In 2021, Microsoft made some vague statements about developing an Xbox console that would stream games exclusively from its cloud services. In 2022, Microsoft confirmed those efforts, which it said has the code name Keystone. At the same time, Microsoft said it was going to "pivot away from the current iteration of the Keystone device." Later in 2022, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer posted an image on his X account of part of its office, which may have included a small glimpse of that prototype Keystone device.
Today, Windows Central is reporting that a Microsoft patent that was first filed in June 2022 with the US Patent Office, and went public in December 2023, shows the full design of the Xbox Keystone device.
The drawings in this patent filing show a square design with the Xbox logo in the front that serves as a power button, along with a USB port. The back included an Ethernet port, an HDMI port, and a power connector. Unfortunately, the patent filing did not reveal anything about the hardware specs inside Keystone, including its processor and memory or what operating system might be running it.
In the end, the downfall for Keystone was its inability to create a game-streaming device that would have a price point of around $99 to $129. This would seem to suggest that Keystone would have been far more powerful than most of the streaming sticks and set top boxes that are currently available from Google, Amazon, Apple, Roku, and others.
The article adds that during this month's Xbox Games Showcase event, an unnamed Microsoft Xbox team member said that the company has seen some success in offering Xbox Cloud Gaming services on select Samsung TV's in the form of apps. The report also claims Microsoft is working to add PC games to Xbox Cloud Gaming. Nvidia GeForce NOW is also available on some Samsung TVs which has a big library of PC titles.
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