First announced at E3 2016, along with the more powerful, upcoming Project Scorpio, the new Xbox One S is a great way for gamers to jump into the current generation of consoles at an affordable price. Even though the Project Scorpio stole the spotlight at the show, the Xbox One S is releasing soon, and with its low cost and many features, it’s sure to be a winner.
The new console is 40% smaller, and has a sleek, white design, which means that your console will no longer look like an old VCR. It also features an integrated power supply, which means that you will no longer have to hide the humongous power brick of the old model around the house. The Xbox One S also has the ability to stream and play 4K video on supported devices. This makes it the cheapest 4K BluRay player on the market, with the added bonus that it is a full-fledged, premium-quality console. It also supports HDR (High-Dynamic Range) technology, thus making all the games and movies played on it more colorful and detailed. Also added is an IR blaster, which enables your Xbox One S to turn on other devices, such as your TV. The only
The standard Xbox controller also got a few upgrades. Starting with the Xbox One S, all controllers will have textured grips, better range, and Bluetooth capability for linking with a wider range of external services. In other words, the new controller could also be used on a PC without an adapter, which makes it perfect if you plan to stream Xbox One games to your PC or if you plan to take full advantage of Microsoft’s new Play Anywhere initiative, which allows Xbox One users to play upcoming titles on their Windows 10 PCs without streaming from a console.
The Xbox One S can play every game available to the other Xbox One models (including the backward compatibility titles), and it can actually run them better. Rod Fergusson, the head of the Microsoft studio in charge of Gears of War, stated that the Xbox One S performs better during graphics-intensive sequences than the previous models. And if you’re scared about the upcoming Project Scorpio rendering the Xbox One S obsolete, then you shouldn’t: according to Microsoft, every single game playable on the Project Scorpio will also be available for the other Xbox One models.
The 2TB model is set to release worldwide on August 2nd, and will set you back $399, £350 or AU$549. The other models will follow three weeks later, the 1TB one being bundled with Madden 17 and costing $349, £299 or AU$499, and the 500GB being bundled with Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Halo 5: Guardians for $299, £249 or AU$399.
After looking over the powerful line-up Microsoft has for this holiday season, the three deals mentioned above sound like an incredible deal. Not only do you get a great console for a small price, but you also get a system ready to play all the blockbuster titles releasing this Fall, like Gears of War 4 or Forza Horizon 3. Microsoft has definitely upped the ante when it comes to pleasing its users, and this will probably show when the holiday season comes around.
All in all, the Xbox One S is a great addition to the Xbox family of consoles, and an obvious upgrade over the previous models. If you are looking for an affordable way to get your gaming hobby kick-started, or if you simply want an upgrade over your current console, then the Xbox One S is the best way to dive into the wide variety of titles coming up this year.