Next Xbox reportedly targets 2028, with Helix priced at USD 1,200-1,800 internally

According to Fortune’s profile of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, Microsoft is targeting the 2028 holiday season for its next Xbox console, with an internally projected consumer price of USD 1,200-1,800. The report also puts a next-generation handheld ahead of it, with a planned release by the 2027 holiday season. Microsoft could subsidise the console’s cost, which would change how much buyers ultimately pay.

The reported split gives Project Helix a more concrete shape after months of discussion about what the next Xbox would be. Sharma previously described a Helix family of devices, broadening the picture beyond a single replacement for the Series X. Fortune’s account now points to a handheld-first rollout, followed a year later by the home console.

An expensive next Xbox, with a subsidy decision still open

The USD 1,200-1,800 range comes from Microsoft’s internal projections rather than a retail price announcement. Fortune explicitly leaves open whether the company will absorb some of the hardware cost. That decision would determine how much of the projected expense reaches players, making it central to the console’s eventual positioning.

A subsidy would let Microsoft sell the hardware below its cost, accepting an initial loss rather than asking buyers to cover the full amount. Without one, the reported range would make the next Xbox a substantial purchase before games and subscriptions enter the budget. The spread between its lower and upper limits is itself USD 600, so even the internal estimate leaves considerable room for the final proposition to change.

Fortune places those projections within a wider challenge for console makers: rising hardware costs, including memory-chip shortages. The report quotes Ampere Analysis gaming analyst Piers Harding-Rolls identifying hardware costs as the sector’s biggest challenge. That pressure sits alongside Sharma’s ambition to expand Xbox’s audience, creating a difficult balance between the capabilities of new hardware and the price of getting people onto it.

The handheld’s software has reportedly caused friction

The earlier handheld is also the focus of a reported dispute between Microsoft’s Windows and Xbox teams. Fortune says Windows leaders wanted a trimmed-down version of Windows Home, while Sharma’s team wanted to build and control software that prioritised gaming performance. The disagreement reportedly escalated until a senior Xbox executive threatened to scrap the handheld rather than adopt the Windows build.

Xbox now largely controls the project’s operating-system direction, Fortune reports, although Sharma stressed that collaboration remains necessary. “We can’t build Helix on our own,” the Xbox CEO told the publication. The account suggests that the software experience, as well as the physical hardware, is a significant part of the work needed before release.

The Verge’s coverage highlights an unresolved hardware question: whether Microsoft would manufacture the handheld itself or work with a partner such as Asus. Its existing Xbox Ally partnership offers one precedent, but the new report does not identify the manufacturer for the planned 2027 device. That leaves the handheld’s form and commercial arrangement open even as a release window emerges.

Engineering work is reportedly accelerating

Fortune’s sources say internal Helix engineering deadlines have moved forward by at least several months, increasing pressure on teams to finish work faster, including through AI tools. Sharma described AI as a way to address specific engineering and performance problems rather than an end in itself. Those earlier internal milestones sit alongside the reported 2028 console target; the report does not describe them as an earlier consumer launch.

Software decisions also extend beyond the operating system. Fortune reports that Xbox is considering an à-la-carte Game Pass structure with add-ons for console-only games, cloud gaming, and multiplayer. These plans put the hardware and subscription experience under review together, while the disc-drive question for Project Helix remains another part of the platform’s direction awaiting a clear answer.