Features of the Spring Xbox 360 Dashboard Update

The Xbox 360 ‘dashboard’ interface normally gets updated with new features and fixes every 6 months, the next one is scheduled for 7th May 2007 and is rumoured to include the following:

• Instead of just showing ‘Play Game’ at the bottom of the screeen, it will show which disc you currently have in the drive - the number of times I’ve opened the drive or loaded up a disc just to see what’s in the drive - now that’s progress!
• Windows Live (MSN) Messenger functionality can be added to your Xbox Live account allowing you to communicate with your friends while on your Xbox - although it takes me forever to type out messages with my Xbox controller as it is, so you’d hope voice chat was an option!
• Improved Achievements functionality.
• Xbox Live Marketplace to get it’s own ‘blade’, presumably to make it easier for us to spend our cash on stuff!
• Option to put your Xbox in low power mode for downloading which then shuts down when complete - again another good idea given I often leave it on over night.

EDIT: For details of more features that have been announced since, take a look at TeamXbox

Check out this video that demos some of the new functionality: