The short version
- A Fortune report says Microsoft's internal projections put the Project Helix console at $1,200 to $1,800, unless Microsoft subsidises it. That's roughly ₹1.14 lakh to ₹1.71 lakh converted, before Indian taxes.
- An Xbox handheld is reportedly planned for holiday 2027, with the Helix console following in holiday 2028.
- The Xbox and Windows teams reportedly clashed over the handheld's software, and Xbox won.
- None of this is confirmed. Microsoft hasn't announced a price, a date or full specs.
What the report says
Fortune's story, published October 20, is a profile of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, built on interviews and unnamed sources. The headline number is the price. Internally, Microsoft has reportedly projected the Helix console would cost buyers between $1,200 and $1,800 if it isn't sold at a loss.
Image: Zerocade
That "if" matters. Console makers often take a loss on hardware and make it back on games and subscriptions. Our explainer on consoles sold at a loss covers how that works. So the projection is better read as "what it costs to make and sell without a subsidy" than as a final shop price.
The timeline is new too. Earlier talk pointed to a 2027 console. Fortune says a handheld comes first, by the end of 2027, and the console lands in holiday 2028. It's unclear whether the handheld counts as part of the Helix family. No handheld price or specs were reported.
What Microsoft has actually said
Microsoft's official line, from GDC earlier this year, is that Helix uses a custom chip built with AMD, will play both Xbox and PC games, and brings improvements to ray tracing and performance. Microsoft has also said alpha hardware reaches developers in 2027. Sharma has described the next generation as a "family of devices", and our Project Helix explainer covers what Xbox has confirmed.
Image: Zerocade
The Windows fight
According to the report, the Windows team wanted the handheld to run a streamlined version of Windows. The Xbox team wanted control over its own software, and one senior Xbox executive reportedly threatened to cancel the device rather than ship Windows as-is. The Xbox division is now said to be leading the handheld's direction.
This matters because the current ROG Xbox Ally handhelds run full Windows with an Xbox-style layer on top. A device where Xbox controls the software could feel much more like a console in your hands.
The bigger picture at Xbox
The report paints a company under pressure:
- More layoffs. More cuts are reportedly planned for November and January, after 3,200 job cuts announced since July.
- Game Pass changes. Fortune and others say Microsoft is looking at a more à la carte Game Pass.
- Big targets. Sharma reportedly wants to grow from about 100 million daily players to one billion, mostly through PC, cloud and other screens.
- Sharma's only on-record line about the hardware was that "we can't build Helix on our own", and she said Microsoft wouldn't use "AI for AI's sake".
How much to trust it
Fortune is a major business outlet, and GameSpot, Shacknews and others have picked the story up. But it relies on unnamed sources and internal projections, and prices two years out can change a lot. Memory costs alone could move the number in either direction by 2028.
Why it matters
On paper, the price is the problem. Even the low end is more than double the Series X's launch price of ₹49,990 in India ($499 in the US). It also lines up with reports that the PS6 could cost over $1,000, since both consoles face the same memory cost spike.
For Indian players, where consoles already cost more after import duties and GST, a ₹1 lakh-plus console would be a very hard sell. That's probably why the handheld, and playing on PCs and phones through the cloud, feature so heavily in Xbox's plans.
What to watch: Xbox's own handheld reveal, and any official word on Helix pricing or subsidies.
