Steve Ballmer Confirms Blu-ray Drives for the Xbox 360

One of the advantages that the PlayStation 3 has publicized since the beginning of the console battle of this generation has been the presence of an integrated Blu-ray drive, which allows for bigger capacity disks to be used and for the game console to play high-quality movies. The Xbox 360 has tried to counter by backing the HD DVD format, but, with that no longer supported, Microsoft has long been rumored to be preparing to get a Blu-ray unit for the Xbox 360.

Now, Steve Ballmer, who is the chief executive officer of Microsoft, has told Gizmodo as part of an exclusive interview that Blu-ray is a definite possibility for the Xbox 360 home-gaming console. When asked about getting the format on the Microsoft device he has said, “Well I don't know if we need to put Blu-ray in there – you'll be able to get Blu-ray drives as accessories.” In other words, Microsoft does not intend to integrate the high-capacity drive in the console itself, but it might offer an add-on like the HD DVD one, which it sold for a while with little success.

A Microsoft spokesperson has then clarified Ballmer's comments by stating that, “Our immediate solution for Blu-ray-quality video on an Xbox 360 is coming this fall with Zune Video and 1080p instant-on HD streaming. As far as our future plans are concerned, we're not ready to comment.”

Ballmer clashed with the heads of the Xbox division in the past about the possibility of integrating Blu-ray. The CEO has been quoted as hinting the drive could be added to the device at some point, considering that HD DVD is all but dead, but, on every occasion other Microsoft bosses have said that Ballmer is overenthusiastic in his comments.