Microsoft is desperate to bounce back after the relative failure of the Xbox One, which stumbled right out of the gate. Now, with competition heating up and the 2020 holiday season on the horizon, it's time to see how their Xbox S🔯eries X compares to their previous systems.
The Xbox Series X is shaping up to be one of, if not the most 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:powerful gaming console ever released. It'ꦺs going head-to-head against the PlayStation 5 this holiday season, which mea🔯ns the time has come to examine the console and see where Microsoft has hit the bullseye, and where it has fallen short.
10 Good:💞 The Technology
The X is no slouch when it comes to hardware. It sports some truly next-gen technology, which will push 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:ray-traced games in 4K, up𝓡 to 120fps. Clearly, we're moving into an advanced new age of gaming.
While the on-paper differences between the Xbox Series X and the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:PlayStation 5 aren't drastic, the X appe🅺ars to hold a slight advantage in overall proc🀅essing power. However, when compared with the release of previous Xbox consoles, the X represents a paradigm shift.
9 ❀ Bad: The Case
Those who have owned third-party tower-style i🥀nterne🐟t routers know how big, bulky, and unpleasant they can be, especially when it comes to space. Microsoft has redesigned the overall look of the X to mimic this style, and it's not to everyone's tastes.
Those who wanted to fit the system neatly within a TV cabinet nook are out of luck, and turning the X over on its side 𒐪will probably leave much to be desired. Clearly, this is not the best way tꦕo build out a video game console, even if it does serve a purpose, but more on that later.
8 🎀 𒉰 Good: The CPU
Both the X and the PS5 w𝔉ill take advantage of AMD's Zen 2 architecture, which also powers the company's Threadripper line. This is a bold and very welcome development that will help drive the newest round of high-octane gaming experiences.
Previous Xbox consoles didn't shirk power when it came to CPUs, but, then again, the technology landscape was quite different. Today's consoles need to keep up wiℱth the ever-evolving PC component market, and this is definitely a nod in that🌜 direction. No more mid-level CPUs this time around.
7 Bad: The 8K Focus 🌸
Microsoft has been hyping 8K from the sidelines, without tossing out any concrete ✅details. It's🎉 a bit obvious, and it won't win over skeptics who realize what kind of hardware will be necessary to run 8K gaming.
Add in the fact that 8K has not achieved anything near mainstream acceptance at this point, and it's a wonder what Miꦯcrosoft's true intentions are. The focus should be on driving solid, high-framerate 4K ♍experiences, rather than jumping the gun on the next big buzz word.
6 🌜 Good: Backward Compatibility 𝄹
Microsoft is no stranger to providing 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:back🀅ward compatibility on its Xbox consoles, and the X is no exception. What is different, however, is the man🅠ner in which backward compatibilit▨y will be implemented.
Microsoft has promised that older Xbox games running on the X will receive significant boosts such as higher resolutions, HDR support, and 120fps framerates, d🎃riven entirely from the hardware side. This is astonishing in every conceivable way, and it may turn out to be one of ൲the system's best design attributes!
5 ꦑ Bad: The Controller
Unfortunately, Microsoft seems to be sticking with the same overall design aesthetic💙 for the Xbox Series X controller, which is a bit of a shame, especially given the hype surrounding the PS5's redesigned DualSense controller.
It looks practically identical to the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Xbox One's controller, wh🐭ich is by no means bad, but it doesn't exactly add anything new to the equation, either. Capture and Share functionality isn't enough🐽 to offset the radical splash Sony has made with their own gamepad.
4 💎 Good: The Storage
1TB of SSD storage is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Xbox Series X, and the latter is the most important part. Without spee🦂d on its side, the increased level of storage is all for not.
It remains to be seen whether Microsoft or Sony will take the crown for the fastest SSD—Sony is claiming they have it in the bag—but that's irrelevant. Gamers won𝔍't have to slog through tedio🌳us load times and hiccups. Instead, they'll get to experience next-gen gaming the way it was meant to be.
3 💦 Bad: Expanded Storage 𒁏
The Series X offers expanded storage in the form of Expansion Cards from Seagate, which, as history has shown, rarely amounts to anything good. Proprietary form factors in an age of universal interfaces typically means painfully higher prices and customer frustration. Think 🀅Apple's proprietary charging cables.
Microsoft pulled this stunt on the Xbox One, as well, and it was highly irritating. Meanwhile, the PS3 and PS4 both allowed for standard-sized SSD drives to be installed within minutes without having to fork out unnecessary extra dough. The𝐆 rationalization for this approach is to allow for storage expansion without sacrificing the speed needed to play X games, but that won't be enough to quell the inevitable sticker shock for Expansion Cards.
2 Good: The🔥 Cooling Mechanism
Microsoft seems to have taken a page out of Apple's book wh🐽en it comes to internal cooling. The X's controversial tower-style design aesthetic is, at the very least, functional in approach.
By drawing cool air from the bottom of the console vents and projecting it upward through the top, the X implements a linear approach when it comes to cooling. Microsoft has also implemented a heat-sink chassis and a vapor chamber to equalize cooling distribution throughout the unit. One thing's for certain: Microsoft does not want a repeat of the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Xbox 360's red ring of death!
1 Bad: The Split Motherboard ꧒
While the idea of a split-style motherboard is an intriguing one—mostly for temperature distribution—it's hard to think of such a radical implementation leading to anything good. Separating the motherboard into two parts introduces a whole new set of risks, including double the chance of a system malfu𒅌nction.
While the warranty will probably be enough to offset any potential flawed consoles, that's wishful thinking for a machine that hasn't even🦩 hit the market, yet. It's impossible to tell if the first or even second batch of X's will ship without design flaws or component faults, and the motherboard is traditionally one of the most vulnerable. A split-design could be one of the best things about the X, or it could be one of the absolute worst. Only time will tell.