Xbox Project Helix price could undercut PS5 Pro – but only if Microsoft is willing to take a hardware hit

With Project Helix – Microsoft's next Xbox console – now official, talk has turned to its capabilities and, perhaps more importantly, its price.

New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma confirmed last week that as well as play Xbox games, it will be compatible with PC releases too, and that sounds like an intriguing proposition. But it also raises alarm bells when it comes to cost.

After all, a quality gaming PC can cost £1,000s on its own, while the Xbox Series X is still £499.99 almost six years from launch. It's expected, therefore, that the "premium" Project Helix could be too costly for many on release (possibly next year).

But while that could still be true, YouTuber and expert analyst Moore's Law is Dead speculates that Microsoft could decide to take a hit on the hardware costs and release its new machine at around $900. And while that's more that the price of the PS5 Pro in the US right now, it equates to just £670 at today's exchange rate – which is less than the £699.99 RRP of Sony's current flagship.

According to the influencer (via VGC), the rumoured components inside the new console could add up to $900 – $600 for the AMD GPU (based on a successor to the 9070 XT), $200 for the RAM, and $100 for the CPU. That doesn't include the SSD or any further changes to component pricing due to the ongoing shortages, but at its basic level, if Microsoft wanted to release Helix at close to cost, it'd be around the $900 mark.

He also believes that Microsoft will want a small profit, so that could bump it up to $999 (around £748). However, if the tech giant really wanted to get a headstart on PS6, it could see the new console as a loss leader. After all, it would make money on every game sold – not just through the Xbox Store, but likely through any third-party stores, like Steam and Epic Games Store too (as an affiliate).

It's a business model that has been used successfully in the past.

Personally, I think Valve's pricing for the Steam Machine – which we still don't know – could determine the direction Microsoft takes. That will be the more immediate competitor, I feel.

Sony will do its own thing with PS6 (and a much-rumoured handheld) – proven by its reported retreat from PC game publishing. And considering how much the PS5 Pro released for, it'd be a surprise if the next PlayStation wasn't equally as expensive anyway.

Either way, the next generation of console gaming will be an interesting one for sure. If not particularly affordable.