• Microsoft is reportedly gearing up to release an Xbox-branded handheld gaming console.
• The device may not come directly from Microsoft, however.
• A potential launch window for the device could only be in 2027.

In recent years, the launch of the Steam Deck has inspired other companies to release PC-focused handheld gaming consoles of their own. The market is now awash with them, and it looks like Microsoft is hoping to get in on the action too.

This according to a report from Windows Central, which has detailed new plans for a rumoured Xbox handled. This is not the first time that reports of an Xbox handheld console have done the rounds, with it cropping up in June of last year too.

The publication notes that Microsoft could announce a device as early as this year, although it is suggested that the Xbox handheld would not come directly from Microsoft, and that a third-party manufacturer may be leveraged to manufacture the portable gaming offering.

Precisely which third-party would be tapped for such a massive project is not detailed in the aforementioned report, but the codename Keenan is said to be used internally at Microsoft as a moniker for the project.

It is also said that the device will feature much of the Xbox design language we have seen for its larger consoles, as well as an Xbox Guide as found on several iterations of the company’s official controllers. Whether some customisation will also be offer, such as the Elite Wireless versions of the controller, remains to be seen.

Naturally the device would also run Windows 11 as its native operating system, but as Engadget pointed out, hopefully Microsoft will find a way to improve navigation within the OS when not in marketplaces and gaming-related tasks.

The publication also highlighted some comments made by Microsoft VP Jason Ronald at CES earlier this year. Appearing on stage at an AMD and Lenovo event titled The Future of Gaming Handhelds, he noted that the company wants to bring, “the best of Xbox and Windows together.”

“I think we’ll have a lot more to share later this year,” he added.

It’s unclear whether this means that only a gamer-friendly operating system is on the way, and that an Xbox handheld is much further down the line.

Adding credence to the latter, while Windows Central said an announcement could materialise later this year, actual product may only get into the hands of consumers alongside new controllers and a refreshed Series X console in 2027.

For now, there are still a wealth of other options to pick from locally.

[Image – Photo by Komarov Egor on Unsplash]