Slim Xbox 360 bundle with Natal by end of year tips analyst

That Microsoft are working on a slimmer Xbox 360 update doesn't seem all that surprising, given we've already seen leaked images of the mainboard along with the console itself, but Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachte reckons Microsoft will be doing more than just putting the console on a diet.  "At a minimum," he wrote in a recent research note, "we anticipate the introduction of a more feature-packed Xbox 360 as the standard SKU in late 2010 (likely with a 250GB hard drive) at the same $299 price point."  However he also reckons it's more probable that Microsoft will want to get Project Natal in there too.

"It is far more likely that we will see a slim version of the Xbox 360 with a 250GB hard drive and with Project Natal bundled into the box while maintaining the $299 price point," he continues, pegging the updated package with the new motion-tracking hardware at the same cost as the current Xbox 360 Elite 120GB.  Project Natal is due to make its official debut at E3 come June 13th 2010.

[via Tech Ticker]