For the past few weeks, the internet has been awash with speculation about a new, slimmer (and hopefully more reliable) Xbox 360 Slim. Supposedly a refined, and physically much smaller model of the popular console, rumours state that Microsoft will unveil a new, slimmer console to launch alongside it's new motion-sensing camera, Natal, later this year. With a newly designed Xbox 360 that's roughly the size of a Wii coupled with Natal, Microsoft would be well prepared to launch a full scale assault on our living rooms this autumn.
Now, the rumours are beginning to gain momentum, as they're starting to get picked up by industry sources too. According to Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter, Microsoft will "at (least)" bundle a slim Xbox 360 model, Project Natal and a 250 gigabyte hard drive, for $299 at the of the year.
Of course, figures like this mean nothing on their own, but to put it into perspective, that works out in pounds as a paltry £193.61 - less than the RRP of an Xbox 360 Arcade model at the moment. So, for less than the price of an Xbox 360 Arcade, that comes with no hard drive, you'd be getting a brand new console, Natal, and a 250 GB hard drive. If nothing else says how serious Microsoft are about re-launching the console, this would.
Of course, at the moment, the Xbox 360 slim model is only a rumour - and the "industry analyst" Michael Pachter is known for being about as reliable as a 360 in a heatwave, but it's long been speculated that Microsoft are planning on going straight for the jugular when Natal's launched - and a cheap, enticing bundle may just be the way they go about it.
