Steve Ballmer made a visit to the University of Washington on the 5th to talk about the importance of cloud computing. While he was there he hinted at a possible smaller form factor Xbox 360 and different pricing points for them. Here is a quote from Ballmer:

For that big screen device … there’s no diversity. You get exactly the Xboxes that we build for you. We may have more form factors in the future that are designed for various price points and options, but we think it’s going to [be] important. (Source: Engadget)

Now who would’nt want a smaller more slim Xbox 360, the Xbox can finally compete with the new PS3 Slim. Now, What would Microsoft charge for the new Xbox, who knows but I would pay it. Also don’t forget Microsoft has Project Natal comming soon to Xbox 360, could they include the hardware with the new system? That would be pretty sweet to be able to get an Xbox with the hardware integrated and not have to worry about the bar that the Wii has. I am excited to see the new Xbox 360, heres to hoping.

Technorati Tags: project natal, steve ballmer, xbox 360, xbox 360 slim

For you lucky people to have participated in the Xbox Live Update Preview you got to experience Last.FM, Facebook, Twitter, and the new Zune service.

My favorite so far is Facebook:

With Facebook on the Xbox 360 you are able to Update your status right from the comfort of your own couch or chair or bed!  You can also view friends status updates, view photos in full screen on your television. You can also check to see which friends of yours are also using Facebook on the Xbox 360.

Last.FM

Last.FM Xbox 360

With Last.FM on the Xbox 360, you can listen to all of your favorite songs right from your Xbox 360. Last.FM streams over 3.5 millions songs right to your Xbox. With Last.FM you are able to check your friends playlists. Last.FM allows you to create your own custom radio station (Pandora?). After listening to a song you just vote either thumbs up or thumbs down. Last.FM will only be available to those Xbox Live Gold subscribers.

Twitter

Twitter Xbox 360

Twitter comes to the Xbox 360, with Twitter on the 360 you can view all of your friends status updates right from the comfort of your television. You can also update your status and view all of the trending topics on Twitter.

Zune

Zune on the Xbox 360

All of your favorite movies in full 1080p High Definition come to the Xbox 360 with the Microsoft Zune service.  Gold Subscribers will be able to rent and stream movies from the Zune service, with a Netflix like feel. Zune is nice because it is the only service that offers the 1080p, Netflix only currently offers 480p in their streaming service  which I hope they will update soon.

For all of you that are looking forward to this update, it will add a lot more functionality to the Xbox and again makes it worth the $50 a year for the Xbox Live subscription.

Technorati Tags: microsoft, microsoft xbox 360, microsoft zune, preview, twitter, xbox 360, xbox 360 update, xbox live, xbox live update, zune, zune 360