"We received this image from a source who wishes to remain anonymous. An Xbox 360 motherboard with a HDMI-port, interesting... Our source has seen 3 of these motherboards already, so it looks like Microsoft might prepare a new Xbox 360 version with a HDMI-port... A digital output would certainly come as good news for those out there with new HDTV-sets and it could be pretty useful for the HD-DVD addon too, certainly if those movies will ever be HDCP-protected. However people who already paid $400 for their 360 might feel less happy if Microsoft releases this soon."
Speculation and technical discussion after the jump.
It's obvious that the picture given to the bright folks at Xbox-Scene was mirrored, seeing as how the USB/Ethernet ports on the 360 are on the other side of the A/V port, but with that aside, what's with the Xbox-1 style fan connector? As you can see clearly in this high-res photo of the 360 motherboard (3.3mb), the current 360s have the same chip/heatsink configuration shown in the "HDMI-equipped mobo" shot, but use a 4-pin Molex-type connector for the fans rather than the 3-pin connector shown in the "new" mobo pic, usually used on PCs (and used on the original Xbox). Now, Microsoft has been known to rework motherboards quite a bit in the past, so I wouldn't put it past them to do something as small as changing the type of connector for fans when they've completely taken out fans and totally remapped mobos for the Xbox multiple times, and this may just be a (very small) cost-cutting measure.
The reason for the seperate HDMI port can be explained quite easily, as the current A/V output doesn't have the bandwidth to carry an HDMI signal, and I believe HDMI spec requires an HDMI port, not a proprietary one with an HDMI cable. However, the question begs asking whether or not current games will support the HDMI output on the supposed new mobo configuration. It is, technically, possible for Microsoft to make this happen through hardware, and it may not be hard to do at all, but it's also entirely possible that the HDMI port will only be used for HD-DVD movies. I certainly don't want to have a seperate component and HDMI input going to my TV for the same system, though, and I don't think most consumers would let it fly.
With MS shunning the early adopters with this package, some are now speculating about an 'upgrade' or 'exchange' program, but it would cost Microsoft unthinkable amounts of money to do such a program for those without HDMI ports.
Personally, the LCD I have in my room doesn't have an HDMI input so I could care less, but I have been thinking about upgrading to a newer LCD or plasma with an HDMI input, and a nice new 360 with a compatible output just may sway my decision a little bit more.
All in all, I wouldn't rule this out, but I would surely expect Microsoft to stay mum on the subject or officially deny all of these rumors and speculation so that the current 360 continues selling as well as it is.
Count me as one of those people who are unhappy about this news. Are you telling me that if I had only waited 6 months longer, I could have had HDMI...? This really sucks if it's true.
Sounds good to me. I wonder if the visual improvement would be noticeable.
likely not, Smis. though HDMI is fully digital, it still carries the same 1080i video and 5.1 audio the original HD cables do. yes, there technically would be a slight improvement due to the digital over analog signals, but the analog cables supplied with the 360 are of surprisingly high quality. overall, a quality difference would be noticable in a pixel-by-pixel comparison, but probably not by the human eye. HDMI was really made for protecton of content, not quality of picture/audio - though it does deliver on both fronts.
Wait so that universal thing-a-ma-bob on the back of the Xbox 360 doesn't have the bandwidth to push out an HDMI signal??? I was under the impression that MS said they could add HDMI down the road if it were warranted, and that had me thinking a speciality adapter for the thing-a-ma-bob that turned it into HDMi.
I take it I completely misinterprited that.
It's not neccesarily that the connector doesn't have the bandwidth so much as the HDMI spec doesn't allow for proprietary connectors, Hawkes. But the video encoder chip that is currently on the mobo of the 360 cannot drive an HDMI output, whether through a regular HDMI port or not - insiders have admitted to that.
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