Someone made a portable Xbox

A portable Xbox has inhabited the realm of hearsay and myth ever since the first Xbox came out. Do you ever feel sad that Microsoft was the only big console manufacturer to dodge the draft to enter the portable gaming war? Fret not, as a fan just turned the original Microsoft Xbox into an enhanced Portable version of its former self. The result is visually reminiscent of the Steam Deck, but its design features no lack of that sweet early ’00s Xbox edge:

I really do think it looks great, with the Xbox’s menu screen going together perfectly with that edgy design, but it’s also a technical marvel.

Twitter user Redherring 32 explains that this isn’t new hardware or emulation. We’re not looking at an attempt at making a smaller console like the PlayStation classic. Redherring 32 really did take the time to “slimify” the original Xbox’s hardware to fit into a portable shape. He trimmed the Xbox’s motherboard to fix the case, then added a 9” 480p display and pure digital video/audio. He also modernized the original package by adding a 100W USB C charge and play and is still working on adding WiFi functionalities for Xbox Live.

And there’s more good news. Redherring32 announces he’ll make everything he showed opensource soon, meaning you, too, will be able to go about making your own tiny portable Xbox:

I hope you have enjoyed this glimpse at an alternate universe where the Sony PSP never existed, and the Xbox made use of its ultra-powerful hardware to face off against the Nintendo DS. If not, you can keep on waiting for the elusive official Portable Xbox console that Phil Spencer keeps teasing us with.