XBox Series Consoles
Release Date: Out Now
XBox Series X: £449
XBox Series S: £249.99
The XBox Series consoles have finally had there long awaited release.
What are the technological innovations that have been learned in the last 7 years since the Xbox One release?
XBox Series Details
The Xbox Series X is capable of outputting 4K @ up to 120 frames per second on next gen ready TV’s. We’re also hearing excellent things about the sound output, the most exciting being the inclusion of Dolby Atmos to create 3D spatial sound.
Another advancement on the previous XBox One consoles is the inclusion of Ray Tracing which will make our games really come to life with realistic lighting, shadows and reflections.
There has been a dramatic improvement on loading times with the storage now in the form of an SSD drive. Games producers are now able to utilize the loading time as part of the game play experience, instantly loading huge amounts of data in an instant.
An example of how this would be beneficial would be the instantaneous transitions between levels and different environments.
This is now achieved by the inclusion of the Custom NVMe SSD drive. Both the XBox Series X and Xbox Series S have expansion slots which will support approved SSD drives from Seagate.
Microsoft have taken a slightly different approach to the next generations target audience. With more of a continuation from the previous XBox One which will give their audience an immediate catalogue of high quality games.
Microsoft’s xCloud will be available on both XBox Series consoles, allowing gamer’s to stream games from Microsoft’s remote servers directly to your console or mobile device.
There are going to be 2 XBox Series consoles available at launch. The Series S is the digital only version of the new console which is not as powerful as the Xbox Series X, but for it’s size is still amazing piece of technology.
The Series S will be able to output upto 1440p @ 120 frames per second, as apposed to the Series X’s 4K at 120 FPS.
XBox Series Specifications
Series X
Series S
Shared Video Features
Gaming upto 120 FPS
Variable Refresh Rate
Auto Low-Latency Mode
Dolby Vision
DirectX Raytracing
8K High Dynamic Range
HDMI 2.1
HDMI Variable Refresh Rate & AMD FreeSync
Series X Video Output
4K for Gaming @ upto 120 FPS
8K High Dynamic Range
4K UHD Blu Ray
Series S Video Output
1440p for Gaming @ upto 120 FPS
8K High Dynamic Range
No Disk Drive (digital delivery only)
Series X Processor
CPU: 8X Cores @ 3.8 GHz (3.66 GHz w/SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
GPU: 12 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
Series S Processor
CPU. 8X Cores @ 3.6 GHz (3.4 GHz w/SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
GPU. 4 TFLOPS, 20 CUs @1.565 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
Series X Memory
Memory. 16GB GDDR6 w/320 bit-wide bus
Memory Bandwidth. 10GB @ 560 GB/s, 6GB @ 336 GB/s.
Series S Memory
Memory. 10GB GDDR6 128 bit-wide bus
Memory Bandwidth. 8GB @ 224 GB/s, 2GB @ 56 GB/s.
Shared Storage Features
Internal: Custom NVME drive 2.4 GB/s Raw, 4.8 GB/s Compressed
Optional Expansion*: 1TB Seagate Storage Expansion Card for XBox Series Consoles
Series X Storage
1TB Custom NVMe Drive
Series S Storage
512GB Custom NVMe Drive
Shared Audio Features
DTS 5.1
DOLBY Digital 5.1
Dolby TrueHD with Atmos
Ports & Connections
3x USB 3.1 Gen 1 ports
HDMI 2.1 out
802.11ac dual band wireless
1Gbps Ethernet
Series X
Check availability
Series S
Check Availability
XBox Series Accessories
The Xbox Series X does not have many accessories being released along the console at the moment. The good news is that the current generation XBox One accessories will be compatible with the Xbox Series X & S.
This is a good strategic touch by Microsoft allowing there current XBox One owners to not have to invest in an additional accessories for XBox series consoles.
There are some noticeable improvements on the new Xbox Series X controller like the addition of a share button positioned conveniently in the centre of the controller, allowing you to share or capture your gaming efforts.
XBox Series Controller
The new controller also incorporates a technology called DLI which stands for Dynamic Latency Input. This reduces the latency between your inputs giving you a more responsive gaming experience. Reports say this is going to apply to the current XBox Controllers via an update at a later date.
The new XBox Series controller will continue to be powered by rechargeable battery packs. There’s also now a USB type C socket for wired connection and charging.
Play and Charge Kit
The Xbox Play and Charge Kit will charge your XBox controller via a USB Type C connection. the connection is situated in a familiar position, at he the top of the controller.
This replaces the mini USB connection situated in the same location on the previous generation of controllers. As with previous Xbox controllers you can charge the controller if your XBox is shut down or during play.
XBox Series Headsets
With backwards compatibility being a main advantage of the XBox Series X & S, the range of available headsets compatible go into the hundreds.
To take advantage of the 3D spatial sound the the XBox is capable of producing you’ll need a headset that is capable. We’ve selected the best fully compatible headsets we could find.
Steel Series Arctis 9X
Designed with XBox in mind.
Award Winning Arctis Sound
Connects to controller in seconds
XBox Wireless and Simultaneous Bluetooth allows you to game while connected to your phone to not miss your phone calls
Extremely comfortable design which is lightweight and easily adjustable
When powered on will also power on your XBox.
Astro Gaming A50 Gen 4 + Base
Designed with XBox in mind.
Tuned with Astro Audio V2 for superior multi-directional sound quality
Dolby Audio directional Sound
Dolby Atmos (Xbox Series only) for compatible Dolby Atmos Movies and Games
Wireless upto 30 feet
Micro USB base station with Optical Pass-thru and USB charging.
Stealth 700 Gen 2
Designed with XBox in mind.
XBox Wireless and Simultaneous Bluetooth allows you to game while connected to your phone to not miss your phone calls
Cooling Gel Infused Comfort
Crystal clear and punchy directional audio
App Based Audio Customization to adjust your listening experience in any game.
Gen 2 Flip to Mute Mic
XBox Smart Delivery
The XBox Series consoles has a trump card up it’s sleeve. With previous generation releases the question of do I buy this game for my old generation console or do I wait till I get the new console has always been present.
Selected games will now be available via Smart Delivery. You can now buy select titles on your current previous generation XBox One console. When you’re ready to buy your new generation XBox Series console you’ll get a free upgrade to these titles that you own.
This means you’ll always have the the best version of your game across generations. The free update will also port over your game saves and progress allowing you to continue, but with all the new technological advancements that come with XBox Series X and S consoles.
Smart Delivery will apply to both disk and digital versions of games. It also works both ways! For example if you decided to keep your older generation console in another room, you could stop the XBox Series X/S and pick up again on your XBox One console where you left off.