"Details of Nintendo's next-generation games console, code-named Revolution, will most likely be unveiled next May, according to reports.

The Revolution is expected to go on sale at the end of the year, but very few details about the machine have been released.

It is thought that the device may be unveiled at Nintendo's pre-E3 press conference on May 9, according to Games Spot News.

In September, Nintendo unveiled the controller that will be central to the Revolution.

The Japanese-based firm will break with more than 20 years of video game history by abandoning the traditional controller held with two hands when it introduces an all-new freehand-style unit held with one hand.

The Revolution is Nintendo's answer to Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3.

The Xbox 360 was launched in the US on November 22 and will be released in Europe and Japan in December.

The PlayStation 3 was announced last May, and is expected to be in US shops early next year.

Nintendo reported net profit of 36.6bn yen ($308m) for the six months ending September 30, a 21 per cent drop from the same period a year ago.

The company blamed the cost of developing the Revolution and weak sales of its GameCube for its poor financial performance." [link]