Handhelds are the most popular option for playing games, due to their portable design and the processing power that makes playing AAA titles possible without breaking a sweat in such a small form factor. Nintendo Switch has grown in popularity in the last couple of years, and so have rivals like PlayStation Portal, Asus ROG Ally X, Lenovo Legion Go S, and Steam Deck.
Among all this, Microsoft has remained secretive about its plans to realize a handled gaming console. Having never released a portable gaming console, and the competition increasing with every passing day, Xbox indeed will have a handheld gaming console version, as revealed by Microsoft’s VP of Next Generation Jason Ronald.
Designer: Reynard Seah
Xbox Handheld’s Consistent Experience For Players
At CES 2025 in a close-up interaction with Jason at a round table, The Verge had an extended discussion regarding the future of an upcoming Xbox handheld who pressed on the fact that the gadget will have a strong operating system, build on the same ethos as the bigger brother that’s ruled the market for such a long time. This will be important in bringing a smooth gaming experience for the players, but most importantly a smooth title-creating experience for the developers.
He also confirmed that the Xbox handheld will run on a brand new OS that is optimized fully for the portable gaming experience. Certain things in the Windows OS are not designed for a handheld. For instance, the thumbstick and joypad input. For this reason, Microsoft chooses to create a fundamentally different interaction model to ensure that the handheld feels and interacts natively like a gaming-centric device. He also assured the fans that they’ll have a lot more to share in 2025 regarding the Xbox handheld coming in a year or two, so we are already excited.
What The Next-Gen Handheld Will Be Like
Even though we all are in the blind spot regarding the Xbox Handheld, a concept gives our imagination wings. Conceptualized by Reynard, the Xbox Series Portable is wholly inspired by the success of Xbox in its closely fought battle with Sony PlayStation. Going by Microsoft’s DNA of simple yet highly functional, this design follows suit for its inspiring theme. The handheld with a gently wrapped body around the 16:10 screen has the classic ergonomic appearance that takes its design cues from the controllers we all love so much.
That D-pad has the signature angular design of the elite controllers and it also helps in maintaining an ergonomic grip. While the gaming handhelds vary in their screen size and overall body dimensions, the buck will stop at the overall experience while being immersed in the mobile gaming world. This concept ideally captures the vision Microsoft has for its handheld and putting so much time and effort into developing the OS for the device is surely going to put Xbox ahead of the competition even though they are far behind for now.
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