Larry Hryb, Microsoft’s Director of Programming, aka Major Nelson, posted on his popular blog in order to clarify the statements made by Steve Ballmer regarding the “new Xbox 360″ coming next year. While Nelson didn’t deny any claims regarding the new console being developed, he went on to note that the Xbox 360 is not even halfway through it’s current lifecycle, in reference to the statements Microsoft made at their press conference during E3 the other week.

Nelson also mentioned Natal in his post, stating that it will play an important role in expanding the lifecycle well into the next decade, but also stated that there was no word on when the motion controller will be officially released. Despite that, Ballmer’s statements give me the distinct impression that we’ll be seeing a 2010 release for the camera.

I honestly hope that Microsoft simply continues to support the current console, instead of bringing out a new one. Frankly, I’d rather not see the Xbox go the route of Nintendo and Apple–forcing us all to upgrade for a few small features so soon after the initial products get released. I can’t even begin to tell you have annoying it is to have to upgrade to the newest ipod and iphone every time apple releases a new product, and it seems Sony is already heading that direction with the new PSP Go. Maybe it’s just me, but doesn’t it seem like a bit much to you too?

A few people have emailed me regarding something Steve Ballmer said earlier today about a new Xbox coming in 2010. As the Xbox team stated at E3 two weeks ago, we are not even halfway through the current console generation lifecycle and believe Xbox 360 will be the entertainment center in the home for long into the next decade. Project Natal will be an important part of this platform, but we have not confirmed a launch date at this time.

[Via - Major Nelson]

[Image Source: Microsoft]