Xbox One S Has A Slight Performance Bump
Much like PS4 Pro, the Xbox One S is not the beginning of a new console generation, but an expansion of a platform we already know and love. But it does offer a very slight improvement over its predecessor.
The Coalition head Rod Fergusson revealed to Polygon that his team had taken advantage of additional raw GPU and CPU power for Gears of War 4 , to improve frame rates. Ferguson claimed his engineers have been able to, as Polygon puts it, leverage the additional power to reduce the frequency of the frame rate or resolution penalties.Related: PS4 vs Xbox One
A Microsoft spokesperson then confirmed, via The Verge, We have the same SoC architecture as Xbox One today.
For games that want to take advantage of HDR, we gave developers access to a small amount of additional processing power.
Overall though, dont expect games to look noticeably different on Xbox One S to Xbox One thanks to the additional power, instead only getting minor stability improvements.
How To Play 4k On An Xbox One
1. From your Xbox One’s Home screen, press the Xbox button on your controller to open the menu.
2. Navigate to the System tab on the far-right side of the menu. Select “Settings” and press the A button.
3. Under the “General” sub-menu, navigate to “TV & display options” and press A.
4. Under Display, select “Resolution” and press A to open a drop-down menu. If you want your Xbox One to display everything in 4K, select “4K UHD” and press A, then select “Yes” and press A, and you’re all set.
- If, instead of displaying everything in 4K, you want your Xbox One to display at a lower resolution and upscale its graphics to 4K when applicable, select “720p” or “1080p” on the drop-down menu and press A, then select “Yes” and press A.
5. If you’ve set your Xbox One to display at 720p or 1080p resolution and want to enable upscaling to 4K when applicable, navigate your cursor under Advanced. Select “Video modes” and press A. Make sure that the “Allow 4K” box is checked. If it isn’t, navigate your cursor to “Allow 4K” and press A.
Xbox Series S Vs Xbox Series X: Which Is For You
The introduction of the Xbox Series S and its value proposition shakes up the next-gen field a bit for a ton of gamers, and rightfully so. While the Xbox Series S can’t handle true 4K gaming, it still offers all the most important next-gen gaming features like the lightning-fast SSD and ray tracing at what will almost certainly be a much lower price point than competing consoles like the Xbox Series X and Playstation 5.
If you’re wondering which is best for you between the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X, make sure to read our in-depth breakdown comparing the two next-gen consoles for all the information you need. To quickly summarise: the Xbox Series X is the most powerful console and is the one for players who want the absolute best and are okay with spending a lot more to get the absolute best. On the other hand, the Xbox Series S still offers some of the most important next-gen improvements without breaking the bank, making it a fantastic option for anyone who values, well, value over sheer power.
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Compatibility: Both Consoles Play The Same Games
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Plays most games for all Xbox consoles.
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Supports all Xbox One peripherals.
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Region free when it comes to games.
The Xbox One S and Xbox One X are part of the Xbox One family of consoles. Both play all Xbox One-branded video games in addition to a growing number of backward-compatible titles for Xbox 360 and the original Xbox. There’s no game disparity between the two consoles.
All Xbox One-branded controllers work with the Xbox One S and Xbox One X. The Kinect sensor, the special camera used for games and voice commands on the Xbox One, also works with both consoles. However, a Kinect Adapter is required to connect it properly. Only the original Xbox One console can connect to the Kinect without additional cables.
All Xbox One video games are region-free. This means that an American Xbox One console plays Xbox One games released in other countries. While the Xbox One games are region-free, the physical disk drive isn’t, which makes a difference when playing DVDs and Blu-rays. An American Xbox One can only play Region 1 DVDs and Zone A Blu-rays.
You Should Buy The Xbox One S If
You want gaming on a budget: Microsofts Xbox One S is one of the cheapest consoles on the market right now, and is often the star of bundles featuring a number of bonus accessories and games. For newcomers, this is a great console for jumping into the medium without breaking the bank, although its power is parallel to such value. Still, it more than does the job.
You want to take advantage of Xbox Game Pass: Xbox One S is honestly a perfect machine for Xbox Game Pass, especially for those with a more powerful primary platform such as PS5 or a PC. Microsofts service has a selection of excellent titles on it right now, and all of its first-party efforts will arrive on day one at no extra cost. If you dont mind compromise in visuals and performance, this is the ideal way to try them out.
You want a cheap 4K blu-ray player: It isnt the best of its kind on the market, but the Xbox One S includes a 4K blu-ray player for a ludicriously low price. Media enthusiasts with only a passing interest in gaming should consider the Xbox One S as a cheap way to play 4K blu-rays, since players on their own are far more expensive.
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Is This The Ultra Hd Blu
Youll find a host of apps and services at the Xbox store, including ones for all the big video-streaming players such as Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and YouTube. Games? Come on, this is an Xbox. The Samsung and Panasonic have a couple of titles at most, but theyre nothing like what you can get on Microsofts gaming console.
The Xbox One S isn’t a perfect UHD Blu-ray player at the moment, but it played every disc I threw at it. And when you tire of watching movies, TV shows, and other video content, you can play first-rate games. Its a heck of an entertainment value.
This article was updated to report on the Xbox One S’s ability to stream high-definition audio bitstreams over HDMI. We also increased the review score from 3.5 to 4.
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This is a great Ultra HD Blu-ray player, especially for gamers.
Pros
Choose A Freesync Or G
Choosing the best gaming monitor without VRR is not an option! Both technologies have become popular, FreeSync is always more affordable in terms of price. But now if you have an Nvidia card, you can also take advantage of the FreeSync from your monitor.
Important criteria for playing first person shooters
As we have seen, the best Gamer monitor will be different depending on your gaming types and your expectations. If you are a competitive FPS player, then responsiveness, latency, and refresh rate are paramount. What motivates your purchase is to gain comfort and performance during your favorite Battle Royale? To get the best picture even when the action explodes on the monitor?
So choose 27 inches for the best performance, whether its 144 Hz , but also pixel response time and good latency. Weve picked out the best 27 inch gaming monitors below. Note, to gain comfort in fast games, there are also technologies to reduce motion blur .
Only when you activate it, does it deactivate FreeSync or G-Sync. Except for Asus, it is the only manufacturer to offer the activation of its motion blur reduction technology with FreeSync or G-Sync. It is called the ELMB Sync.
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How To Play 4k Blu
After half a year since their original release, the new Xbox Series S and X consoles are still hard to get in all parts of the world, because they are severely in short supply. The situation is unlikely to change anytime soon, and unless they are willing to pay the scalper prices, many users will likely be stuck with their previous-gen Xbox consoles . One of the most common features of the new Xbox consoles are the support of 4K gaming and video playback, in fact the Series X supports up to 8K video playback. As such, one of the most common questions that have been revolving around the original Xbox One console, as well as the One S and One X is whether or not they support 4K video or 4K Blu-ray Playback. Therefore, we will aim to answer this question today, and we will show you how to play 4K Blu-ray on your Xbox One.
But There Is An Ir Blaster
In the place of a dedicated Kinect port, the Xbox One S comes with an integrated IR blaster. That means you can configure your Xbox One S to turn on other devices, like your TV, audio/video receiver, and cable or satellite receiver.
The idea is that you can reduce the number of remotes you need to control your stuff.
Related: Upcoming Xbox One Games
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Performance: Xbox One X Wins Hands Down
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No 4K support for games.
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Plays the same games in a lower resolution.
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Equal performance when it comes to streaming and Blu-ray.
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Higher resolution graphics for games.
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Smoother frame rates.
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Faster load times.
Both the Xbox One S and Xbox One X support HDR for games and videos. Each console comes with a built-in 4K Blu-ray disk drive that plays CDs, DVDs, and 4K HDR Blu-rays. However, only the Xbox One X renders 4K-enabled video games.
While the Xbox One S can play those games at a lower resolution, the games look significantly better on the Xbox One X. The Xbox One S console can also load games and apps significantly faster than the Xbox One X.
Due to their 4K output capability, the Xbox One S and X are also able to stream 4K movies and TV series from services such as Microsoft Movies & TV, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon. A 4K TV isn’t required to use either console. A regular widescreen TV automatically resizes the video for its display resolution. Viewers will still experience visual improvements when viewing 4K footage on a non-4K TV.
Cost: Xbox One S Is Cheaper Than Xbox One X
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Can be cheaper used than a new Xbox One S.
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Only a 1 TB option is available.
The Xbox One X is targeted toward the hardcore gamer who values high framerates and textures. As a result, it is significantly more expensive due to the additional hardware needed to reach certain technological benchmarks. The Xbox One X is essentially a powerful gaming PC crammed into a console. Thus, the S model will likely remain the more affordable option for consumers.
In addition to the various storage capacities, there are themed versions of each console. For example, the special Xbox One S Minecraft Limited Edition console features a unique Minecraft themed design that lights up and plays sounds when turned on. It can do everything a regular Xbox One S can do.
All special versions feature the console label in the title. As long as these consoles are referred to as an Xbox One S or an Xbox One X on the box or in the store product listing, you know what you’re getting.
The original Xbox One console is no longer in production. It has essentially been replaced by the Xbox One S. Stores that have stock available usually sell it for a lower price than the Xbox One S and X. It can be a good alternative for those on a tight budget.
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What Gaming Features Does Xbox Series S Support
Without the power for native 4K gaming, players may wonder what else they’re missing with the Xbox Series S. The answer: not as much as you’d think. Despite coming in at only $299 rather than the full $499 of the Xbox Series X, the Xbox Series S will still take advantage of Microsoft’s Xbox Velocity Architecture. With its custom 512GB NVMe SSD, the Xbox Series S can effectively eliminate load times and allow players to seamlessly switch between multiple games and apps with ease. What you are missing is a disc drive, so you have to buy digitally, and you may want to invest in one of the best external SSD’s for Xbox Series X|S to supplement the lower base storage.
The Xbox Series S also supports hardware-accelerated ray tracing, meaning next-gen games can offer realistic lighting, shadows, reflections, and more, no matter the resolution you’re playing at. The hardware the makes up the Series S foundation is still built with modern features and architectures in mind, which means more efficiency in how the console uses its power and resources. All of this means the Xbox Series S can go toe-to-toe with other next-gen consoles but trades resolution and visual fidelity for a lower price point.
Aoc Gaming C27g1 Pc Gaming Monitor
The AOC C27G1 is a gaming monitor that tries to do it all. The $250 price tag means it wont push your PC budget to breaking point, and AOC says it will be ideal for casual and competitive gamers thanks to its curved design, quick response, and rugged physical design.
This technology synchronizes the frame-by-frame output of your graphics card with the frame-by-frame rendering of the monitor. Its a simple concept, but these two related things mean that the monitor can reproduce the output of the GPU at the same speed. As a result, the games have no tears or vibrations.
Enabling AMD FreeSync results in a smooth gaming experience, and youll definitely notice a difference when you compare the AOC C27G1, or any compatible display, to a model other than FreeSync. Panels without tech look patchy in comparison, even though the games are still playable.
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Xbox One S Build: Kinect We Hardly Knew Thee
Naturally, the Xbox One S 4K Blu-ray drive has caught the most attention in the run up to its release. Look beyond that innovation though and you wont find much of note at all. Dont be fooled by its dapper exterior, this is pretty much the same console as the original Xbox One only it comes with a whopping great 2TB hard drive, new IR blaster and has had one of its USB ports shifted forwards to the front of the console.
That crucially means its got exactly the same amount of processing power as ever before. In order to support HDR-enabled games, Microsoft has handed developers access to a little more of the Xbox One Ss CPU and GPU than they got with the Xbox One, but this wont result in a tangible performance upgrade. In other words, FIFA 17 wont look any better or play any smoother on the One S than the One. Gamers will only see the benefit when they play those HDR-friendly titles such as Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3.
The idea behind this is pretty obvious: current Xbox One owners wont end up as second class citizens. Thats fair enough until you bear in mind that Microsoft has been less than clear on whether developers will end up making exclusive titles for its Project Scorpio machine. Introduced as the most powerful console ever at E3 this year, it essentially guarantees the One S will be outdated in the space of a year.
Youll Need An App For That
Youll need to download the apps required to play Ultra HD Blu-ray discs and media stored on external USB drives. Once installed, the Blu-ray app worked great, but the media player was only so-so.
There was one random unable to play disc error, but a quick cleaning of the disc seemed to solve that . On all of the approximately 50 other attempts, discs played fine though an occasional re-insert was required if the disc was in the unit when it booted.
Microsoft
Microsofts Xbox One S is a surprisingly good Ultra HD Blu-ray player.
During the first viewing session, there were a few minor motion artifacts, but after two firmware updates, those seemed to disappear. Put succinctly, the Xbox One S is a very good Ultra Blu-ray playerfor most people.
Things were a bit dicier when playing content stored on a USB drive using Microsofts media player app. The good news is strong support for audio and image codecs. The Xbox One S can play FLAC, Apple and Windows lossless. MP3, WMA, and Apple M4V, as well as WAV files up to 7.1 channels and 96kHz/24-bit sampling rates/resolution. In addition to the usual support for bitmap, JPEG, and PNG images, theres also GIF support andget thissupport for both uncompressed and compressed TIFF files. Thats old-school.
Most of the Xbox One Ss ports are on its rear panel, as youd expect. Theres HDMI In and Out, two USB 3.0 ports, an IR out, S/PDIF, and ethernet.
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Xbox One S Games: Halo From The Other Side
As anyone who owns a Wii U will know, having a fancy console is one thing and having enough games to play on it is another entirely. To misquote Jesus, Man cannot live on Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker alone.
Compared to the PlayStation 4, the Xbox One still doesnt boast the same calibre of AAA system sellers. That means for every Forza Horizon 3 theres a Halo 5: Guardians, ReCore or Dead Rising 4 all of which were a bit rubbish. And Quantum Break was more of a love-hate affair than Ross and Rachels run on Friends.
Thats not to say the One S doesnt have some must-play titles to its name. SuperHot and Ori and The Blind Forest are excellent, while Gears of War 4 was a bloody, fun return for the cover shooter series. In comparison, the PlayStation 4 has Bloodborne, Uncharted 4 and The Last Guardian. Games youll skip out of work early to play and will keep raving about for months to come.
Combined with the usual third-party fare of Battlefield 1, FIFA 17, Final Fantasy XV and plenty more, you certainly wont be short of new stuff to play on an Xbox One S. And then theres the old stuff to be digging back into.