Digital Foundry Article Technical Discussion [2020]

[Jay]

500GB isn't a lot, but if games are let's say on average 30% smaller, then your fitting on around the same amount as PS5 maybe give or take a game.

So the issue really covers all consoles, maybe XSX couple games less.

In all cases I would suggest getting either a SSD external storage if you need slightly more space to handle juggling a few games if your the type to play more than 5 (number out my arse) regularly.

If your a person that is more worried about download caps and play a lot more games at random then a (2TB+) big hdd to use as cold storage.
These options are relatively cheap in the short to long term.

The only problem is educating people. Need something like recomended storage help on dashboards.

Probably a report somewhere that breaks down games rotation and usages.

 

[see colon]

Not sure how All Access would be have any advantage over buying and selling/trading a console the normal way?...If anything it would be harder given the financing is handled by a bank separate from the retailer...at least here in Canada it is...

Either way given that they are already losing money on these consoles and the cost of flash storage...could be a while before they would bump it.

If you factor in the price of Gamepass Ultimate, the cost of the the console is less than the the retail cost. All Access is almost like getting a loan with negative interest rates.

 

[Strange]

More like getting a phone plan.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

More like getting a phone plan.

A phone plan is not always good, you think you getting more however you are eventually losing more in the long run as it's money coming out of you pocket for services you might never use or need.

Buying a phone outright then getting a custom plan taylored for your specific needs will save you more money in the long run. imo

 

[Jubei]

A phone plan is not always good, you think you getting more however you are eventually losing more in the long run as it's money coming out of you pocket for services you might never use or need.

Buying a phone outright then getting a custom plan taylored for your specific needs will save you more money in the long run. imo

You are correct. But thats not how most human beings behave, most people in the west dont have enough disposable income for the latest iPhone yet the iPhones sell like water in the desert. Offering a zero interest payment plan is a good business decision for Microsoft even if its a bad financial decision for the person signing up

 

[Jay]

You are correct. But thats not how most human beings behave, most people in the west dont have enough disposable income for the latest iPhone yet the iPhones sell like water in the desert. Offering a zero interest payment plan is a good business decision for Microsoft even if its a bad financial decision for the person signing up

The point is that it's not just zero interest.
It actually works out cheaper, which is different than any other of these types of plans.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

It's not about the interest though, it's about the services that you are getting. You might use some that are useful or vital but most you won't use or are useless, but they are charging you a premium price for.

 

[Jubei]

The point is that it's not just zero interest.
It actually works out cheaper, which is different than any other of these types of plans.

I think its a fair deal but its not cheaper. Most people just dont know about the Xbox Live 1:1 conversion into GPU

 

[Jay]

I think its a fair deal but its not cheaper. Most people just dont know about the Xbox Live 1:1 conversion into GPU

And there's MS rewards.
But as you said most people don't know.

It's cheaper than buying them individually at standard price up front.
Where as that's not usually the case.

 

[PSman1700]

The power of PlayStation!

 

[BRiT]

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...-series-x-power-consumption-and-heat-analysis

Xbox Series X thermal and power analysis: how efficient is next-gen?
Good news - not just for Microsoft but for AMD too.

When the Xbox Series X form factor was first revealed at The Game Awards in December 2019, the size and shape of the unit was something of a surprise. In delivering what it believes to be the most powerful console of the next generation, Microsoft rewrote the rule book, producing a mini-tower like design aimed at maximising both performance and cooling. Has this decision paid off? With press units in the hands of journalists, stories began to appear suggesting that the console could get very hot. So, just how hot does it get and how much electricity does Series X draw from the mains? The answers are surprising - in a positive way!

With the final preview embargo up, I can share some more of my overall thoughts about the machine. I've already talked about the excellent backwards compatibility features, and what kind of storage solution is best for running your old Xbox titles on Series X, but now I can share more. Starting with the industrial design, there is a quiet revolution in design here, with the emphasis on the word 'quiet'. Series X is quiet to the point where breaking out the noise meter is a pointless exercise because the console's acoustics merge into the background noise of my living room and office. It's essentially on par with Xbox One X - and perhaps even better - which I'd rate as the current gold standard in console design. Series X is more power-hungry, but the revised form factor ensures that noise is simply not an issue.

The size and shape of the box is quite different, but still very console-like. It's basically the same height as One X, but somewhat portlier in certain dimensions. You can rest the machine vertically or horizontally and in terms of footprint, I think vertical is the way to go. Hot air rises by its very nature, so there may well be a slight cooling advantage in doing so too. In an entirely unscientific way, it certainly 'looks' better, in my opinion.

 

[iroboto]

https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...-series-x-power-consumption-and-heat-analysis

Xbox Series X thermal and power analysis: how efficient is next-gen?
Good news - not just for Microsoft but for AMD too.

When the Xbox Series X form factor was first revealed at The Game Awards in December 2019, the size and shape of the unit was something of a surprise. In delivering what it believes to be the most powerful console of the next generation, Microsoft rewrote the rule book, producing a mini-tower like design aimed at maximising both performance and cooling. Has this decision paid off? With press units in the hands of journalists, stories began to appear suggesting that the console could get very hot. So, just how hot does it get and how much electricity does Series X draw from the mains? The answers are surprising - in a positive way!

With the final preview embargo up, I can share some more of my overall thoughts about the machine. I've already talked about the excellent backwards compatibility features, and what kind of storage solution is best for running your old Xbox titles on Series X, but now I can share more. Starting with the industrial design, there is a quiet revolution in design here, with the emphasis on the word 'quiet'. Series X is quiet to the point where breaking out the noise meter is a pointless exercise because the console's acoustics merge into the background noise of my living room and office. It's essentially on par with Xbox One X - and perhaps even better - which I'd rate as the current gold standard in console design. Series X is more power-hungry, but the revised form factor ensures that noise is simply not an issue.

The size and shape of the box is quite different, but still very console-like. It's basically the same height as One X, but somewhat portlier in certain dimensions. You can rest the machine vertically or horizontally and in terms of footprint, I think vertical is the way to go. Hot air rises by its very nature, so there may well be a slight cooling advantage in doing so too. In an entirely unscientific way, it certainly 'looks' better, in my opinion.

Great Video Richard.

At exactly 10 minutes mark on that, there is an asterisk that says Gears 5 also uses RDNA 2 features like VRS.

First title after Gears Tactics? I wonder if this is Tier 1 or 2

 

[BRiT]

Xbox Series X: Auto HDR Mode Tested - What Works and What Doesn't

Back-compat support is a huge boon to Series X at launch - allowing us to revisit games going all the way back to the original Xbox. Auto HDR is a new mode on Series S and X that lets us enhance classic games - from Panzer Dragoon Orta, to Arkham Knight - that never received a true HDR option from the developers. How does it fare in practise? And does it always work across a wide spread of titles?​

 

[steveOrino]

Its like they are just trying to check off a feature box just for the sake of it. Why not let the user tweak the hdr profiles themselves so it's actually usable among more titles rather than edge cases.

 

[BRiT]

You want a company to let the end users tweak MachineLearning algorithms?

 

[London Geezer]

You want a company to let the end users tweak MachineLearning algorithms?

What if the user is a machine? That counts, no?

 

[BRiT]

What if the user is a machine? That counts, no?

Just because a User is a Tool does not mean they're a machine.

 

[Pete]

I think Eurogamer / DF might be getting their PS5(s) on Friday. The EG XSX backwards compat stream mentioned something special on Friday, and John (in the DF stream for Golden Axed that was published 8hrs ago) said he (or “we,” I forget) didn’t have one yet.

Not that we’d get DF content day of, but maybe we’ll see something next week?

If unpatched BC titles for both systems run at the orignal resolution and framerate cap, does that mean PS5 has a slight edge in unoptimized BC titles in that most of them at least hit 1080p on PS4? Should make AC Unity an interesting initial point of comparison.

 

[BRiT]

The DF written article is now up @ https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/...-series-x-auto-hdr-what-works-and-what-doesnt

Xbox Series X Auto HDR tested - what works and what doesn't?
From OG Xbox to Xbox One, does retrofitted HDR improve your classic games?

One of the greatest strengths of Xbox Series S and X is its backwards compatibility. Revisiting old classics, from the original 2001 Xbox, 360 and the Xbox One - Microsoft has maintained a through line across its console legacy. Not only are legacy titles playable, they're enhanced too with higher resolutions, smoother frame-rates, clearer texture filtering and faster load times. Auto HDR is the latest enhancement, drawing on a machine learning algorithm to add HDR to the majority of its back-compat titles on all Xbox systems. The question is - how good is it? Can it really compare to a native HDR implementation?

When well implemented, high dynamic range can transform the look of a game. Genuine HDR is not a given for new releases, even today. For the likes of Hellblade, Final Fantasy 15 or Sekiro, the effect elevates the image and heightens the realism of their lighting. Supporting displays with a high enough peak brightness - ideally 600 nits or more - bring out details that would normally be hidden in standard dynamic range. The sun's outline in Sekiro becomes more defined against a cloudy sky; Hellblade's overcast greys come out clearly with subtler gradients. Meanwhile dark detail pops out in caves or long grass. Fire takes on a more believable peak brightness in Resident Evil 3, while for racing games like Dirt 5, headlamps hit a realistic peak brightness on night-time tracks. Put simply: HDR lets us see a wider contrast of tones in bright and dark detail - plus a wider spectrum of colour in-between.

But what of the games that don't have HDR support? That's where Auto HDR steps in and while results vary, it hits more than it misses. Batman: Arkham Knight is an interesting example in that Auto HDR is pretty much the best enhancement back-compat adds to the game. It still renders at the same 1440x1080 resolution as the original Xbox One release and performance improvements can only see it run at a capped 30fps. You get more consistent frame-rates than the original Xbox One release, but One X effectively sorted its overall performance profile. For Series X enhancements, Auto HDR is the biggest boost you'll get beyond that.

...

 

[Strange]

What if the user is a machine? That counts, no?

Technically we're just really complicated organic machines, so.