E3: Microsoft announces new Xbox 360 'Slim'

Xbox360New

Today at E3, Microsoft announced the new Xbox 360 with a new smaller frame with a new shiny black casing. Aside from the new look, the base model will also have built-in Wi-Fi 802.11N and a 250 GB HDD.

With the brand new Xbox 360 announcement, Microsoft also surprised everyone by saying the new console will begin shipping today in the U.S., and everyone attending the Microsoft E3 press announcement will have it shipped out today. For folks in the UK and Europe the new Xbox will be available on July 16.

The specifications are as follows:

Touch sensitive buttons - turn the Xbox 360 on/off and eject a disc with the swipe of a finger
Whisper quiet - all new much quieter Xbox 360
Wi-fi - built in 802.11N for fast connection
Hard drive - 250GB internal, swappable hard drive for even more storage
Kinect ready - Custom Kinect port on the back of the console that directly hooks up to the Kinect sensor
USB slots - Five USB ports, three on the back of the console and two in the front
AV connections - AV cable, HDMI, optical audio
Power supply - smaller and more efficient
Internal changes - fan changed from two small fans to one larger fan. Chipset based on 45 nanometer and integrated CPU/GPU. Wi-fi inbuilt

As Neowin reported yesterday, Project Natal was also rebranded to Kinect. Within the advertisement, we wondered if the new Xbox 360 showcased was actually a mockup by a fan, or indeed the new look for the console.

Microsoft announced that the new Xbox 360 will be ultra-quiet. Sadly, the new Xbox 360 will not support a Blu-Ray drive. The new Xbox will have three USB ports on the back, ethernet, aux, component/composition adapter port, HDMI and optical audio out. The aux port is a dedicated Kinect port for the new Xbox 360. The front of the console includes a new location for the eject button, and possibly front USB ports. The next version of the console will still require a power brick, but will be much smaller in comparison to the original.

The new Xbox 360 will sell for the same price as the original Xbox 360 for $299.