James Delahunty
20 Mar 2006 20:15
Microsoft Corp. is reportedly working on a portable device capable of playing games, music and movies to challenge two mega-popular gadgets from rivals; Sony Corp.'s PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld console and Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod player. The San Jose Mercury News cited unidentified sources in its report on Monday. According to the newspaper, it is unlikely that this device would be released within a year, if not two years.
Microsoft typically has targeted the gaming market and the mobile market separately. This new project is being headed by vice president J Allard and other members of the team that was responsible for the Xbox console. Microsoft will be up against a lot considering the popularity of the iPod music player and the success, growing reputation and continued evolution of the PSP console.
Microsoft launched its next generation gaming console, the Xbox 360, in the US in November. Its launch is to be followed by Nintendo's Revolution console and Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3). Both won't appear until late in the year, leaving the Xbox 360 the entire summer to just keep growing.
Source:
Reuters