New Xbox dev kit certified for testing in South Korea, console refresh could come this year

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The RRA database references a new XDK Console model 2089 as of March 18th

Photograph of an Xbox Series X XDK dev kit alongside the original Series X. The new XDK likely looks different!
Photograph of an Xbox Series X XDK dev kit alongside the original Series X. The new XDK likely looks different! (Image credit: u/darth_antonio on Reddit)

In line with FTC leaks regarding future Xbox console releases (both a Series X refresh and a next-gen Xbox slated for 2028, at the time) and this week's PS5 Pro specs leak, the latest Xbox Development Kit has popped up in the South Korean RRA (Radio Research Agency) database. The last time this happened in June 2020 with the Series X devkit (pictured in our header), the Xbox Series X released in November of the same year. This update was spotted by @KoreaXboxnews on Twitter.

So, what does this mean? Well, besides the fact that the Xbox Series X refresh "Brooklin" is now most likely coming this year, the console market is going to be interesting by the time the holiday season rolls around. It seems we're expecting both a proper mid-gen refresh and a performance bump from Sony with the PlayStation 5 Pro, but more of a standard refresh from Xbox — since "Brooklin" reportedly performs identically to the Series X.

Now, to be fair to the Series X — it's actually already been proven stronger than the PS5 in select third-party titles. However, that doesn't mean it will scale favorably to the PS5 Pro, which seems like it will at least be able to provide significantly higher resolutions in existing titles through the usage of its PSSR upscaling, which can be applied to all PlayStation games unlike past Pro upgrades.

The success of the new Xbox console that this Xbox Development Kit points to will rely heavily on two factors: the pricing of the PS5 Pro, and the final performance of the new Xbox console. A few months have passed since the FTC leaks, which is plenty of time for Microsoft to observe the market and perhaps further juice up its new console ahead of the PS5 Pro, in hopes of keeping its performance crown.

If the PS5 Pro is significantly more expensive than the leaked $499 price point for "Brooklin" as a Series X refresh, the new Xbox becomes an interesting middle-ground between entry-level PS5/Xbox Series S consoles and high-end Pro/Series X consoles.

If the Xbox console this XDK corresponds to actually implements hardware upgrades beyond a streamlined all-digital design and abandons "Brooklin", Microsoft will stay competitive with Sony on the high end of the console market.

But finally... if the PS5 Pro matches price with the new Xbox console while providing its leaked performance bumps and Microsoft still just re-released the Series X... this one could be DOA (and we don't mean the classic series of 3D fighters).

Christopher Harper
Christopher Harper
Contributing Writer

Christopher Harper has been a successful freelance tech writer specializing in PC hardware and gaming since 2015, and ghostwrote for various B2B clients in High School before that. Outside of work, Christopher is best known to friends and rivals as an active competitive player in various eSports (particularly fighting games and arena shooters) and a purveyor of music ranging from Jimi Hendrix to Killer Mike to the Sonic Adventure 2 soundtrack.

3 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Giroro
    I'm going to laugh when the new dev kit is just the current dev kit, but with a piece of plastic glued over the disc drive to stop people from using it.
    Because we already know the next XSeX is just the current one but with the disc drive removed, possibly at an even higher price.

    We may never know for sure about the new devkit, though. If developers were interested in Xbox, then one would think we would have gotten some worthwhile games over the last 4 years. Maybe instead of doubling down on unpopular, Microsoft should return to the 5 year cycle and start over from scratch in 18 months.
    Reply
  • JamesJones44
    I haven't been this uninterested in new game consoles since the Atari 5200. The Xbox Series X is just a faster Xbox One and the PS5 is just a faster PS4. Both the PS5 and Series X handle 4K just fine for 99% of the users out there and I don't think a PS5 Pro or Series X+will get 8K @ 60FPS despite some rumors claiming so, it will likely be 30 FPS given the leaked hardware specs. Given I'm not really sure why most users would want to upgrade other than to say they have the 'best'.

    A new Nintendo Switch on the other hand I can see. Hardware wise. the current Switch closer a Xbox 360 and a PS3 than modern console.
    Reply
  • parkerthon
    JamesJones44 said:
    I haven't been this uninterested in new game consoles since the Atari 5200. The Xbox Series X is just a faster Xbox One and the PS5 is just a faster PS4. Both the PS5 and Series X handle 4K just fine for 99% of the users out there and I don't think a PS5 Pro or Series X+will get 8K @ 60FPS despite some rumors claiming so, it will likely be 30 FPS given the leaked hardware specs. Given I'm not really sure why most users would want to upgrade other than to say they have the 'best'.

    A new Nintendo Switch on the other hand I can see. Hardware wise. the current Switch closer a Xbox 360 and a PS3 than modern console.
    I think measuring 8k performance is the absolute stupidest waste of effort. It’s all marketing. Very few people are running 8k and that isn’t going to change drastically in next few years. More people are concerned about color depth and contrast. Which means better texture lighting and anything impacted by hdr is the most important feature to measure. But I guess you can’t measure that as easily. It’s all pretty dumb. No wonder they aren’t selling.
    Reply