"More power!" You can imagine Steve Ballmer yelling it through Microsoft's halls but that's exactly what is happening with the Xbox 720, according to reports from IGN.
[More from Mashable: LEGO Version of Minecraft Is Seriously Going to Happen]
The next Xbox -- rumored to be the "Xbox 720" -- will ship to retailers in late October or early November 2013 and have six times the processing power of its predecessor, the Xbox 360, sources close to the project told IGN.
The next console will use the AMD 6000 series, which should run similar to the Radeon HD 6670. That all sounds a bit jargon-y but essentially it's a super-fast processor that supports DirectX11, multi-display output, 3D and 1080p HD. Production of the GPU should start by the end of this year.
[More from Mashable: Star Trek-Inspired Medical Scanner Will Soon be Reality [VIDEO]]
All that anticipated extra power on the fabled Xbox 720 isn't just about graphic fidelity. It allows games to have more detailed environments, longer draw distances (think open world games such as The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim), better enemy artificial intelligence, faster multiplayer experiences and the ability to cram more stuff on the screen.
Sony's PlayStation 3 won the tech arms race with the last generation of consoles however that gamble on technology didn't quite pay off. The PlayStation 3 was generally outsold by both the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii for years after its launch and the Wii had a slower processor than both of its competitors. (PS3 sales are making a steady comeback of late.) Will a more powerful Xbox finally dominate the market or should it watch out for Sony's next console and Nintendo's Wii U?
This story originally published on Mashable here.
