Rumor: 360 a footnote in Microsoft's CES keynote

by Randy Nelson { Jan 5th 2009 at 3:15PM }

It's sounding like the only "megatons" at Microsoft's CES 2009 keynote will be the volume of hors d'oeuvres served beforehand. According to TechCruch, the company will focus primarily on Windows 7, mobile devices and home networking, while Xbox 360 will barely get a mention. Lest we forget that MS used CES 2001 as its venue for the global unveiling of the original Xbox.

The site says that some media outlets have already been told -- under embargo -- that the only mention of 360 during MS head Steve Ballmer's presentation will be that Halo Wars and Halo 3: ODST are (brace yourself) scheduled for release in 2009. Though we already knew that, we suspect there will be those in attendance overhead saying "Halo wha?" and "2009 ... hey, that's now!"

[Via X3F]

Tags: ces-2009, keynote, microsoft, rumor, steve-ballmer

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Fernando Rocker @ Jan 5th 2009 3:22PM

Any impressions about Windows 7?

I really like Vista. I know it requires a lot of resources and memory, but I have a enough RAM and a decent video card, so, running Vista is not a problem, and I like the eye candy in Vista a lot more than XP.

But I will be more than happy in Windows 7 can retain the same eye candy but using the same resources as XP.

As anyone here tried Windows 7 Beta?

Marty @ Jan 5th 2009 3:27PM

I've been interested in it, but haven't personally tried the beta yet. Most of the reviews I've read of it have stated that it's better than Vista, but that some of the new stuff, like the re-tooled taskbar, can take some getting used to (or can even be counter-intuitive in some cases).

The intrawebs don't seem to be as negative towards it as Vista so far though, and most of the people I've read have seemed much more excited about it than before, so hopefully we'll see some real improvement with it.

All they really need to do is fix the problems people had with Vista, make sure they don't release 10 different versions of it, and lower the price a tad, and people will be all over it. Not that MS ever takes MY advice, but well... there it is.

Marty @ Jan 5th 2009 3:29PM

Oh, and you should remember that Win 7 is basically Vista with a facelift and some small improvements - so hopefully no major driver problems this time around, and hopefully a slight loosening in system req's, though I wouldn't bank on that.

J-Link @ Jan 5th 2009 3:32PM

Yeah I like the way vista looks too, only thing is there are a few bugs in it, but I manage with them. I sure hope windows 7 turns out better though.

gwangi @ Jan 5th 2009 3:33PM

I downloaded the beta last week. I really liked it. runs faster than vista. Really looking forward to actually upgrading from XP.

infernus @ Jan 5th 2009 3:33PM

http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=3236
Pretty unscientific, but at least shows that W7 is looking faster. Supposedly.
As far as resources go, I'm not too bothered with the amount Vista is using, though less is welcome.

Wiinterfang @ Jan 5th 2009 3:41PM

I'm gonna miss the sidebar if I upgrade, I really like it.

Zertoss @ Jan 5th 2009 3:41PM

I've been interested in Windows 7 too, mostly because I'm most likely going to build a new gaming rig this year, so I'll be upgrading from XP.

Honestly, I'm not looking forward to it. I wish I could just stay with XP.

AwesomeTown @ Jan 5th 2009 3:51PM

Windows 7 will be my first plunge into a 64bit operating system. Vista 64bit seems to have great support and I haven't had any problems at all with the 32bit Vista, so I'll definitely upgrade. I'll probably want to upgrade into a Nehalem system once the hardware is more mainstream and cheaper anyway.

Popfrogs @ Jan 5th 2009 5:05PM

I ran the beta for a few days (build 7000). It's much faster than Vista and more usable on lesser hardware, but the new "everything is an icon" taskbar is ridiculous.

Also I tried 2 different antivirus packages that Windows 7 itself suggested. One from Kaspersky, one from AVG. Both failed to install properly and both bluescreened my box when I tried to uninstall them.

Josh @ Jan 5th 2009 10:49PM

Definitely looking forward to Windows 7 news. Hopefully we'll get a more concrete release date.

btw Popfrogs and anyone else who's tried 7, is there a way to switch back to the old taskbar? The current way, text + icons, is the best way.

Popfrogs @ Jan 6th 2009 12:48AM

@josh: Supposedly there's an option for it. After the constant bluescreening post-av-uninstall I gave up on it and put XP back on my box so I didn't see it for myself.

Paul Thurrott talks about this stuff on his Win7 pages. http://www.winsupersite.com/win7/

john paul @ Jan 5th 2009 3:33PM

They don't really mention the 360 that much during CES. so not really surprised if this is true. expect something in GDC. the only thing they would announce is something for the mainstream such as XBVM or a bluray addon. The only big thing out of 360 last year was Lost.

Jakka ( The Order of Haters of Balance) @ Jan 5th 2009 3:37PM

For 1GB of ram, I doubt W7 is a good choice...gonna have to upgrade soon.

gwangi @ Jan 5th 2009 3:49PM

I ran W7 on a laptop with 1GB of RAM and it ran really well.

Popfrogs @ Jan 5th 2009 5:06PM

It's actually not bad, not nearly as fat as Vista on 1 gig of ram. It won't be replacing XP or Ubuntu on netbooks anytime soon though.

shawn @ Jan 5th 2009 3:43PM

im interested in windows 7 and i hope the speed that its getting now with people testing it is the same when it releases but then again this is microsoft where talking about...they create buggy software and buggy hardware and yes i own a 360

Chewie @ Jan 5th 2009 3:44PM

http://img231.imageshack.us/my.php?image=tombstoneze8.jpg

MuToiD_MaN @ Jan 5th 2009 3:56PM

Surely this is an image that belongs on the Sony Defense Force website ... http://www.sonydefenseforce.com/

Moorio - XBL: peacebyanymeans @ Jan 5th 2009 8:41PM

What?

baby sea tuna @ Jan 5th 2009 3:49PM

Zune-phone, maybe?

ice~ @ Jan 5th 2009 3:58PM

I hope there is no Zune related news....because I just bought a Zune and would be REALLY PISSED if a new one was announced....cause than i'd have to write more peoples research papers for $....

Markez (Anti-Panda Death Murder Squadron) @ Jan 5th 2009 11:27PM

@ Ice - had a similar feeling after I got a nuvi and then saw a totally schweet nuvi phone was in the works, that'd clip into the bracket on your dash. *drools

Alex @ Jan 5th 2009 3:55PM

Please, somebody tell me what ODST is.
I don't know because I've never really bothered with Halo, but now I feel left out.
I dislike abbreviations that seem to pop up when NOBODY has ever explained them.

MuToiD_MaN @ Jan 5th 2009 3:57PM

Google first, then ask questions :P
http://halo.wikia.com/wiki/Orbital_Drop_Shock_Trooper

Mr Khan @ Jan 5th 2009 4:16PM

And there's your reason why ODST over Recon is a bad choice from a commercial standpoint.

XDragon @ Jan 5th 2009 4:11PM

I'd be surprised if they only talked about Halo but you never know.
Miscrosoft does have a lot of work to do to ensure Windows 7 gets on people's good side considering what a disaster Vista turned into.
People bash Vista to death and I know most of them haven't even used it.
I'm not defending or praising it, but Apple sure has taken the opportunity to sell a lot more Macs and I'm sure Microsoft wants to fight back.

Mr Khan @ Jan 5th 2009 4:22PM

The thing is, it's going to be very hard for Mac OS to gain ground against Windows when an operating system is such a utilitarian thing to the layman. Apple has made some gains recently, but it's a pittance in the broad scale. Apple would need to really do some sort of revolutionary, Web 3.0 thing to create a unified platform between iPhone, iPod, and Mac OS to really create a compelling alternative

Microsoft screwing up isn't enough to make Apple into a real threat on the OS front (unless they really, really screwed up)

XDragon @ Jan 7th 2009 9:44AM

Like all your other comments against me, you miss the point.
Apple's OS can't take over Windows with any 1 or even 2 bad Windows version releases and I never suggested otherwise!
The point is, Windows Vista has a bad name now and Microsoft has to make sure that doesn't carry over to the next release or else Apple will continue to make gains even if they are small.

Hyams @ Jan 5th 2009 4:21PM

Apparently there'll be PS3 related news there too, if anyone but me cares any more. ^_^

Popfrogs @ Jan 5th 2009 5:09PM

Dude, we're in the wrong place if we expect to read favorable or neutral PS3 news.

Markez (Anti-Panda Death Murder Squadron) @ Jan 5th 2009 11:31PM

I heard they're going to be announcing a car-bra type cover for the PS3; y'know, for when it offroads.

SoCoolCurt (PSN: KillaKornbread - XBL: SoCoolCurt) @ Jan 5th 2009 5:09PM

MS has alot of stuff to announce at CES. not surprised the 360 wont get much shine. they are trying to get a couple new OS's out the door with Windows 7 and the next Windows Mobile OS. 360 will get plenty of attention at the next gaming centric event. i doubt Sony or Nintendo will do much gaming stuff either to keep it in scope.

Joeshie @ Jan 5th 2009 5:59PM

I never understood the vast hatred towards Vista. I've been using it since it was released and I'm primarily a PC gamer so most of my gaming time is spent using Vista. Aside from the immature drivers from nVidia early on, I never really had any problems with it.

Seems to me that it was blown way out of proportion by the media and the IT crowd.

Premature ejaculation man @ Jan 5th 2009 6:01PM

The media can be very powerful. It scares me sometimes

xGeneral DEATHx @ Jan 6th 2009 7:52AM

The I.T. crowd is more worried about making it work with existing corporate hardware (switches, printers, software programs from the XP era, IP Telephony) than just making it work well with a video card here and there. Otherwise we'd have to buy all-new hardware that's labeled "[New OS] Compatible", and the cost would go through the roof every few years.

Mark @ Jan 5th 2009 9:16PM

The Xbox division has failed.

-The first Xbox fell the PS2
-The Xbox360 fell to the Wii

The Xbox360 had everything stacked in it's favor. It had no competitors for a full year and was priced at just $299 (only $50 more than the Wii).

After being outsold by massive margins by the Wii, and to a smaller extent the PS3, Microsoft completely redesigned the user interface, copied features on the Wii, and dramatically slashed the price to $50 less than the Wii. Yet the Wii continues to outsell the 360 by massive margins.

Mission failed. Good bye Xbox.