Games
Microsoft’s latest console packs in some brand new features – as well as some flaws.
While we're still waiting on that fabled PS4K, Microsoft's Xbox One update is now finally on sale. The Xbox One S won't deliver 4K resolution gaming to your living room, but it's a big step forward for the console nonetheless. Not only can it handle super crisp 4K video, it's much smaller than the original Xbox One, and quieter to boot.
It's launched to positive reviews, though with another, even more powerful version of the Xbox One, Project Scorpio, coming next year, many are wondering why you might want to invest in something that seems more like a stop-gap solution than a generational jump.
We don't consider that a problem, though – far from it. If anything, it gives Microsoft just enough time to iron out all the annoying foibles still left inside the Xbox One S. Foibles like these.
Those horrendous vents on the top
We are glad to see how much smaller Microsoft has made the Xbox One S. Truly. After all, the original Xbox One looks like a 1980s Betamax cassette player that ate Brock Lesnar. That Microsoft has managed to squeeze the previously external power brick inside the console this time is all the more remarkable. That said, this compact frame has come at a cost: chiefly, that the grate for all the hot air is now on the top of the console, begging you to look at it's weird, circular hole.
Now, the engineer in us accepts this as an inevitable compromise – clearly all that hot air has to go somewhere – but the aesthete in us is having none of it. Why is there a cheese grater on our brand new console? What happens if we spill water over it? We weren't going to before hand, sure, because that would be an odd thing to do, but what if we wanted the option? Gone. Let's have the fan exhaust at the back again in Project Scorpio please. Out of sight, out of mind.
Where’s the solid state drive?
Beyond support for 4K video, Microsoft is claiming some small performance boosts in the Xbox One S – Gears of War 4, for instance will run at higher framerates. The company seems to have missed a trick however, settling for a clunky old mechanical hard drive inside to act as game storage, instead of a speedier solid state drive. Which is a shame, as it means downloaded games won't load much faster as a result.
This one seems odd when you consider that not only is it a matter of a few minutes' work to slip an SSD into a PS4, Sony even let tinkerers do the same with a PlayStation 3, which launched more than a decade ago now. Yes, a hard drive provides much greater capacity for a low price (two whole terabytes in the case of the Xbox One S), but the option for those inclined to replace it would be welcome.
In black, please
As Henry Ford is supposed to have once remarked, "any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black." Microsoft hasn't taken this to heart with the Xbox One S, as the standard model is currently only available in a garish white. Different strokes, we appreciate, but for those who'd rather their TV was the centrepiece of their home entertainment set up rather than the small box beneath it, it's a bit off-putting. Let's have an Xbox One S in a more discrete matte black, like the 1TB Xbox One model released last summer.
Any chance of that Kinect port coming back?
With the mutant superpower of hindsight, we reckon we can all agree that Microsoft's enforced bundling of the Kinect with the Xbox One was a mistake, one that allowed Sony to drastically undercut it with the PS4. That said, it's a shame to see the motion sensing peripheral set aside almost entirely now under Phil Spencer's regime at Xbox HQ; not only is it now only optional, but there is no longer even a dedicated port on the Xbox One S for the accessory, which is a source of frustration for those who like to use Kinect to boss their telly around.
Granted, you can get a free adapter if you have previously owned a Kinect and an older Xbox One, but it's not a complete solution, since to power the Kinect you'll still now need an extra plug socket in the wall. It might be too late for the Xbox One S, but if Microsoft is going all out for power with Project Scorpio, let's have the port back, thanks.
No new movies to watch in 4K
So you've got yourself a 4K TV, you've plugged in your Xbox One S. It’s time to watch the very latest movies in super sharp resolution. Except you can't – only the Netflix app supports 4K video right now, so we hope you like House of Cards.
That's right, Microsoft's Movies & TV app does not yet offer 4K or HDR (high dynamic range) rentals or purchases, which seems a curious oversight, and surely one Microsoft is looking to fix soon. Netflix in 4K is a start, to be sure, but since the service doesn't provide a la carte rentals or downloads, it does limit your options to box sets and movies more than a year old. Expect this one to change soon, however.
No Dolby Vision support
While the Xbox One S has the power to make a great hub for your home entertainment system, for those who like to live life on the bleeding edge, it's also going to chuck a few proverbial spanners into the quest for the perfect AV setup. On the visual side of things, the Xbox One S does not support the Dolby Vision standard for HDR content, only the competing HDR10. Those looking to take surround sound to the next level might want to look elsewhere also, as the Xbox One S lacks support for both the new Dolby Atmos audio standard, as well as the rival DTS-X. Microsoft has told press that the company is "exploring" Atmos support, so this might change in time. In the meantime however, it might prove incompatible with some of your brand new, equally expensive gear.
No Elite controller in box
Yes, the Xbox One S does come with a new controller. It's not just a new lick of paint either; the gamepad now includes Bluetooth for the first time, meaning you can pair it wirelessly with your PC or even your phone. Still, it's not quite the controller we were hoping for either; it lacks the textured grippiness of some of the excellent limited edition pads Microsoft has released over the last few years, and more pressingly, it's not the amazing Elite controller either.
That costs a bomb, we'll grant you (around $100), but it would have been a nice gesture for those upgrading ahead of next year's much more tantalising Project Scorpio Xbox One. Microsoft's sold Elite bundles for the Xbox One in the past, so perhaps the Xbox One S will receive the same treatment in a few months?
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