Xbox Series X review: A full year later, the Xbox Series X is proving its worth
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The beginning of something bigXbox Series X review: A full year later, the Xbox Serial Ten is proving its worth
Some other expect at the Xbox Series X, 6 months on. 
Source: Matt Chocolate-brown | Windows Central
On Nov. ten, 2022, Microsoft unleashed the Xbox Series X onto the world, and millions take already purchased the console, and its sibling, the Xbox Series S.
For those taking a more than cautious "wait and see" approach, you might have been put off past the Xbox Series X launch lineup. You may have been wondering how the consoles held upward over time. Later on over vi months of near non-finish usage, I'm pretty confident to call the Xbox Serial X my favorite console of all fourth dimension.
For over a twelvemonth, my Xbox Series X has go my master console of choice, and the cornerstone of my leisure fourth dimension. And after Microsoft's E3 2022 showcase, I couldn't be more excited for the platform's future.
As the Xbox Series X passes its first altogether, we're going to embrace the hardware and design, its capabilities every bit a gaming console, too as a centerpiece of your entertainment system. What are we losing, and what are we gaining? Are the tradeoffs worth information technology? Practise the games honor Microsoft'southward merits that this is the about powerful gaming console ever made? And is the Xbox Series X a worthwhile gaming investment for the futurity?
Truthful side by side-gen gaming
Xbox Series X
Bottom line: The Xbox Series X hardware volition not disappoint. Information technology'southward powerful, sleek and modern, and games that are optimized to take advantage of all the new hardware will truly shine. The launch lineup was looking sparse, simply afterwards E3 2022, we now have a truly bright future to await forrad to.
Pros
- Superb pattern in powerful hardware
- Efficient cooling and silent sound
- Quick Resume multiple games faster
- Xbox Games Pass futurity is exciting
- Huge investments in exclusive content
Cons
- Disappointing media center and smart domicile features
- Content sharing and social capabilities feel increasingly dated
Xbox Series X review: Specs, hardware and design
Source: Matt Brown | Windows Central
| Category | Xbox Series X |
|---|---|
| Processor | viii cores @ 3.8GHz (iii.66GHz westward/ SMT) custom Zen two CPU |
| Graphics | 12.155 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @ 1.825GHz RDNA ii GPU |
| Die size | 360.45mm2 |
| Process | 7nm enhanced |
| Memory | 16GB GDDR6 due west/ 320MB double-decker |
| Retention bandwidth | 10GB @ 560GB/s, 6GB @ 336GB/s |
| Internal storage | 1TB Custom NVME SSD |
| I/O throughput | 2.4GB/s (raw), 4.8GB/southward (compressed, with custom hardware decompression block) |
| Expandable storage | 1TB Expansion Card (sold separately) |
| External storage | USB three.2 external HDD support |
| Optical drive | 4K UHD Blu-ray drive (No 3D Blu-ray back up) |
| Performance target | 4K @ sixty FPS, up to 4K @ 120 FPS, 8K @ threescore FPS |
| Color | Matte Blackness |
| Size | 301mm x 151mm 10 151mm |
| Cost | $499 |
When the Xbox Serial X design was start revealed, people were immediately shocked past its apparent size. Non too long later, we learned that the PlayStation five, the Xbox Serial X's main contest, sports a similar volume. The reality of thermodynamics is communicable up to panel design; every bit PCs push always-increasing power, the form cistron of consoles also changed to accommodate necessary cooling technology.
With this in mind, it's hard to notice anything to fault in the Xbox Serial 10's visual design, unless you intend to lay information technology out flat, that is. Conspicuously, this console was designed vertically first, with a profile that is at least superficially similar to modern smart speakers and meaty PC towers. The design is comfortingly familiar while as well being undeniably Xbox.
Microsoft doesn't score any points for its horizontal configuration, though, which many may be exploring. The unsightly foot at the base just looks awful when exposed, as if the console had been toppled over. It at least remains functional, with small-scale anxiety that continue the side panel from scraping on the surface of any it'south placed on. The anxiety are barely visible if you're concerned about them being an eyesore when you lot exercise take the console stood up vertically.
Source: Matt Brownish | Windows Central
Having the console horizontal or vertical won't touch on the thermals or usability of the arrangement in any way from our testing. The ports' layout is a tad more than annoying than they were on the Xbox One Due south and X. Instead of a line of ports, they're stacked on top of each other in an irregular pattern. Microsoft tried to brand it easier by adding engravings next to the ports to feel them out with your fingers. It'south a nice bear upon, but when there are wires, USB devices, memory cards, and dongles plugged in, it doesn't assist every bit much as I'd like.
| Loading speed test | Xbox Series X (SSD) | Xbox One X (HDD) |
|---|---|---|
| Monster Hunter: World | 4.seven seconds | 35.6 seconds |
| Gears 5 | 8.9 seconds | 47 seconds |
| Country of Disuse 2 | 13.1 seconds | one minute, 3.iv seconds |
| Fortnite | ten.2 seconds | 24.3 seconds |
| Rocket League | 4 seconds | 5 seconds |
Speaking of ports, Microsoft opted for a proprietary tech solution to expandable storage, in the form of the $220 Seagate 1TB NVME Expansion Card. The side by side-gen consoles use NVME SSD storage not only to speed up loading times but also to give developers more next-gen tools. The cards themselves are small and well built, and Microsoft says other manufacturers will offer competing solutions, which should bring the cost downward. The metal parts of the cards do get incredibly warm (as NVME storage would inside your laptop likewise). Thankfully, they have thick plastic handles for removal and insertion. The cards are certainly easier to manage than typical NVME m2 drives nosotros get for laptops. And the fact the cards are hot-swappable is also pretty awesome. Taking your games, saves, and Xbox Live contour to a friend'southward place has never been easier, simply that toll is going to exist a tough sell for nigh.
Xbox Series X is the best console Microsoft has ever built.
NVME storage may get pretty toasty, merely thankfully, the Xbox Serial Ten itself doesn't. Microsoft built the Xbox Series Ten to direct air from ane finish and out of the other, expelling warm air from the concave vent at the arrangement's top end. The craftsmanship and engineering prowess here is undeniable. I reviewed the Xbox Series 10 initially in the winter months of the Great britain, simply fifty-fifty in the summer I don't find the Xbox Series 10 getting unmanageably warm in an unconditioned room.
The Xbox Series Ten is not just generally cooler than its predecessors, but also quieter. Using a $300 microphone and a audio meter, we were effectively unable to detect any dissonance coming out of this system, which is impressive indeed.
Source: Windows CentralXbox Serial 10 running 4K 60FPS Gears Tactics.
Getting PC-like power in such a meaty, cool, and quiet device is just remarkable.
For a full rundown of how hot the Xbox Serial X gets caput to this link. But every bit yous can see from the above heat signatures, the Xbox Serial X remains on the libation end of calculating hardware. By comparing, the Xbox One 10 and PS4 Pro go significantly warmer running games that max out their specs while also being noisier. Games optimized for the Xbox Series 10 like Gears 5 and Gears Tactics top the arrangement out at around 52C, which is impressive for a 12TF system. Running backward-compatible titles designed for Xbox I, the heat expulsion was even lower, at effectually 35C.
When it comes to engineering and design, I'm pretty confident to state that the Xbox Series Ten is the all-time Xbox console Microsoft has ever built. Information technology'due south really not equally large as it seems in pictures, and getting PC-similar power in such a compact, cool, and quiet device is just remarkable. Just a video game console is far more than its blueprint.
Xbox Series X review: Features and Bone
Source: Windows Cardinal
The Xbox Serial Ten is a tale of gains and losses, at least when it comes to features. On paper, this is an all-new generation, but the reality is more complicated. The Xbox Series S and X share an Bone with Xbox 1, and the 2022 Xbox Ane is a wildly different proposition than what we have today.
Xbox Serial Ten media support is a bit of a mixed bag.
For fans of the old schoolhouse Xbox vision as the middle of your amusement organisation, the reality is that the Xbox Series S and Ten are dropping many of the features that enabled that. HDMI pass-through is gone, forth with the IR Blaster. This means that the Xbox Series S and X cannot control your Tv set/cable box for surfing channels seamlessly without switching hardware signals.
The OneGuide Idiot box app has been completely removed, and perchance oddly, even the ability to play 3D Blu-ray has been killed likewise. Typically, Microsoft cites depression usage every bit its primary reason for removing features. In fairness, the trends certainly seem to suggest viewership is increasingly moving towards apps like Netflix and Disney+, as over-the-air and cable TV viewership wanes. However, if you built up your entertainment system around the Xbox I's features, it may sting to know that these are gone.
The Xbox Series Due south and X practice still have an IR receiver, though, which means y'all can nonetheless utilise media remotes similar the PDP Talon to command apps. If you have a modern TV that supports HDMI-CEC commands, you tin can even use those remotes to command your set too. All of our recommendations for the best TVs for Xbox Series X do utilize HDMI-CEC, aslope most modern TVs after around 2022 in general.
Just like the Xbox One consoles, the Xbox Serial X withal supports 4K UHD Blu-ray, 4K playback for media apps, and videos, alongside HDR10 and at present Dolby Vision, with Dolby Atmos and DTS:X surround for audio. The Xbox consoles as well support Amazon Repeat and Google Assistant voice commands as well. When paired with HDMI-CEC, you tin can even ready routines that are at least reminiscent of the good one-time Kinect days, that command your Xbox and TV simultaneously.
While the Xbox Serial X media support is a bit of a mixed bag, Xbox doubles down on gaming features with considerable success.
Source: Windows CardinalWhen emerging from Quick Resume, you'll go a small notification in the top right.
The offset headline act is Quick Resume, which is quite literally a game-changer. Thanks to the NVME SSD, the Xbox Series Ten storage is fast plenty to accept an entire game state and commit it to storage memory. This is similar to how it works with apps on your smartphone, but to exist able to do information technology with a slice of software equally large and complicated as a video game is no easy feat. When saved in a Quick Resume state, you tin re-open up your games in mere seconds later on the panel has been shut down into standby, or even after being completely powered off and unplugged.
After having Quick Resume for a few months, information technology'south simply impossible to get back to an Xbox One panel.
The Xbox Series X (and S) are also capable of doing this for several games simultaneously. You tin continue your favorite multiplayer game like Overwatch or Monster Hunter: World suspended in the foyer while you wait for friends to log on and leap over about-instantaneously to that unmarried-player game in your backlog. The exact number of games available for pause varies by their size and complication, and as of writing, there aren't any tools for managing how Quick Resume works. For example, information technology would be nice to give certain games Quick Resume priority over others since if you're cycling through many dissimilar games in curt succession, there's no way to know which is existence kicked out of the Quick Resume land. Almost gamers won't apply it this way, though, unless you're as indecisive about what to play like I am.
An before downside I've encountered, is some games that resume out of Quick Country have corrupted audio or lose sound completely. Thankfully, this has been rectified in recent updates. Microsoft has also added tools to manage how Quick Resume works, with the ability to view at a glance in your library which games are presently suspended. Information technology can still be a fleck inconsistent, though, which makes it an unreliable replacement for simply saving your game.
When a game is in a Quick Resume state, information technology has a couple of arrow icons over information technology in your game library and shows a "Quick Resume" message in the top right corner on the title screen when it loads in. Afterwards having Quick Resume for a few months, problems aside, it'due south merely incommunicable to get back to an Xbox One console.
The Xbox Serial 10 (and S) take advantage of many of the latest HDMI 2.1 features, including Auto-Low Latency Style or ALLM, which makes sure your Goggle box is gear up to Game Mode when information technology detects that an Xbox console is continued. The Xbox Series 10 tin also take advantage of 4K 120Hz and 8K 60Hz outputs, which some games in the launch lineup are gunning for. Microsoft has besides added a unique "FPS Boost" feature to the Xbox Series Ten and S consoles, giving backward-compatible games a frame rate boost, and in some cases, "Car HDR" equally well. Microsoft'southward impressive push for game preservation continues.
Source: Windows Central
For the launch of the Xbox Series X, Microsoft has also given u.s.a. a refreshed dashboard experience, which follows Microsoft'south latest fluent design principles, while also pulling away a bit from Windows itself, taking on different fonts to requite Xbox a bit of its own identity. These new stylings are persistent beyond the Xbox Game Pass apps on PC and mobile, every bit well every bit the new Xbox app, which comes with a handy new feature for new Xbox Series Ten panel owners also. While you wait for the Xbox Series X to download its initial updates, y'all can sign in and install your games and settings via the mobile app on Android and iOS, streamlining the whole process. Microsoft also refreshed the Xbox shop'due south blueprint across the board, making it incredibly speedy in the process.
The Xbox Serial Ten and Due south dashboard is a painstakingly polished and responsive experience.
The Xbox Series X dashboard also sports Dynamic Themes, which are animated and stylish, but they aren't as sexy as they could be since they're blurred by 1080p Hard disk drive limitations. This is one thing that continues to bug me about the Xbox Series 10, and it's the fact the dashboard is Hd and doesn't support HDR. Flipping betwixt a 4K HDR-enabled game and the dashboard will cause your fix to go blank for a picayune while, which is an irritating, albeit minor issue. Only when your TV media switching is slower than the Xbox Series X is to actually load a game, it sort of defeats the betoken of Quick Resume.
Diverse fan-favorite features from the erstwhile Xbox One days are still missing. Picture-in-picture show for media apps is nonetheless gone, which was pretty handy for grinding segments in sure games. The Upload Studio app is still dead, which ways making content out of your Game DVR clips nonetheless requires oft-expensive tertiary-party PC or mobile software. Things like party chat messaging also all the same feel quite sluggish compared to modern messaging platforms similar Discord, WhatsApp, and Telegram, for no expert reason. Microsoft has begun porting the new Border browser to the Xbox Series X and Due south consoles, though, and has improved its mobile app offerings a scrap here and in that location, but it's a slow process. But the problems are small, and don't injure the overall experience.
What nosotros have is an Bone that refines upon all of the mistakes and forced-Windows 8 integrations of yesteryear, prioritizing speed, usability, and gaming above all else. Almost every best Xbox I accessory and all of your best Xbox headsets deport forrard.
The Xbox Series X and S dashboard is a painstakingly polished and responsive experience, which is a far, far, far weep from the sluggish and clunky Kinect-outset environment we got dorsum in 2022.
Xbox Series X review: Games and ecosystem
Witcher 3's functioning style hits 4K 60 FPS with ease, even without the future optimization patch CD Projekt RED is working on.
The Xbox Series X has promised to be the "world's most powerful console," simply what does that mean in reality? At least, in theory, it ways that games will striking threescore frames per second more consistently, at 4K resolution more consistently, while too bringing in some side by side-gen visual features. Some of those advanced features include ray-tracing reflections and shadows, which aims to bandage low-cal more dynamically, rather than artificially, elevating the visual fidelity of your games. Microsoft as well offers FPS Boost and Auto HDR to enhance by-gen games, likewise, while other companies are eager to sell those enhancements for a premium.
The architecture brings in some of the latest tech from AMD, with a massive CPU boost over the past-gen consoles. The way Microsoft has built its Xbox I and Xbox Series X/S platform enables past-gen games designed for Xbox One to gain natural performance boosts on Xbox Series X.
Games like Monster Hunter: World with uncapped frame rates become from 30 frames per 2nd on average to anywhere upwards to 60 frames per 2nd (FPS), without whatever developer intervention. Various games with unlocked frame rates and dynamic resolutions should perform far better beyond the lath on the Xbox Serial X. Others would demand updates to "unlock" the frame rates, merely various Xbox 1 games nosotros've tested like State of Decay 2, Monster Hunter: Earth, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice come across vast improvements. Fifty-fifty games that are capped at 30 FPS run into improvements, with a vast reduction in lost frames during complex sequences. Jedi: Fallen Lodge, for example, never drops beneath 60 or 30 in its respective performance modes on the Xbox Serial X — this is a game that was notorious for performance problems.
What near next-gen games, though? Well, what about them indeed. As of writing, at that place aren't really a huge amount of games that are fully built from the ground up for the Xbox Serial Ten, but that is almost to change very before long. Microsoft'south E3 2022 showcase offered a broad-ranging glimpse at some of its future games, and they look absolutely mind-blowing. Forza Horizon five has some of the most impressive visuals ever seen, and Halo Infinite'southward notorious filibuster has yielded great results for the game's graphical quality. Flying Simulator besides pushes the boundaries of cutting-edge photorealism, while even games from smaller studios like The Ascent impress with their detail and lighting quality. Microsoft's purchase of Bethesda last yr is really starting to conduct fruit in the exclusives department besides, with Starfield, the next game from the legendary creators of The Elder Scrolls, now touted every bit a permanent Xbox panel exclusive.
Gears 5 is staggering in its beauty, a monument to the skill and passion of The Coalition.
Every bit of right this minute, we do have a decent multifariousness of games that have reward of the performance overhead from the Xbox Serial X. Gears 5 for example, has been given a next-gen makeover. Ray-tracing appears on puddles and certain reflective surfaces, and Microsoft has pushed the multiplayer out to 120 frames per second. Gears 5 is staggering in its beauty, a monument to the skill and passion of The Coalition game studio. Other games like Falconeer and DiRT5 are also pushing 120Hz modes, merely neither game is particularly mind-blowing in visual complication, fifty-fifty if they take great fine art styles.
Every bit we move deeper into the Xbox Series X generation, we should run across even more games that are more optimized effectually the organisation that hit 4K60 without compromising on things like ray-tracing, as is the case with Gears five. There is a range of smaller improvements beyond the board, though, which makes the gaming experience far better than what nosotros ever had on the Xbox One.
Source: Windows Central
The NVME SSD alone has massive implications for game development. Fast traveling in Watch Dogs: Legion is near-instantaneous. Loading screens have go cursory to the point of irrelevancy. Monster Hunter: World maps went from anywhere up to a minute'south worth of loading down to around ten-15 seconds. The vast majority of games we've tested see similar speed enhancements, too.
Save for the SSD loading speeds, the big difference between the Xbox Series X and the Xbox One from 2022 is that Microsoft didn't really accept anything prepare to showcase the technology at launch, instead very largely on Scout Dogs: Legion and the Xbox Ane-enhanced version of Gears 5. In the case of Gears 5, is information technology worth going back to for a bump in visual quality? I'm non certain, simply I'd guess most would rather play something new. Into the summer and towards winter of 2022, though, nosotros'll have Battlefield 2042, Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, The Ascent, Flying Simulator, Far Cry 6, and various other games that truly showcase the tech. Many of them volition likewise be included in Xbox Game Laissez passer, at no additional cost. This ultimately brings us to the futurity.
Xbox Series X and the future
Source: Matt Chocolate-brown | Windows Central
A console is only as good as its ecosystem, and when it comes to Xbox, Microsoft certainly has a few tricks up its sleeve. Microsoft has purchased Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Media, which would give it controlling ownership of DOOM, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, Dishonored, Prey, and diverse highly anticipated games like Starfield. After E3 2022, nosotros practically have confirmation that the vast majority of these games volition also be exclusive to platforms where Xbox Game Pass exists, finer making them Xbox console exclusive.
You also have Xbox Game Pass, which is undeniably one of the best deals in gaming.
Microsoft has been investing in its first-party portfolio more than it ever has in the past. Hellblade 2's in-engine trailer from 2022 is tantalizing. Microsoft is arresting major industry talent in California with its studio, The Initiative, to build Perfect Dark. Legend is coming back, built past a big team at Playground Games. And Forza Motorsport viii is in the pipeline as well.
Microsoft continues to enjoy robust support from major tertiary-party publishers, including Ubisoft, 2K, and EA. Microsoft likewise invests in projects from second-party studios, with Asobo'southward Flight Simulator 2022, and Moon Studios' Ori the Will of the Wisps. A brief glance at our best upcoming Xbox games list reveals dozens of titles worth looking frontward to.
Source: Microsoft
Where Microsoft has struggled a chip more than is with some of the "trending" games that nosotros meet pop up from time to time, but Microsoft has been improving in this area likewise. Targeted exclusivity deals for Xbox Game Pass including MLB: The Show, Outriders, and STALKER 2 continue to shine a spotlight on the value of the service. Microsoft has even started gradually improving its JRPG offering, grabbing Octopath Traveler and Dragon Quest XI.
With ZeniMax's backdrop on lath, and effectively confirmed as sectional, the state of affairs has inverse very chop-chop. Then, you also have Xbox Game Pass, which is undeniably one of the best deals in gaming. Games like Elderberry Scrolls half dozen are guaranteed to launch day one as part of a $x-per-month subscription on Xbox Game Pass, alongside all of Microsoft's other games. Gears of State of war, Halo, Forza, Legend, Hellblade, Fallout, DOOM, The Elder Scrolls, Dishonored, Prey, Wolfenstein, The Evil Within, and many hundreds of others contain this vast library of content, which is exclusive to Xbox on consoles right now. Ultimate-tier subscribers can even accept their games onto Android and the web with Projection xCloud via Xbox Game Pass Cloud Gaming. EA has also brought dozens of games from its back catalog into Xbox Game Pass Ultimate besides.
The Xbox Serial X didn't necessarily take a compelling lineup when it launched, simply Microsoft is ramping up rapidly. A huge library of content awaits merely around the corner, and for just $10 per calendar month, rather than the $seventy-per-game argument competitors offer.
Xbox Series X review: Terminal thoughts and summary
Source: Matt Brown | Windows Primal
The Xbox Series 10 is a spectacular console. Every attribute of it is dripping with the love of a massive team that clearly cared nearly every millimeter, every line of code that was poured into this monolithic whole. Waiting for the total-diddled feature set of RDNA 2 may cost Microsoft the sales race in Q4, but for those who are lucky plenty to go their hands on it, the Xbox Series 10 is console gaming at its most excellent and most refined.
Xbox Series X is panel gaming at its most fantabulous and most refined.
In terms of the ecosystem the Xbox Series 10 is attached to, Microsoft has struggled to change the narrative over its exclusive game offer, but that'southward beginning to change. A tidal moving ridge of investment has brought the entire ZeniMax portfolio exclusively under Xbox, alongside a robust lineup of satellite studios which include heavyweights like Obsidian, Playground, 343i, and many more than.
The backward-compatibility effort on the Xbox Series X cannot be understated for its meticulousness and execution. Thousands upon thousands of games are launching with this panel, from your favorite service-type experiences like Rocket League and Fortnite, to single-histrion classics like DOOM and Fallout 4. Hundreds of games are finer getting costless "remaster" treatment, additional to their maximum resolutions and frame rates thank you to the forrad-looking design of the Xbox ecosystem architecture.
Pros
- Great design meets powerful hardware
- Well cooled and silent
- Quick Resume multiple games and additional loading speeds
- Xbox Game Pass and future first-party investment bring exciting possibilities
- Vast roadmap of exclusive content
Cons
- Media center capabilities are degraded
If you lot're a hardcore Xbox gamer, you're likely already sold on this affair. If you're looking to bound in for the start time with the all-time the ecosystem has to offer, the Xbox Series X will non disappoint. Unmatched value, a truly huge stable of studios edifice exclusive content, and power that rivals some of the virtually powerful gaming PCs out at that place. The Xbox Series X is the best video game console Microsoft ever made. And honestly, it's now my personal choice for the best console ever made.
Leading 4K
Xbox Serial X
The full next-generation experience.
Xbox Series Ten is Microsoft's new flagship, every bit its nigh powerful console with over 12TF GPU functioning and a custom SSD. It boasts up to 4K resolution and 120 FPS, total backward compatibility across four generations, and ray-tracing support.
Next-gen in HD
Xbox Serial Due south
Feel adjacent-gen gaming for less.
Microsoft serves the next-generation for less with its upkeep-friendly Xbox Serial S. The console packs the same high-performance CPU and SSD technology every bit Xbox Series Ten, while scaling back the GPU and removing the disc drive.
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Source: https://www.windowscentral.com/xbox-series-x
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