There has been plenty of talk of late about an upgraded 4K PlayStation, with rumours suggesting it will debut at E3 next month, but fewer facts have emerged about Microsoft hardware plans. Until now.

Kotaku claims that its sources tell it that the company will release two new consoles over the next couple of years.

An Xbox One Slim, with a smaller body shape and possible 2TB hard drive, will also be announced at E3 2016. It won't be as big a leap in technology terms to Sony's PlayStation 4 plans, but it will give the US gaming giant a shiny new box to flaunt at the show.

READ: E3 2016: All the launches, games and consoles to expect

The more advanced, upgraded model will then follow in 2017. Kotaku states that it will have a more powerful GPU and would be technically capable of supporting the Oculus Rift. There might even be a partnership with Oculus in the pipeline - after all, Oculus was present at the Xbox Showcase in San Francisco in February.

It could also be 4K-ready, much like the rumoured PlayStation Neo, or PS4.5 as many have taken to call it.

Kotaku also claims that "people familiar with Microsoft's plans" suggest the company will adopt an Apple approach to hardware, by releasing annual upgrades rather than stick to one massive new generation machine every five years or so.

We'll be at E3 to find out. It starts on 14 June but the Xbox Media Briefing is on the Monday. 13 June.

READ: Xbox E3 2016 Briefing: How to watch it and what to expect