Microsoft Gaming boss Phil Spencer has confirmed the company’s plan to release an Xbox handheld, but stressed it’s years away from release. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer said the “expectation is that we would do something” in the handheld game devices category,

Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, told Bloomberg on Tuesday that the company's Xbox brand is still interested in getting into the handheld gaming market, but it's not going to happen anytime soon.

Xbox is exploring a PC gaming handheld, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer told Bloomberg. In an earlier interview with IGN, Spencer had mentioned a hypothetical “Xbox gaming handheld PC device,” which now appears to be in the early research and prototyping stage.

Rumors have been flying all year that Xbox is working on a PC gaming handheld. On Wednesday, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer confirmed that plans are underway, though it sounds like an actual portable device is still a few years out.

It’s no secret that Microsoft – and the Xbox department within it – has an interest in handheld consoles. Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has said as much many times, praising existing handheld gaming PCs like the Steam Deck and the Asus ROG Ally and hinting that it might be something Microsoft itself dips its toes into.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has confirmed that Microsoft really is working on a handheld gaming device, with prototypes already in the works, but believes that the actual product is still a few years away.