My Xbox One hard drive is already full. Hell, I had to start deleting games I hadn’t even finished around Christmastime. But it looks like Microsoft may try to give future Xbox One owners a bit more storage.
Earlier today, Amazon listed a new Xbox One with a 1TB hard drive and a revamped controller (via Wario64 on Twitter). That is 1,000 GB and twice the size of the current Xbox One model’s storage. As for the new gamepad, this one allegedly features a built-in 3.5mm headphone jack. That’s something you previously needed an adapter for.
The store page for this item briefly had it at $400 and said that it will start shipping June 15. That is the day of Microsoft’s media briefing prior to the Electronic Entertainment Expo trade show in Los Angeles. Amazon even briefly enabled people to start preordering the system.
But now the Amazon listing has dropped the price, the date, and the preorder button. We asked Microsoft for a statement, and it didn’t deny that this is real. But it also didn’t confirm anything.
“We’re gearing up for an exciting E3 where we’ll showcase more games and experiences,” a Microsoft spokesperson told GamesBeat. “We have nothing further to share at this time.”
But this is definitely something we’ll keep an eye on. After all, the Amazon page has what looks like official Microsoft copy describing the new version of the Xbox One. Go ahead and read it:
“There’s only one place to play the best exclusives and biggest blockbusters this year, like Halo 5: Guardians, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Forza Motorsport 6. Experience the most advanced multiplayer on Xbox Live, powered by hundreds of thousands of servers that maximize performance while reducing lag and cheating. And quickly switch back-and-forth between games, live TV, and apps. Now includes a 1TB hard drive for storing games and media, a controller with a 3.5mm headset jack, and Halo: The Master Chief Collection, the definitive Halo experience on Xbox One. Play through The Master Chief’s entire story with Halo Combat Evolved: Anniversary, newly remastered Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3, and Halo 4.”
The implications of this are interesting. It’s possible that Microsoft will either phase out the 500 GB Xbox One model, or — more likely — it will continue selling that one for $350. That’s the price the system has had since the last holiday shopping season with the exception of a few weeks in January. That price has helped Microsoft make a dent in Sony’s lead, and now it looks like the company is feeling confident enough to find a way to bump the price back up to potentially start making a bit more revenue per every console sold.