With the Xbox Series X/S generation having been one of decline for Xbox from a hardware standpoint, questions about Microsoft’s future plans continue to grow louder. A report published by Windows Central’s Jez Corden may have shed new light on what those plans entail.
That Microsoft has been looking to get into the handheld gaming space for a while is no secret at this time, with the company even having officially confirmed that it was working on a portable Xbox. According to Corden, those plans will kick into gear with the launch of a dedicated third-party portable gaming PC that is going to be officially Xbox-branded.
The device will allegedly be built on “Xbox design sensibilities” and will also feature an official Xbox guide button. Codenamed “Keenan” will reportedly run on Windows, which means it will highlight the Windows Store and PC Game Pass while also allowing installation of third-party platforms such as Steam.
As for what Microsoft’s own internal hardware plans are, though leaks have repeatedly insisted that the next-gen Xbox console is targeting a 2026 release, Corden says 2027 is the actual plan. Allegedly, the successor to the Xbox Series X/S has been “fully greenlit” and is currently “tentatively” slated for the year after next. Alongside the console, Microsoft’s next-gen plans will reportedly also entail a first-party Xbox handheld of its own, as well as “several new controller options.”
By 2027 end, Xbox Series X/S will be seven years old, which is a fairly typical span for a console generation. Of course, that would make it shorter than the Xbox One generation, but given the dismal hardware sales Microsoft has endured with the Series consoles, it wouldn’t be entirely surprising to see the company wanting to speed up next-gen’s arrival.
