STACK #193 Nov 2020

FEATURE GAMING

When Microsoft announced the Xbox Series X, we got something that’s built for raw power – and its bold look wants everyone to know it. XBOX SERIES X|S

T here’s a choice of two new Xbox consoles for this generation and they’re very different indeed, both in external appearance and the tech that’s inside. Obviously the big headline-grabber is the Series X, which, as the name suggests, is aimed at those who upgraded to the Xbox One X last generation and want to stay ahead of the curve in terms of raw graphics power. If you’ve got a 4K TV or monitor, this is the new Xbox for you (we’ll explain why shortly). The Series X is a hefty monolith, a plain black chunk of a thing that rises 30cm high when used vertically, and when installed on its side (small silicone feet are built in for this purpose) it’s literally two and a half times as high as the Xbox One X – 15cm versus the older console’s 6cm height. That should still fit into most shelves okay, but make sure you leave space at the sides for ventilation, as this Xbox does most of its heat removal at its pointy ends (with the main fan ominously glowing green under the console’s only non-flat surface).

Alternatively, if you opt for the Xbox Series S you’re getting a classically compact Xbox, almost exactly as tall horizontally as the Xbox One S. So, with such a huge disparity in size between the two consoles, what’s the difference? The Series X was designed from the ground up to be as much of a beast as a game console can be. With its 8-core CPU and latest-gen AMD graphics onboard, it’s for gaming at full 4K at 60 frames per second, with 120fps a very real possibility (the console’s HDMI output supports it on the latest TVs). The Series S backs off on the graphics side of things, capable of up to 1440p for games, upscaled to 4K by the console if needed. It’s aimed more at those who want the power of the new console generation but don’t need full 4K. One other big difference, though – the Series S is digital-only, so you won’t be able to play disc-based games on it. The Series X has a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray drive built in. Storage is a blindingly-fast NVMe Solid State Drive (SSD) – 1TB in the X, and 512GB in the S. You can expand this

storage using a single slot in the back of the consoles, but you can’t use just any old SSD to do it. At launch there’s a 1TB expansion module available. The SSD storage is designed for (and required by) Series X|S games – you can’t store them on an external USB hard drive. If you’ve got a USB drive filled to the brim with your Xbox One games, though, bring it over and plug it in. The new consoles continue Microsoft’s stellar backwards compatibility support, now letting you play original Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One games on your new console, often with vastly improved frame rates and graphics. If you’re a long-time Xbox fan, your old games will never be forgotten! Microsoft is taking a big chance by releasing two compatible consoles with such different specs, but it may just turn out to be a smart move – for a second generation in a row you can choose how much Xbox you want, rather than paying for power and features you may never use.

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