Microsoft has acknowledged it is working on a cheap streaming device that would allow customers to play Xbox games without the need for a full-fledged console, which might have a significant impact on Apple TV's future success.


For years, it has been speculated that Microsoft aims to make gaming more accessible to the general public by eliminating the need to purchase a costly console. Microsoft's software-based response to that problem is the Xbox Cloud Gaming platform, which works on a variety of devices including iPhone and iPad, but it looks the corporation isn't stopping there.


Microsoft confirmed to Windows Central that it is working on new Xbox hardware. The streaming gadget, codenamed "Keystone," is similar to Chromecast and Google Stadia in that it connects to any TV or monitor through HDMI, allowing customers to access Microsoft's massive gaming library as well as any other streaming material it chooses to offer.


The firm didn't disclose any other information regarding the dongle or a possible release date, but it did say that it had recently decided to "pivot away" from its initial goal for the gadget, allowing it to "bring Xbox Cloud Gaming to more people across the world in the future."


On iPhone and iPad, here's how to play Fortnite.


Along with triple-A console games, Microsoft's gadget is expected to function as a set-top box, allowing users to access popular streaming services as well as Microsoft's own media apps such as Microsoft Movies & TV.

Apple was working on a low-cost Apple TV dongle at one point, but those plans were scrapped. According to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple is preparing to release a new version of the Apple TV in the second half of 2022. The next Apple TV, according to Kuo, would have a better cost structure, implying a lower price point than the existing Apple TV (starting at $179), making it more competitive with competing streaming video players.

Whatever the next version of Apple TV looks like, Apple's subscription-based gaming platform Apple Arcade will have a hard time competing with a Microsoft dongle that can stream Fortnite, Halo, Need for Speed, The Sims, and a slew of other popular Xbox games.