With the Toshiba-backed HD DVD format reportedly on the verge of conceding defeat to the competing Blu-ray technology backed by Sony, yet more rumors have now surfaced suggesting that a new Blu-ray add-on for the Xbox 360 could be on retail shelves as soon as May.
According to a SmartHouse article, citing some unnamed Microsoft insiders, the new standalone player is ready and the company is just organizing their sales and marketing teams before releasing the peripheral. In addition, the same sources said that Microsoft has also been working on a new iteration of the 360 with an internal Blu-ray drive.
You should probably take this rumor with a large grain of salt considering it comes from the same site that also told claimed Microsoft and Toshiba would be rolling out an Xbox 360 with built-in HD DVD drive. Nevertheless, Microsoft has previously said that they'd be prepared to release a Blu-ray player if it was what consumers demanded, and following HD DVD's apparent death, it's now looking more likely indeed.