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