The Xbox One is the most expensive Microsoft console ever
The forthcoming Xbox One got a bit of a kicking when it was first announced, landing itself in hot water with unpopular features including a mandated 24-hour online check-in and restrictions on the used games market.However, in light of the reaction from disgruntled gamers, these features have been scrapped, pulling the Xbox One out of its initial positivity drought.
And so the re-specc'd Xbox One console will go on sale in November this year and has a price of $US499/£429/AUD$599.
Microsoft describes the Xbox One as "the ultimate all in one entertainment system - one system for a new generation." It has the second generation of Kinect baked in nice and deep and has powerful specs similar to those of the Sony PS4.
- First look: Xbox One review
Xbox One release date
The official Xbox One release date is November 2013 for the US and UK and 19 other territories, slap bang at the start of the Christmas silly season.There was a rumour which touted November 27th as the Xbox One release date but Microsoft has said this is not accurate. No official release date has been decided or revealed.
New-look design
The Xbox One looks quite different to the Xbox 360, and the reaction since its reveal in May has been mixed to say the least. Microsoft says it has taken a "new approach to design," but many gamers just think just it looks 'like a black box.'"We wanted to think from a holistic perspective," said Ramiro Torres, Creative Director of design on the Xbox One. "Its design has to make an appropriate statement that reflects its capability as an all-in-one entertainment system."
Video: Microsoft @ E3 2013 in 120 seconds:
Xbox One price
After a long wait and much speculation, Xbox One price has been officially announced by Microsoft and it's not cheap. The price will be $US499 in the US, £429 in the UK and AUD$599 in Australia. That's even more expensive than the super-dear Sony PS3 when it came out in 2005/2006.It's also a lot more expensive than the Xbox 360 when it hit the market in 2005 - $399 and £279.99 in the US and UK. No official pricing has been announced for other territories yet but expect a roughly straight conversion in your local currency. Better start saving yesterday, huh?
Xbox One specs
No big surprises here, really. The Microsoft Xbox One comes packing an x64 8-core AMD Jaguar CPU, USB 3.0 ports, 500GB hard drive and 8GB DDR3 RAM. Connectivity-wise you've got 802.11n Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi Direct functionality for exchanging data between devices - specifically the new Xbox controller.There's also the addition of a Blu-ray drive, which marks Microsoft's first move to embrace the disc format created by Sony et al, which vanquished HD DVD back when TechRadar was but a glint in someone's eye.
So as expected, then, the new Xbox One is more like a mini-PC than any Microsoft console that's come before. These specs put the console on a par with the PS4 and bode well for developers who want to make cross-platform games.
The console has not only an HDMI-out port but also HDMI-in too. This is for interfacing with set-top boxes in order to integrate the Xbox One with your TV-watching experience. As far as you're concerned, you'll only have one device instead of two.
Full Xbox One specifications
- CPU: low power x86-64 AMD "Jaguar", 8 cores, APU
- GPU: AMD Radeon APU, 1.23TFLOPS
- Memory: 8GB DDR3 (5GB available to games)
- Storage: 500GB HDD
- Optical Drive (Read only): Blu-ray
- I/O: 3x USB 3.0 ports
- Communication: Ethernet, IEEE 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth® 2.1 (EDR)
- Output: HDMI, Optical audio
Xbox One troll alert!
Microsoft announced on the 4th July that with the launch of the Xbox One would come with a new reputation system built into Xbox Live.Microsoft's senior product manager Mike Lavin said, "You'll start to see some effects if you continue to play bad or harass other people en masse. You'll probably end up starting to play more with other people that are more similar to you."
Xbox One all about the ads?
Microsoft has said that the Xbox One will use Kinect to monitor exactly who is in the room and then serve targeted ads specifically for those people.Xbox One SmartGlass
Using the new version of SmartGlass in conjunction with the Xbox One, you can start single player games from a tablet, or view leaderboards and achievements. Xbox One "Smart Match" will also be able to set up multiplayer matches with other players in the background while you play single player games. What's more, the Xbox One will no longer be constrained by the limits that the Xbox 360 was - your friends list will no longer be limited to 100 friends, and Microsoft Points will be replaced with real money.Xbox One used games and DRM
After an online backlash, Microsoft reversed its decision to mandate a once-per-24h online check in and the used game DRM policy which would have placed restrictions on the used game market.The system will now only require a one-time connection to setup a new Xbox One. After that, gamers are free to play any disc-based game without going online again. Just like with Xbox 360, in other words.
This does away with the much-maligned 24-hour check-in requirement that would have made even offline, disc-based games null and void with a day-long dropped internet connection.
"Today I am announcing the following changes to Xbox One and how you can play, share, lend, and resell your games exactly as you do today on Xbox 360," wrote Don Mattrick.
Previously, Microsoft set up the Xbox One with a one-time lending policy for disc-based games that would only be possible if the recipient was your friend on Xbox Live for more than 30 days.
Although "downloaded titles cannot be shared or resold," this policy is the same as the one in place on Xbox 360 and PS3 today. Also the same, digitally distributed games will be playable offline.
Microsoft's final about-face regards its original intention to region-lock games. There will be "no regional restrictions," which would have put Xbox One owning importers and travelers in jeopardy outside of Xbox One supported countries.
Xbox One: Kinect
The new Xbox One has Kinect functionality built into its very core. To turn the console on, you need only say the words "Xbox on" - the console is always listening.
The demo showed the ability to switch between games, videos, music and live TV instantaneously using simple voice commands such as "Xbox watch TV". You can even ask to watch a specific channel - HBO was an example they used - and Xbox will take you there straight away.
Microsoft says that Kinect 2 is so fast and powerful that it detects motion in just 13 billionths of a second - the time it takes light to get from you and into the camera.
The Kinect sensor as a resolution of 1080p which means its footage will look great on your HD TV, and it captures video at 60fps which means footage that's lovely and smooth.
The camera also has a field of view that's 60 per cent bigger than the original Kinect which means less faffing around trying to stand in the exact spot it tells you to. That combined with the more powerful processor means you'll be able to get a lot more people gaming with Kinect all at one time.
What's more, Microsoft says that the new Kinect uses infra-red, which means it works in complete darkness.
Read our Hands on: Xbox Kinect One review for our early thoughts.
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