The next generation of Xbox consoles, codenamed Helix, may launch without a built-in optical drive. This was revealed by journalist and insider Jez Corden in a new episode of the Windows Central podcast.
According to Corden, Microsoft may currently be losing up to $200 on the sale of each Xbox Series X|S console. He claims that production has become significantly more expensive due to rising prices for memory and other components, new tariffs, and ongoing supply chain issues.
The insider noted that the traditional console business model, where manufacturers sell devices at a loss, hoping to offset losses through game and service sales, is becoming less and less effective. Free-to-play projects like Fortnite and Roblox create an additional problem: many console owners spend hundreds of hours in them and hardly buy new games, which significantly slows down the return on hardware investment.
According to Corden, this is why Microsoft and Sony are gradually reducing console shipments and simultaneously increasing their retail price, trying to compensate for rising production costs.
Speaking about the future generation of Xbox, the journalist stated that, according to the latest information he received, the Xbox Helix is not planned to be equipped with a built-in disc drive. At the same time, Microsoft is closely monitoring user reactions to Sony's abandonment of physical media.