Report: "All Digital" Xbox One coming May 7, for € 229 in Europe

Following a November report on Microsoft's plans for a disc-free Xbox One S option, new reports suggest that new hardware will arrive on May 7 and sell for € 229 in Europe.

Thurrott.com's Brad Sams, who has been reliable on Microsoft-related hardware rumors in the past, this weekend pointed to the WinFuture website which "confirm everything I have reported so far." That report includes the purported shots of the "All Digital Edition" of the Xbox One S and its European packaging. The Xbox One S-right down to the sizing-save for the lack of a hole for the disc drive on the front panel.

The reported packaging for the 1TB system includes logos for first-party title Minecraft, Sea of ​​Thieves, and Forza Horizon 3. It's unclear if these games will be bundled with the hardware or simply included as part of a potential Xbox Games Pass subscription.

Sims also reiterated his report on a trade-in program Microsoft is planning for disc-based Xbox titles, codenamed Odessa, which would give customers the "ability to take disc-based games and trade them in for a token to download the digital version of the game. " Such a program would be necessary to maintain backward compatibility with many original Xbox 360 and Xbox 360 players.

How much cheaper?

The reported price of € 229 would be just over $ 250 in the United States, at current exchange rates. European prices routinely include value-added taxes and other fees that do not correspond in the US, though. European retailers like GameStop is currently charging € 299.99 for a 1TB Xbox One with a bundled game[Update:AmazonGermanycurrentlyoffersasimilar[Update:AmazonGermanycurrentlyoffersasimilarForza Horizon 4 bundle for € 199].

In the US, the existing, disc-drive-sporting Xbox One S technically retails for a $ 299 MSRP with a bundled game. In practice, though, the system / game bundles currently sells for $ 249 or less at every major retailer, including Microsoft's own stores.

We argued on these pages about two years ago that a disc-free Xbox One option could be an attractive option for the significant chunk of players that has already transitioned from disc-based console games. But for that setup to work, the new hardware has been significantly cheaper than the more capable disc-drive version. We're eager to see if Xbox One S is officially announced.