Original Xbox Prototype
Photo credit: Graeme Boyd
There’s one more reason to visit Microsoft’s new Visitor Center in Redmond, Washington, and that’s to see the original X-shaped Xbox prototype that Bill Gates showcased on stage at GDC 2000.



According to Dean Takahashi’s Opening the Xbox, it cost around $18,000 to make because the case itself was milled from a solid block of aluminum. One thing you may not have known is the fact that Microsoft was working with AMD for the CPU on the system, but just prior to the system’s official reveal in January 2001, engineers opted to switch to an Intel CPU for reasons yet to be known.

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A technology, gadget and video game enthusiast that loves covering the latest industry news. Favorite trade show? Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.