Xbox one revealed, next-gen console from Microsoft

On 21 May 2013, Don Mattrick, President of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft, took to the stage at the Microsoft campus to introduce the Xbox One, which he touted as the “the ultimate, all-in-one entertainment system.”

The only hint at when the Xbox One might launch was given as “later this year.”

Xbox One unveiled

Yusuf Mehdi, senior vice president of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business, took to the stage to present the Xbox One as more than a mere gaming console, but a full home entertainment solution, for controlling your TV, listening to music, browsing the Internet, and of course, playing games.

There will be a voice activated login system, with Mehdi demonstrating how simply saying “Xbox on” powers up the device. Mehdi then used voice commands to seamlessly switch between TV, Internet, and the Xbox dashboard.

The new Xbox One dashboard seen during the presentation is a tidier version of the current Xbox 360 dash, with tiles and categories laid out horizontally – reminiscent of Windows 8’s Metro UI.

Under the hood

Marc Whitten, Corporate Vice President of Xbox LIVE at Microsoft, took to the stage to discuss the hardware and software powering the Xbox One.

Xbox One system software architecture involves three operating systems in one. The game creation system will open up the power of the console to developers. The kernel of Windows will run other software, such as web applications and apps, and the third system connects the two to enable switching between gaming and other entertainment operations.

Under the hood is 8GB RAM, 500GB HDD, 8-core CPU on 64-bit system architecture, an assortment of power states, USB 3.0, Wi-Fi Direct, HDMI in/out ports, and a Blu-ray drive. Interestingly, Whitten claims that silent operation is a feature of the Xbox One.

The next-gen Kinect device is discussed, with Whitten saying each Xbox One is to be paired with a Kinect. It features a 1080p sensor and voice recognition which can detect individual users. The Kinect camera has been improved, recognising more body joints, better identifying limb movement and wrist rotation, and apparently, interpret the energy put into a motion.

The new Xbox controller is briefly discussed, with a core revelation being a redesigned D-pad, which is one of the oft-maligned designs elements of the Xbox 360 controller. The new Kinect will be able to identify the player and their controller when they pick it up

The Smartglass tablet PC app is also discussed, and is now very much integral to the platform, with users being able to control their console from the app.

Xbox One is shown during a press event unveiling by Microsoft in Redmond – click to enlarge

Xbox Live

The Xbox One will use the same Xbox Live subscription service as it currently exists. Whitten said that Microsoft is boosting their Xbox Live server count to 300,000 from its current 15,000.

The now omnipresent “cloud” will be used to store saves and captured game footage.

The Xbox One is capable of multi-tasking, so users can search for online games in the background while they browse the web.

More details around Xbox One and the future of Xbox 360 will be revealed at E3 2013 in June.