The next Xbox may arrive sooner than you think – see the leaked pictures

Could this generation's console race be a tortoise and the hare situation? By all measures, Sony's PS5 has raced ahead of the Xbox Series X, but Microsoft seemingly isn't done yet. The first images of a brand-new Xbox have been leaked.

Talk of an Xbox Series X Pro and PS5 Pro hasn't yet manifested any upgraded consoles, but we have had the PS5 Slim launch late last year and now it looks like Xbox is following suit.

Earlier this year, images of a cylindrical alleged 'Xbox Series X Pro' emerged with much excitement. This isn't that console. Renowned tipster eXtas1s (via Exputer) has revealed images of an all-white console without a disk drive. It looks largely similar to the standard Xbox Series X but of course, will only be compatible with digital games. 

Those hoping for a performance upgrade are going to be left somewhat disappointed. The new Xbox apparently features an upgraded heatsink which should help with cooling, but otherwise, there's unlikely to be any performance leaps. 

With Microsoft also offering the digital-only Xbox Series S it will be interesting to see where this console lands price-wise. It is believed to be cheaper than the standard Xbox Series X's £449/$499 launch price. 

The Xbox lineup might seem a bit confusing now but this new console would fill a niche. Those who want a cheaper console, but don't want the reduced performance of the Series S might have just found their answer. While it doesn't have a disc drive, it sounds like the perfect place to play the best games on Xbox Game Pass. For those still fans of physical media, the PS5 Slim can actually have a disk drive attached (and detached) to it, so perhaps Xbox will sell one separately? Fingers crossed.