Text Input Device For xBox 360
xBox 360 has decided to add more things to the line-up this year. It seems that Microsoft has created a Text Input Device, which will enable gamers to chat with their friends on Windows Live Messenger. This input device is simply a clip on keyboard and is going to be released this summer.
Integration with Live Messenger, which was previously MSN Messenger, will happen on the 7th May as part of the free Xbox 360 “spring update”, which will also introduce a number of minor interface tweaks. As usual, they’re the sort of things that you hadn’t necessarily thought of, but can imagine finding useful.
7th May, of course, is the day that “Games for Windows - LIVE” launches in the US, introducing a raft of features that binds the Xbox 360 and PC together, but it sounds like the spring update’s Live Messenger integration will allow gamers to see their friends’ gamertags at a glance whether they have upgraded to Windows Vista and “Games for Windows - LIVE” or not.
Early shots of the Xbox 360 interface show how it will be possible to start conversations with users, with message windows popping up over the top of the dashboard. You’ll be able to talk to one another using a virtual on-screen keyboard, a USB keyboard, or the new QWERTY Text Input Device due out this summer.