Xbox next + Arm tablets, could they share processing and overlap functionally?

[Squilliam]

Would it make sense from a practical cost/benefit perspective for the Xbox Next to act as a cloud storage and processing hub for Windows 8 tablets as well as giving the ability to play games on them in a similar way to the Wii U with an "assumed" possible universal controller attachment?

From a tablet user perspective it would likely give longer battery life and more versatility in terms of program performance as well as immediate backup of information to a mirrored local storage system. It'd mean effectively the Xbox Next could act as a PC with benefits to an existing ARM based Windows 8 tablet.

From a console user perspective it would give mobility in much the same way within the house as the Wii U and similar options whilst gaining additional practical benefits from the PC side of the equation. Effectively it'd match the Wii U whilst also possibly giving the ability to play games on tablets away from home as well so long as the console does the heavy lifting.

It wouldn't be an out of the box solution but granted the assumption of Wii U support I suspect that as long as implementation was seamless in a similar way to the Wii U then it wouldn't need a 100% penetration rate to get support. They could effectively keep their foot in the door whilst providing additional synergies to getting multiple Microsoft products at the same time. An end user could therefore choose to use either just the Xbox Next with Kinect 2.0 or an Xbox Next with a Windows 8 tablet and it'd give similar functionality without too many implementation headaches. It'd be a good way to be 'luckier' because they can drift the way the wind blows if one type of interface becomes markedly more popular than another or simply as a catch all for the different personalities and needs of their customers.

Does it sound like a plausible strategy for a next generation gaming console?

 

[eastmen]

wouldn't it be smarter for ms to move that to the pc . With the flooding issues aside prices of storage is dirt cheap . in 2013 certianly i can see home pcs coming with 3TB of space. It would be smart to make the desktop pc in a home the main box

 

[TheChefO]

Actually, I fully expect such a strategy from MS.

It would require a form of wireless HDMI+USB/Blutooth to be standard on the console and the win8 tablets, but it makes sense.

Making the HDMI interface two-way or reversible would be interesting as well for browsing on a tab and "throwing" the display to the TV while still controlling it via the tab via the xb720.

Of course, MS might just look at the sales numbers and do something stupid like implement this in the existing x360 hardware in a new revision ...

Either way, I think its a smart evolution of computer interfaces at home and will more than likely be part of MS' plans in one way or another.

 

[TheChefO]

wouldn't it be smarter for ms to move that to the pc . With the flooding issues aside prices of storage is dirt cheap . in 2013 certianly i can see home pcs coming with 3TB of space. It would be smart to make the desktop pc in a home the main box

Unfortunately, traditional box PC's are "dying" in the sense that sales growth isn't there. For MS to adopt such a strategy would be seen as "putting good money after bad" by investors ... Unlikely to happen.

But I agree that the PC as the centerpiece of the home makes the most sense. It's just never fully evolved to take that place, even though MS and others (gateway2000) have tried to make it so.

 

[Squilliam]

It would require a form of wireless HDMI+USB/Blutooth to be standard on the console and the win8 tablets, but it makes sense.

Why wouldn't wireless N work for this kind of application, after all it is just streaming a video effectively?

Of course, MS might just look at the sales numbers and do something stupid like implement this in the existing x360 hardware in a new revision ...

Actually that makes sense. Would they need more than the current Xbox 360 S wireless N bandwidth to implement it? Is there a performance issue which would prevent it?

 

[Hardknock]

I don't see how this can 'match' the Wii U. First off how would you control games? The Wii Upad has conventional controls built into the tablet. The Upad will be significantly smaller and lighter than Windows Tablets. Not to mention the Wii U will be significantly cheaper and in conjunction with a TV offers new gameplay experiences (dual screens).

 

[patsu]

It doesn't have to match WiiU. Microsoft will have to ask themselves: Will it be a desired and common use case ?

The WiiU pad is cheaper and lighter. Admittedly, the approach can still work if the pad is already bought/pervasive (i.e., Use popular smartphone or tablet). Displaying on multiple screens may not be a problem if the clients/screens are smart (Less data to communicate over the net).

WiiU pad also has limited range. MS can use cloud services to resume the game elsewhere if it's a full tablet.

Lack of dual sticks is a problem but may be ok for some games. The screen size is a double-edge sword. Sometimes bigger is better, sometimes smaller is better. The game may have to be designed for the common tablet size.