Microsoft has confirmed the launch of the new Xbox 360 at the E3 event in Los Angeles.

The new model will be considerably smaller than the current offering, which is now 5 years old, and almost 10 years since the first Xbox was introduced, will come with 802.11n wireless connectivity, feature a 250GB hard drive and be a shiny glossy black.

Able to fit in the old casing, if that's what you fancy doing, the new model will be hitting stores in the US from Monday 14 June.

Microsoft in the UK has confirmed to Pocket-lint that the new Xbox 360 "slim" will be launching in the UK before the month is out. Our official spokesperson didn't, however, have an exact date, only saying that it would be very soon.

It will cost $299. No word on UK pricing but as it is the same as the previous model in the USA we would expect that to be the case in the UK as well.

UPDATE: play.com is claiming a 16 July release date with a £199.99 price, however Microsoft's UK PR team are still saying that nothing has been officially confirmed. This information also goes against what we've been told at E3 by Microsoft staff.

UPDATE 2: Microsoft seems to have got in a tizzy about it all. They have now officially confirmed to us that the new console will be available in the UK on the 16 July, priced at £199.99.

UPDATE 3: We've managed to get some more answers from Microsoft, it will sport a HDMI socket, and it does run quieter, however there isn't a Blu-ray player, with Microsoft still gunning for HD via download.