The Xbox Series X is not the future
Microsoft is the only company that has kept the pulse of game consoles on Sony over the years. At the end of 2020 they will put their new entertainment machines on the market. State-of-the-art technology at the service of players of all ages in all corners of the world. Xbox and PlayStation are to videogames what Real Madrid and Barça are to football or Apple and Samsung are to mobiles. Everyone participates. And few change teams.
The Xbox Series X is not the Xbox One X. Denominations are confusing buyers when booking and some are buying the One X by mistake. It's true that it's an older model, but it was Microsoft's 4K demonstration of power while Sony was unable to cope with such powerful resolution. Their move was to trick the eye with a 4K in HDR and let the advertising do the rest.
Rumours about the US multinational's new machine were unleashed during the months of confinement. In September, we learned that Microsoft was putting the famous double-crossing on the table. An expensive model that not everyone can afford and a cheaper one so that no one is left behind and the undecided can get on board. The X Series will have a starting price of EUR 499 and the S Series, EUR 299. The problem is not the EUR 200 difference. The great disadvantage for users is in the features offered by both. Important specifications that cry out for a model that combines the best of both.
The S Series weighs 2 kilos and is smaller than the X Series which weighs almost 5 kilos. First important difference. Sony has been the laughing stock in the midst of the rumour mill because its PlayStation 5 was ugly and huge. The user does not want big things in small houses. Things we're not going to pay attention to in the next few years are much better to be small.
The most important difference is the slot for the games that the X Series has and that the S Series has not. The cheap model is designed for a future without physical support and the expensive model has to extend the life of the last years of video games in which the "gamer" has spent an average of 60 euros. It will be the same as with the mobile earphones port. It seemed a crime to do without it and now nobody misses it. Video game CDs (actually, they are BlueRay) are in danger of extinction because the platforms already offer the title, a test and a discount in just 20 minutes. Without moving from home.
La diferencia más importante es la ranura para los juegos que tiene la Series X y que no lleva la Series S. El modelo barato esta pensado para un futuro sin soporte físico y el modelo caro tiene que alargar la vida de los últimos años de videojuegos en los que el “gamer” ha gastado una media de 60 euros. Pasará lo mismo que con el puerto de auriculares del móvil. Parecía un crimen prescindir de él y ahora nadie lo echa de menos. Los CD de videojuegos (en realidad, son BlueRay) están en peligro de extinción porque las plataformas ya ofrecen el título, una prueba y un descuento en apenas 20 minutos. Sin moverte de casa.
It is in the quality of the video that Microsoft has wanted to make a difference. Perhaps, it is the only section where you can appreciate those 200 euros. The X Series makes good the Euro 499 with real 4K and 8K in HDR, that is to say, it stretches the 4K until it becomes 8K. A little fair but enough to get to the world of high definition first. The S Series stays at a slightly poor 2K, although it announces that it will be able to rescale the games to 4K. Incidentally, the two new consoles will knock out any TV that doesn't reach 4K and that the owners of the first Full HD consoles are saving because their TVs have no future beyond DTT.
A small console without a games slot, but with the properties of the Xbox Series X is the perfect model that Microsoft has not wanted or been able to release. Clearly, the X Series is a gem for gamers. Power through every pore and a quiet fan that will prevent late-night noise arguments.
The retrocompability of games is something that had the staff worried about. What's going to happen to my library from 10 years ago until today? Microsoft has invented Smart Delivery, a code that will make each video game automatically adapt to the console on which it is run. Better performance, graphics, colours, 4K, 8K, 2K... depending on the time and model. In addition, it will improve previous games with more fluid images. The S Series will do something similar, but with the online titles in the user's library.
To all this, we add the Game Pass, a flat rate with a large number of games to a user download. Microsoft entered the world of monthly payments with its online gaming system and now does so with a historical library and with recent titles such as FIFA21 that will come to Game Pass a few months after its successful launch. It is Microsoft's weapon for not having exclusive titles as Sony has.
Microsoft is putting two almost perfect machines on the market which together would be the Holy Grail of game consoles. But they divide to win, to make money and to leave a door open to the future.
