Microsoft's bet for the new generation of consoles is called Xbox Series X, have a monolithic design that leaves no one indifferent and is presented as the most powerful console in the world. But with the idea of clearing up all kinds of doubts, we are going to tell you what this new console hides inside with great detail.
Design and dimensions
Microsoft has surprised everyone with a vertical design console (although it can be placed horizontally) that maintains dimensions of 151 x 151 x 301 millimeters. These measures allow it to adopt a very striking monolithic appearance, in which only the Blu-ray disc slot, the power button, the disc eject button, a pairing button and a front USB are visible.
It is a very minimalist design that continues to maintain the style line applied in the Xbox One X and that works really well in the new proposal. In the rear area we will find the classic connection ports, where we will have an HDMI, an Ethernet port, two USB 3.1 ports, the power connector and the Seagate expansion card slot that we will talk about below. It is worth mentioning that the console will not include optical audio output, so the sound will necessarily go through HDMI 2.1 (capable of transmitting Dolby Atmos).
Internally it is a work of engineering, since we have been able to see that the internal components form a millimeter puzzle that fits perfectly into the chassis. The motherboard is made up of two modules that are connected to each other sharing a chassis that acts as a heatsink. On them rests a large but quite silent fan, which will be in charge of generating an air flow from the bottom up.
Better graphics
Xbox Series X will offer performance by default that will guarantee 4K resolution at 60 images per second, however, things will not end there. The console will be able to work with frequencies of up to 120 Hz, which will be ideal for gaming monitors, but it will also dare with 8K resolutions, although we do not know the frame rate per second that it will be able to achieve.
The graphic quality will be quickly surpassed with respect to the current generation thanks to technologies such as ray tracing, which will work with DirectX to offer the calculation of reflections and flashes in real time. In the image above you can see the differences that Gears V offers running on an Xbox One and an Xbox Series X.
The storage
The Xbox Series X will include a 1TB SSD inside. This drive will be a high-speed NVMe drive that will achieve transfers of up to 2,4 GB/s, which will allow for particularly fast load times. With the idea of being able to maintain these features and expand the capacity of the console, in the rear area we will find a slot for some cartridges that will be sold separately.
These cartridges or cards will be external NMVe drives manufactured by Seagate that will increase the capacity of the console. It seems that the size of these units is 1 TB, but at the moment the price that it will have is unknown, something that we suspect will not be especially cheap. With the help of this technology, it has been possible to improve the loading times of the games in an incredible way.
Multiple games at once
Thanks to the RAM, the loading speed of the SSD and the processing power of Xbox Series X, the new console will be able to offer a new level of game hibernation that we have not seen before. As shown in this official video, we can go from one game to another without losing the course of the game, since it will be completely paused and we can continue where we left off.
Thus, if you get tired of hitting shots, you can pause the game and move on to another game to change scenery. Or if you were in the Call of Duty single player campaign and a friend requests you to play a game in FIFA, you'll be able to switch games immediately regardless of whether you saved or not.
Technical characteristics
- CPU: 2GHz 8-core AMD Zen 3,8
- GPU: AMD Radeon RNDA Navi with 12 teraflops, 52 compute units at 1,825 GHz and Ray Tracing support via DirectX
- Memory: 16 GB GDDR6 with a bandwidth of 560 GB/s (10 GB) and 335 GB/s (6 GB)
- Video Resolution: Native 4K with the possibility of reaching 8K. Maximum rate of 120 Hz.
- Storage: 1TB NVMe SSD (2,4GB/s RAW)
- External storage: Seagate 1TB NVMe expansion drives, USB 3.2 drives
- Optical unit: 4K Blu-ray player
The new command
The console will also come with a new controller. At first glance it seems identical to the current one, but in reality it hides a series of very interesting technical improvements that could improve the gaming experience. The most important is connectivity. With a proprietary wireless connection developed by Microsoft, the gamepad can connect to the console and send commands with almost no latency, which would help to have the best response time when pressing each button.
On the other hand, the design has undergone almost negligible changes that will improve ergonomics, in addition to the fact that the triggers now have a rough texture to improve grip and pulsation. But if we talk about buttons, the leading role is taken by the new share button. It is a shortcut that will allow us to capture and share content quickly without the need for shortcuts and complex commands as occurs on Xbox One.
Another of the changes is found in the new digital crosshead, which presents a hybrid design that facilitates the 8 directions.
What games will Xbox Series X have?
At the moment the list of confirmed games for Xbox Series X is quite short, but it is normal considering that there is still a long way to go before the console hits stores. For now, we can confirm that Halo Infinite y Hellblade II: Senua's Saga will be available for the new console, in addition to Cyberpunk 2077.
As if that were not enough, the company also announced its function Smart delivery, which will allow games purchased in the previous generation to be transferred to the new platform. This means that if you buy Cyberpunk 2077 for Xbox One, when you have Xbox Series X you will be able to download the corresponding version of the new console instead of playing the backward compatible version. All Microsoft games will offer this option by default, and the rest of the developers must confirm it at each launch (CD Project Red has confirmed it with Cyberpunk 2077).
And since we are talking about backward compatibility, we must remember that Xbox Series X will be able to play any game from any Xbox previously released on the market. This translates into full backwards compatibility that will allow you to play games from the first Xbox up to the latest Xbox One release. In addition, they will offer faster load times and a higher resolution graphical enhancement.
Questions to be answered and most common doubts
How much does Xbox Series X cost?
To answer this we will have to keep waiting for Microsoft to speak up. At the moment, the price is the biggest unknown, although many estimate that the console could be around 500 euros starting price. Phil Spencer has declared on more than one occasion that they will not repeat past mistakes, so it will be interesting to see what label the console will finally bear.
When will it go on sale?
The Xbox Series X will officially arrive in the holiday period at the end of the year. That is exactly what they indicate on the official website, although on the websites of some countries Thanksgiving Day was indicated as the exact launch date (November 26). Microsoft quickly clarified this confusion by indicating that it was an error, and again pointed to the end of the year as the final release date. Could it have been a goof?
Is it better than PS5?
This question currently has no answer, and probably doesn't. Both platforms will be identical and different at the same time, and everything indicates that this generation will be characterized by offering two very distant points of view.
What about accessories I already have for Xbox One?
You will be able to use them all. The new console will be compatible with all the accessories of the previous generation, since the controller will continue to include the connection port. Also, if you have a nice collection of Xbox One controllers, you can still use them with Xbox Series X as well.
Will it have virtual reality options?
Microsoft has stated on more than one occasion that it sees no interest in virtual reality, so for now the idea seems pretty remote and it doesn't look like anything related to it will be announced anytime soon.
What about the cheap Xbox Series X?
There have been a lot of rumors about the possibility of launching a cheap Xbox Series X, but for now everything is pretty quiet. The official information is that we will only have Xbox Series X, but its nomenclature invites us to inevitably think of an Xbox Series S.
Does it light up with a green light on top?
No. The green that you can find in the upper area of the console is a colorful finish that is achieved with a plastic piece that is hidden inside. There is no type of LED light that illuminates the console internally.