I have a sneaking suspicion that it’s right
Mere hours after the May reveal of the Xbox One, the new Microsoft console had already been dubbed the “Xbone” — a widely accepted nickname that’s stuck around. Microsoft acknowledges that this moniker isn’t going away anytime soon; it just wishes its employees had thought of it first.
Phil Spencer told GameSpot that his initial qualm with the less-than-flattering nickname was that he couldn’t forecast it. “At first, I guess the thing that bugged the most is I didn’t see it. I’d been looking at the name ‘Xbox One’ for months, and I wasn’t clever enough to come up with ‘Xbone’,” Spencer stated.
While Spencer has come to grips with the existence of the nickname, he’s also accepted that it’s here to stay. “I think it’s going to stick. I think we can say we don’t like it, but it’s a clever use of the name. I think it’s going to be there,” Spencer explained.
However, not all Microsoft employees are as accepting. Xbox Live’s Larry “Major Nelson” Hryb feels that it “disrespects the teams that have put thousands of hours into the development of the product.” You’d best pick a different battle to fight, Major; you’re not going to win this one.
Microsoft’s Spencer says the clever Xbone nickname will stick [GameSpot]
