It's been a good six months since I wrote my last update on what we know, and what people think they know about the next generation Xbox, as things get closer to launch so we're getting more and more so called "facts" emerging from unnamed sources, now nearly on a daily basis. So I think now is a good time to write up on some of the common rumours, outline why or why not I think it's likely and remind people of the real hard concrete facts.

First up I'll deal with the good old hard drive this has been raised several times. This started out to a large degree after M-Systems President and CEO Dov Moran made an announcement stating: "Microsoft has taken the hard disk out of its Xbox. The only thing left will be a CD; that’s all. At some point, when users want to save their e-mail messages, copy music, or anything like that, the only storage they’ll have is what we give them. It’s worth hundreds of millions to the company, spread over a few years, and we’ll be the main supplier for it; and I hope the sole supplier." That's all very well and good, but it's not Microsoft stating that and any company in a relationship with Microsoft should be a lot more careful about making these kind of announcement years before a product ships. I take this with a pinch of salt.

Microsoft always talked up the hard drive in the Xbox; its users absolutely loved it. If Microsoft has indeed removed the hard drive from the next generation Xbox, it is a stupid move in my opinion - you can't talk up a feature in one version and remove it from the next. Some people went one step further - may be Microsoft have multiple versions of the next Xbox, one with and one without a hard drive. It would help the massive loss Microsoft make on each console, by having a cheaper Xbox 2, without the hard drive, which is one of the most expensive components, they could help reduce costs. People who have sense will obviously buy the version with a hard drive, for the added media capabilities, and to live free of the worry of running out of space.

CNN had up an article a while back about Microsoft researching a joint PC - Xbox device, an Xbox that could do basic PC operations. This led to the "uber" Xbox, with a hard drive and a stripped down version of Windows, which brings us up to the now famous "Microsoft are releasing three different next generation Xboxes" taken now by so many people as solid fact. Let's remember it's not, it's all speculation. Personally I don't see Microsoft doing a hybrid PC/Xbox in the next generation; it would be treading on many of their partner's toes. Microsoft have always stayed out of the hardware side of the PC industry, them moving in would upset a lot of people. If we talk long term, then I think it's very likely, a unified platform across everything is definitely where I believe things will go - but for this we're talking years and years, may be even a decade.

Xbox 360? Back nearly a year ago, a list of potential candidate names was unveiled for the Xbox 2, on this list contained Xbox 360, now considered by many the final retail name for the next generation Xbox. The reason being to better compete. Xbox 2 sounds older then PlayStation 3 - therefore if they bump it up to 360, it sounds more cutting-edge and more modern. Microsoft often up version numbers, from memory they've done this with DirectX and Windows Media, why bother with 360? Why not just call it Xbox 3. This could well happen, but again total rumours. Microsoft have only referred to the next generation Xbox as, the next generation, Xenon (codename for the development kit) and Xbox 2.

Halo 3 - with Halo 2 ending which such a cliff-hanger people automatically jumped up and said, yes Halo 3 launch title for Xbox 2. You may have heard the name Halo 2.5 being thrown around - this may be an accurate assumption, with only a year or so it would most likely be a straight port with extra levels. This is one possibility. The next is that they're planning Halo 3 to launch along side the PlayStation 3, to steal some of its hype; it would certainly keep some people from buying the PlayStation 3. "Hey look the PS3 is out - hey look Halo 3 just came out". Bungie have stated that they're working on a brand new IP, probably true in my opinion. But Halo is a million-dollar franchise, you can bet your mortgage on their being another one at some point, we just don't know when.

With the Xbox 2 rumoured to be out by the end of the year, rumours are spreading like wild fire as the hype engine slides into gear - but the truth of the matter is we simply don't know, seriously we just don't know! Hopefully by the end of May (E3), Microsoft will unveil the Xbox 2 and we'll finally have some hard facts about the machine.