According to The Verge, citing its own “sources”, Microsoft is busy testing a modified version of Internet Explorer 9 to bring to the console, one that will open up the Bing voice search functionality currently on the dashboard – and also limited to media content only - into a full-fledged internet browser.

Last time we checked, Microsoft had been strictly opposed to the idea of shoe-horning any form of internet browsing capabilities on the Xbox 360. Xbox product director Aaron Greenberg even went as far to say in an interview with Edge that exploring the internet on a home TV is “a poor experience” all round and the company behind the 360 had no immediate intentions to follow in Sony’s tracks. And yet here we are.

Continuing in the current trend of optimising user interfaces for the touch generation – such as we found in our first-look at Windows 8 – The Verge reports that the browser will be “tuned for Kinect” in a way users will be able to use voice controls and gesture-based interactions to bring up new web pages, navigate content and, presumably, pan and zoom around the screen.

Recent E3’s have seen Microsoft place a big emphasis on all things ‘controller-free’ and the evolution of the dashboard, which means although nothing yet has been confirmed and no supplemental details are forthcoming, the suggestion is you’ll see more about Kinect-orientated IE9 come June 4^th. 

Richard Birkett

Source: The Verge