San Francisco - Microsoft enters the ring for next generation video consoles on Friday when its Xbox One goes on sale, just a week after the launch of Sony's Playstation 4.
While the console clash may at first glance seem of interest primarily to hard core gamers willing to splash $500 (about R5 000) on a game machine, the new devices, especially the Xbox, have much grander plans.
Coming with sophisticated voice and gesture recognition technologies and the ability to control your cable box, the Xbox is Microsoft's biggest play yet to carve out a permanent foothold in the digital living room.
And with its biggest rivals, Apple and Google, still largely on the TV sidelines, the Xbox One may be a masterstroke for the ailing software giant from Seattle.
In terms of gaming, there will be those who prefer the Playstation 4 which at $400 is $100 cheaper. Both consoles offer high definition graphics and a more immersive experience than ever before.
Microsoft also did itself a huge favour by ditching early plans to require an always-on internet connection to operate the console and limiting the compatibility of existing games.
But where the device has really wowed early reviewers is in the integration of its Kinect motion and voice recognition technology to finally allow TV users to ditch their remote.
“The successor to the Xbox 360 may initiate a gaming revolution,” raved Fox News' Adam Shaw. By connecting his Xbox to his cable TV box, Shaw was able to control his channel surfing by saying commands such as “TV on,” “volume down” and “Watch Fox News.”
“In my experience the cable remote quickly became redundant,” he said.
Other experts were equally enthusiastic. Brett Molina of USA Today called the console “the biggest leap toward an all in one entertainment future,” though he noted that it still needed a “bit more polish before it dominates the living room.”
Microsoft will surely not have the living room all to itself. Sony sold over 1 million PS4s on its first day on sale last Friday.
But it won't be easy to get your hands on one of the coveted machines, at least initially and especially in Asia, as a shortage of supply combines with a backlog of pent-up demand fuelled by the long wait for the next-gen consoles.
Only about 6 million PS4s and Xbox One systems are expected to ship worldwide this year, with 3 million to 4 million of those dedicated to the US.
So what's all the fuss about? Well it's been eight years since the launch of the Xbox 360 and seven since the PS3 went on sale. That can seem like a lifetime for a patience-challenged community of tech-obsessed gamers used to updating their other devices every year or two.
According to a recent survey by Parks Associates, interest in the new game consoles is rivalling that of tablets on holiday wish lists. About 18 percent of US homes with broadband Internet connections plan to buy a tablet this holiday season, compared with 16 percent for a game console. Last year, tablets outpaced game systems 19 percent to 11 percent.
“Consoles have had a major upgrade in terms of resolution, processing power, new features, and new titles,” explained Brett Sappington, director of research at Parks Associates. “Already 14 percent of all US broadband households use a connected game console to stream video, and the enhancements in the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will further expand the console use cases.”
Strong demand for both systems should debunk the theory that the rise of casual gaming would sound the death knell for videogame consoles. Research firm Gartner predicts $44-billion in game console sales of hardware and software in 2013, up from 37 billion dollars last year.
“We've been behind on the innovation curve, while you have all kinds of new tablets and smartphones coming out,” Tony Bartel, president of retailer GameStop, told USA Today.
Now, he says, “consoles will be the most innovative product that everyone is going to want this holiday season. It will precipitate a great new growth cycle.” - Sapa-dpa