A massive information drop about Xbox Magnus, the rumored APU chip in development that Microsoft plans to use in the successor to the Xbox Series X|S consoles, has just been released by YouTuber Moore’s Law Is Dead.
In a video on their channel, the content creator details a laundry list of fine and specific details about the new chip, citing anonymous sources, including some they claim are “directly working on finalizing Xbox Magnus”. The video gets pretty technical, so I’ve summed up the most important parts.
Is the new Xbox a handheld?
It seems both Sony and Microsoft have taken a few lessons from the recent handheld PC boom, but with completely diverging paths. While the PlayStation 6 will allegedly be a handheld console akin to a more powerful Nintendo Switch, the new Xbox will reportedly be a PC-console hybrid.
It’s not entirely clear what that entails specifically, but based on a previous rumor shared by Jez Corden, Microsoft’s new console will essentially be a PC with the capacity to play console games. Presumably, this would allow the gaming device to double as your daily driver for standard office work, creative apps, and web surfing.
Will the new Xbox be faster than the PS6?
The Magnus chip will use AMD’s Zen 6 processor cores with up to 11 CPU cores in total, combining three Zen 6 cores with eight of the more efficient Zen 6C cores. The video highlights the potential for up to 48 GB of GDDR7 RAM.
The video claims that Magnus measures at around 408 mm squared, making it the largest APU ever used in a gaming console. That’s roughly 13% larger than the Xbox Series X|S die and about 46% larger than the one will be used in the PlayStation 6 home console. Since it doesn’t have to deal with the thermal and spatial constraints inherent with the handheld for factor, the video explains that the AMD Magnus will predictably be more powerful than the PlayStation 6.
if a given PS6 game was running 4K120 with ray tracing on you know and of course it would also have FSR4 or something to get there i would suspect that Magnus would instead of doing 4K 120 do like 4K 144 like it could do 20% higher frame rates.
How much will the new Xbox cost?
The video explains that the Xbox Magnus will definitely be more expensive than the PlayStation 6, though this is tied to its dual nature as both a console and a PC. Again, the Magnus is the largest APU ever used in a console, and that makes potentially more powerful than anything else on the market but also more expensive to produce.
The video also speculates on how the pricing of the new Xbox may impact OEMs that produce gaming desktop PCs. If the pricing on the new Xbox is competitive enough, it may have a domino effect on the price of PC hardware, specifically premade builds, which are known to be prohibitively priced for the average gamer.
Will the new Xbox run Windows?
According to the video, there’s a strong possibility that the new Xbox will run on a customized version of Windows 11. It may also support all other PC features, including the ability to run Windows applications, including Steam.
When will the new Xbox console release?
No fixed release date yet, but according to the video creator’s sources, Microsoft is speaking with partners about a potential 2027 launch.
An exciting new look for the new generation
This has been an unpredictable few years for two of the Big Three. Both Microsoft and Sony have been hurt by expensive acquisitions that have failed to produce the hits they were bought for.
If the rumors are true, both the new Xbox and the PlayStation 6 will be radical new directions for both Sony and Microsoft. In many ways, they’ve opted to avoid direct competition with one another, with PlayStation seemingly choosing to go head-to-head with Nintendo in the handheld market while Microsoft seeks to strengthen its position in the PC gaming market.
