News & Rumors: Xbox One (codename Durango)

[Cyan]

Eurogamer have an article reminding people that any Xbox account credit received during the Microsoft Points switchover expires at the end of the month.

Buy something. Buy ANYTHING! Actually, just buy the Witcher 3 because it has Gryphons and vampire and unicorns

I got a message the other day, I still have 0,48€ left (yes, 0,48€ that is). I want to buy something but I don't have enough to retire either.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

I know part of the reason they sold WMC on 8 was to cover fees that they did not want to roll into the OS cost that time around. The previous OS they had to cover the licensing costs for each copy sold regardless if WMC was ever used. I don't remember if it was DRM or DVD related anymore (or both). Another thing we could be looking at is the newer standards for streaming content vs cable, and X1 is already at that newer standard, see the Rigby thread on Gaf for example.

Would WiFi Direct be up to the task for streaming games from X1 to a special X1 dongle (maybe Nano)? I have never had good luck trying such things, quality is always much worse on top of lag in the stream. Wired is the only way I see things working in my house for the time being.

Anything that can play a DVD generally has to pay a licensing fee. However, many software DVD players get around this by not including the codec required to play DVDs. This was similar to MP3 encoding before there was an open source MP3 decoder that didn't use any code from the Fraunhofer encoder. I believe a similar situation exists with regards to BluRay content.

Hence, there was a time when DVD playback and encoding to MP3 wasn't possible in Windows without you getting the codecs yourself. Eventually MS included support for DVD by paying the licensing fees.

Regards,
SB

 

[Deleted member 11852]

Anything that can play a DVD generally has to pay a licensing fee. However, many software DVD players get around this by not including the codec required to play DVDs. This was similar to MP3 encoding before there was an open source MP3 decoder that didn't use any code from the Fraunhofer encoder. I believe a similar situation exists with regards to BluRay content.

The PS4 doesn't, or didn't at launch, have DVD/Blu-ray movie software pre-installed. The functionality is there but the software only downloaded when you first use it. I assumed this was for licensing payment reasons. I'm curious what these licenses cost.

 

[RancidLunchmeat]

The PS4 doesn't, or didn't at launch, have DVD/Blu-ray movie software pre-installed. The functionality is there but the software only downloaded when you first use it. I assumed this was for licensing payment reasons. I'm curious what these licenses cost.

If I remember correctly, neither does the Xb1. I'm pretty sure I had to download the BluRay app. It makes sense, there's no reason to pay that license if nobody is using that feature set. Although, in my case, I'm pretty sure I had to download the BluRay app and I'm also pretty sure I've never watched a Blu-Ray movie on my Xb1.

 

[Cyan]

If I remember correctly, neither does the Xb1. I'm pretty sure I had to download the BluRay app. It makes sense, there's no reason to pay that license if nobody is using that feature set. Although, in my case, I'm pretty sure I had to download the BluRay app and I'm also pretty sure I've never watched a Blu-Ray movie on my Xb1.

I've watched a couple of Blu-ray movies on the XO but yes, I had to download the Blu-ray player app before, too.

 

[dobwal]

The PS4 doesn't, or didn't at launch, have DVD/Blu-ray movie software pre-installed. The functionality is there but the software only downloaded when you first use it. I assumed this was for licensing payment reasons. I'm curious what these licenses cost.

Yeah, the licensing fees are tied to the app not the hardware. MPEG-2 was $2 a pop in 2012 and I am not sure with Dolby Digital costs (should be cheaper than MPEG-2) but back in 2011 Dolby collected $124 million in licensing fees from MS. So its not chump change.

 

[Deleted member 11852]

Ouch.

 

[Cyan]

Casey Hudson has joined Microsoft as Creative Director at Microsoft Studios. He is going to work on Hololens. Casey Hudson was the person in charge and the creative director of the Knights of the Old Republic and the Mass Effect trilogy.

http://news.xbox.com/2015/05/xbox-c...oft-as-creative-director-at-microsoft-studios

 

[Deleted member 11852]

Ars Technica are reporting that the XBL Rewards programme will be giving actual stuff. Thats right! Stuff! that you can hold, or throw at a loved one or mortal enemy!

Among the first batch of prizes are action figures, books, posters, Blu-ray movies and Xbox controllers - some signed. Not bad at all!

 

[Cyan]

Yeah they have a long, long way to go before they win back PC gamers trust. I think he may be underestimating just how far. At this point I think nothing short of a fully intergrated gaming interface built into W10 that is directly comparable to that of the XBO plus the release of several high profile xbox exclusives (say the masterchief collection and something similar for Gears or War) will cut it.

You are a bit too exigent and nitpicky, aren't you? imo. They could add a beautiful wench fanning you to the pack. And even then you wouldn't be happy, I guess.

Ars Technica are reporting that the XBL Rewards programme will be giving actual stuff. Thats right! Stuff! that you can hold, or throw at a loved one or mortal enemy!

Among the first batch of prizes are action figures, books, posters, Blu-ray movies and Xbox controllers - some signed. Not bad at all!

XBL Rewards worked well for me, for the most part. I saved like 70-100€ in games with it all these years. And purchased games "for free", one of them is Life is Strange, whose 1st episode I got with some of the rewards I earned. Life is Strange is one of my favourite games of this generation.

If you've signed up for the XBL Rewards thing you will receive monthly emails telling you how much you've earned. The more games you buy the more points you earn -points are then transformed to your local coin-, you also get points for rewards with achievements and if you play a free Games with Gold game for more than 10 hours during the month said game was launched with a GwG promotion.

It helps, but it's not much.

 

[FarticusMaximus]

I love it when I go to buy a game with MS points, expecting to have to top off the purchase with cash but find that I've accumulated a bunch of reward credit and don't need to spend any extra.

Hopefully you get to choose what type of rewards you get. I can see the appeal of free physical collectables, but I don't think I'd want physical stuff from XBL rewards. It's a digital service. I want digital stuff from it.

 

[BRiT]

Xbl rewards used to be great but then after 1 year they completely switched what you had to do to earn points and the categories were always for doing things i couldnt care less about, such as buying newly released to games on demand games that were 9 months to 1 year old titles I already owned on disc or titles that never interested me or buying tv shows or movies from the video store. I used to get at least $5 monthly out of the xbl rewards program if not more but then it became such that I would be amazed if I even saw $5 a year. The past 3 years of rewards has been entirely worthless.

 

[Arnold Beckenbauer]

Over-the-Air TV Tuner Available Now for Xbox One in the U.S. and Canada : http://news.xbox.com/2015/05/xbox-one-tv-tuner-general-availability

"An over-the-air TV bundle, including a Hauppauge Digital TV Tuner for Xbox One and a Mohu Leaf 50 antenna, is now available exclusively at your local Microsoft store and at microsoftstore.com for $99.99 – a $30 savings. The tuner is also available separately for $59.99 at Microsoft stores and Amazon. Before purchasing the TV tuner or over-the-air bundle, remember to visit gomohu.com/xbox to check which channels are available in your area and find the HDTV antenna that’s right for you. For more information on how to set up your tuner and antenna with Xbox One, check out Major Nelson’s how-to video or go to Xbox Support."

 

[RancidLunchmeat]

Xbl rewards used to be great but then after 1 year they completely switched what you had to do to earn points and the categories were always for doing things i couldnt care less about, such as buying newly released to games on demand games that were 9 months to 1 year old titles I already owned on disc or titles that never interested me or buying tv shows or movies from the video store. I used to get at least $5 monthly out of the xbl rewards program if not more but then it became such that I would be amazed if I even saw $5 a year. The past 3 years of rewards has been entirely worthless.

Pretty much agreed. The only reason I have any significant (usable) amount of points at all is from the Xb1 referral program they were offering, I think both parties got $20 worth of rewards points. I get rewards points for filling out surveys and for buying digital games, but I never buy the digital games to get bonus points either because they're usually completely worthless. So I'm a 1 star VIP which means I get 2% back, which combined with the points from doing the surveys means I essentially will never hit the 5,000 point threshold to get the points deposited into my account for use.

It's nice when it coincides with something I was going to do anyway, but it is certainly not going to drive my purchasing decisions. It's just not enough of an incentive.

 

[AzBat]

Over-the-Air TV Tuner Available Now for Xbox One in the U.S. and Canada : http://news.xbox.com/2015/05/xbox-one-tv-tuner-general-availability

"An over-the-air TV bundle, including a Hauppauge Digital TV Tuner for Xbox One and a Mohu Leaf 50 antenna, is now available exclusively at your local Microsoft store and at microsoftstore.com for $99.99 – a $30 savings. The tuner is also available separately for $59.99 at Microsoft stores and Amazon. Before purchasing the TV tuner or over-the-air bundle, remember to visit gomohu.com/xbox to check which channels are available in your area and find the HDTV antenna that’s right for you. For more information on how to set up your tuner and antenna with Xbox One, check out Major Nelson’s how-to video or go to Xbox Support."

Yippee! The question I have now is what's the difference between the $60 official tuner & the $80 Hauppauge WinTV-955Q ? What $20 worth of stuff was removed? Is the hardware the same & there's no PC software?

Tommy McClain

 

[AzBat]

The white Xbox One is coming back...

http://news.xbox.com/2015/05/xbox-one-special-edition-halo-mcc-bundle

How many Halo fans are still out there that don't have the console? Guess we'll find out next month.

Tommy McClain

 

[fehu]

With the win10/DX12 fall update do we know if microsoft will keep the 3 os or will go for only one?

 

[BRiT]

With the win10/DX12 fall update do we know if microsoft will keep the 3 os or will go for only one?

They can not switch if they want already released games to work the same way. Also, there is no reason for thrm to rework their 3 layers. They will always have the 3 separate layers. Those layers can be running the same base tiny core os, but their purposes are different.

 

[RancidLunchmeat]

The white Xbox One is coming back...

How many Halo fans are still out there that don't have the console? Guess we'll find out next month.

Tommy McClain

Twelve. But there are lots of people that like buying things in different colors for some reason (remember the fuss over the red Wii?), and right now your only choice is black Xb1 with MCC for $349 or white Xb1 with MCC for $349. I think the AC bundles are all finished except for the $499 ones w/ Kinect.

So if you want an Xb1 at all, might as well buy a white one and be different!

 

[Cyan]

Xbox One will taste and get Windows 10 after the summer.

http://www.slashgear.com/windows-10-headed-to-xbox-one-after-the-summer-21384669/