Xbox 720: ‘Next Xbox’ statement a ‘misunderstanding’, explains Microsoft

Comments made yesterday from Microsoft' Brian Hall suggesting a new Xbox console were a "misunderstanding", the company confirmed today.

After an interview with The Verge (via), in which Windows Live General Manager Brian Hall mentioned "the new Xbox", the gaming community immediately went into a frenzy. Could he really be referring to the next Xbox console? As it turns out, no, he wasn't.

Here's the original quote:

"We’ve had Hotmail and operated Hotmail for about sixteen years, we obviously have Exchange, and Outlook, that people use at work. We just decided it was time to do something new and bring the best from each of those and put them together and release it right in time for the new wave of products that we could have coming out with Windows 8 with the new version of Office with the New Windows phone and the new Xbox."

According to Microsoft, Hall was instead referring to the fall Xbox 360 update, not the release of a new Xbox console.

“The comments to The Verge were not understood in their intended context," Microsoft explained in a statement released today. "When Brian mentioned a ‘new wave of products,’ he was referring to the full lineup of products coming later this year from Microsoft, including Windows 8, Office, Windows Phone and of course our fall Xbox update which will bring a host of new consumer experiences like Xbox Music, Videos, Games on Windows 8 and Xbox SmartGlass.”

With speculation of a new Xbox console at an all time high, gamers and media everywhere are starved for any bit of information they can get on the new console. Microsoft is clearly under the microscope with every single word being scrutinized for any hint of a new Xbox. Unfortunately, this one looks like an honest slip up.

It's not all disappointing for fans looking forward to the Xbox 720. In late July, images of the Xbox Durango, or better known as the Xbox 720, development kit appeared online giving fans their first look at what developers are using to create games for Microsoft's next-generation Xbox. It wasn't much, but at least we have solid evidence that the next-gen is quickly approaching.