Microsoft defends 'boxy' look of Xbox One

*Yawn....

The boxy appearance should be the least of Microsoft's X-Box worries.....

They are once again attempting to ignore the real issues by dealing with the minor ones. They are hoping when they show off their game library at E3 people won't care about its looks and the many multitude of drawbacks that devalue this console.

Hopefully come E3 they discover that consumers are not morons and will not sink dollars into this contraption: but sadly I fear there may be more morons than intelligent consumers in this regard. The one benefit to this tho, is that this unit clearly caters to US citizens over any other county, making this a hard unit to sell globally for MS. That will give Sony and Nintendo both a leading edge in the fight at E3.

I also find it funny how they want to advertise the XboxOne as flat and simple. Fun was not in their description. And what do I care for a glossy look on the XboxOne for? It's not like I going to watch how it reflects images off my TV back to me, I going to be watching the freaking TV. (Note in 1-3 years there will likely be the XboxOne Slim version designed to look like a shoe box)

yawn indeed

Needs:

Backwards compatibility (i didn't spend 1,000 of dollars on xbox 360 stuff to have it be worthless)

Upgradable hard drive (wow ps4 will allow upgradable hard drive why not microsoft)

no kinect (i beta tested the first one not impressed so a new one go $#$%$ a tree microsoft)

It's the inability to play USED or RENTED or XBox 360 discs that will send this right to the crapper.

Screw the public and they will screw you right back by boycotting

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Backwards compatibility (i didn't spend 1,000 of dollars on xbox 360 stuff to have it be worthless)

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People whining for this, simply must stop and get over it: there is seriously nothing that can be done given the architectural changes in this unit. PS4 isn't doing it either for the same reason. I get why people want it, but in the end it's going to be better for gaming that these units are build around PC architecture to make it easier for developers to make cross-platform games. Also you are not alone spending +$1000's, but that doesn't make your 360 worthless. You decide whether or not you throw away the console and stop using its software, not Microsoft.

Myself I will keep my 360s, and its library likely will end up in my son's room while my current living room setup gets replaced by next gen.

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Upgradable hard drive (wow ps4 will allow upgradable hard drive why not microsoft)

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Now this I completely agree on: not sure why MS would make it so you couldn't, I suppose they hope it will stop people from hacking it. (It might work for a while anyways).

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no kinect (i beta tested the first one not impressed so a new one go $#$%$ a tree microsoft)

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Although I don't care if they want to include Kinect with the unit, I definitely agree it doesn't need to be Always-On or Always-plugged in. This is in my top 3 reasons to not buy an XboxOne next gen: even if by chance they managed to emulate a way to get 360 games to work, I wouldn't bother with this unit solely for this reason.

Originally posted by Mysttic:

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Backwards compatibility (i didn't spend 1,000 of dollars on xbox 360 stuff to have it be worthless)

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People whining for this, simply must stop and get over it: there is seriously nothing that can be done given the architectural changes in this unit. PS4 isn't doing it either for the same reason. I get why people want it, but in the end it's going to be better for gaming that these units are build around PC architecture to make it easier for developers to make cross-platform games. Also you are not alone spending +$1000's, but that doesn't make your 360 worthless. You decide whether or not you throw away the console and stop using its software, not Microsoft.

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Couldn't have said this better myself. IDK why everyone gets in a hissy over backward compatibility. No console before the PS2 offered it and now all of a sudden it needs to be the standard?

I still have an NES, N64, PS2, Xbox, etc. all sitting around. If I have the desire to play one of those games, I just hook up the console!

As for Kinect, it's kind of like the Wiimote: you need to implement that functionality to be available for all games, or else it's a wasted add-on gimmick. Smartly developed games will give you the option of using it (or not.) But if you had to go buy the extra component, like with the 360, most of us don't care enough to do so.

I thought I'd read the USB 3 connection would allow any hard drive to be used for anything?
If so does it really matter about a small restriction on the internal one?

Given the original Xbox 360 started with just 20gbs & ended up with 320gb (and allowed you to use any external hard drive for music, vid & pics) I don't expect hard drive space to be much of a problem.

But once again people are talking as if they know every (invariably negative) detail when they don't.

Emulation may well mean lots 360 games are given a polish, 1080p HD treatment & ported to the new One.
Hardly all bad....& what's such a big deal about keeping your 360 anyways?

...and personally I like boxy a/v units, it makes stacking them in a crowded rack easy & convenient.

So it's being built on PC architecture. That means
that PC's are better and always have been.
Console Fan Boy are edited by ddp!!!!

Originally posted by Interestx:

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...and personally I like boxy a/v units, it makes stacking them in a crowded rack easy & convenient.

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Peoples knowledge of stacking components make me laugh. I guess you still don't understand that stacking components is the worst thing you can do for any electronic equipment because it's not distributing the heat evenly. There are air vents typically on either top, bottom or sides, and stacking them blocks those vents. I highly recommend not to that.

I think the new look of the XboxONE is horrible, why does it have to be so big... oh ya I know why, it's because they can bring out a new slim version a year or two later and say it's the next biggest thing.

I also hate the idea of having to be forced to install the game on the Hard Drive, that will just fill up space quick and installing a USB external drive is not practical. Now I have another equipment I have to worry about going bad after so many hours of use. Portable USB hard drives are not meant to be use for the amount of hours people are going to use on daily basis and will eventually go bad. I don't want to be force to install on the Hard Drive, it should be optional just like it is now on the 360. Although I do personally install onto a Hard Drive, but now they are taking that option out of my hands and it's no longer my decision to make.

Also not being able to play used or rented games, this is the biggest issue of all. It just sounds like developers are getting too greedy. What's next, we wont be able to play used or rented movies... well there go's Blockbuster and Netflix, I guess they wont be able to rent out DVDs soon.

The whole idea of the XboxONE new generation is too focus on (ALL-IN-ONE) function and is not about gaming at all anymore. Not sure why they are going this direction with new console but I don't see the benefits of this system and wish they would focus on Gaming first and not last. The people who are buying this system are gamers and not people who want to watch cable or surf the net... those shouldn't be the focus and that was the first thing they talked about in their presentations.

The design of this system looks like a VCR, Cable Box, old DVD player, Satellite Dish box, nothing like a gaming system. That's not the main focus of the problem, it's just one of the so many issues they have with this system and I'm not excited enough about this system to make a purchase.

Originally posted by Frogfart:

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So it's being built on PC architecture. That means
that PC's are better and always have been.
Console Fan Boy are edited by ddp!!!!

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And you are reading the new news about the next gen console on your PC......... are you Alanis Morissette?

Originally posted by Mysttic:

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People whining for this, simply must stop and get over it:

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We do not have to get over it. I understand why they made the changes but highly doubt the reasons they claim that it will be easier and cheaper to make games will ever reflect in the game price. In fact they are expected to go up in price for AAA titles. It may be OK for you to have two systems to manage to do the job of one but to many it is not. So you get over it and the rest of us will use it as a deciding factor to not buy the console.

Originally posted by SProdigy:

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Couldn't have said this better myself. IDK why everyone gets in a hissy over backward compatibility. No console before the PS2 offered it and now all of a sudden it needs to be the standard?

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You need to check your history as I distinctly remember playing NES and even Gameboy/Gameboy Color games on my SNES. Sure I need adapters because they were cartridges but it was done. Sega had it too which were well before the PS2.

People buy a console because in many ways they are more convenient than a PC. One of these conveniences is that when you upgrade to the latest console from a manufacturer is that it should play the games on the console that came before it at the very least.

Since these new consoles are trying to be a PC then I will just go PC.. Now with modern computers pretty much having HDMI standard along with most TVs it is easier than ever to connect a PC to your TV. I built a HTPC with higher end quad-core APU, BluRay drive, 8GB DDR3 for about $350. I figure I could add a pretty powerful gaming graphics card for about $300 and that would be enough to game most games on medium to high settings at 1080p/60FPS just like the consoles and then I do not have to worry about the console lock in and my game library would not be left in the dust if I ever want to upgrade. Well at least not for a long while as I know sometimes games go out of date.

I just cannot see having to buy or have two systems to get the game library for one company that are both still consider "in life" New games will still come out for the 360 and PS3 that may not make it to the XBOX One or PS4 so now you have to have both. I guess that is another way for Sony and MS to get more money and inflate their console sales.

Nintendo may not have all the power that the PS4 and XBOX One will have but they did do many things right. They released a console at a reasonable price, offered good features and performance, focuses on games first, and plays games from the console that came before it.

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We do not have to get over it. I understand why they made the changes but highly doubt the reasons they claim that it will be easier and cheaper to make games will ever reflect in the game price. In fact they are expected to go up in price for AAA titles. It may be OK for you to have two systems to manage to do the job of one but to many it is not. So you get over it and the rest of us will use it as a deciding factor to not buy the console.

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First: me get over it? Fair enough, if you want to let a simple thing as that cloud judgement, I am over it.

Second: You have a point about the pricing of games. Some Amazon listings show at $100 (after US Conversion) price point for games. To this I absolutely agree; since they can not include backwards compatibility, games should be cheaper develop since consoles run the same architecture now; so that should make the games sold at a cheaper MRSP, but raising it, that would kill the market between the middle-class down to the poor. I not sure if they will chance that, but they might and learn a hard lesson soon after (This also applies to Sony).

Last: Although you do NOT have to get over it, you honestly should... But you did raise a good point about gaming history and add-on adapters. So I can see nostalgia at best being a good enough reason to warrant an issue, but at the end of the day nothing you can do about will change the outcome because of how the system is made, therefor, you really SHOULD get over it. Cause they won't change the system for you, sony proved that for the PS3 when they took it away. So at the end of the day, when the majority... well at least 50-70% buy a PS4, and a few Xbox Ones because they don't care about backwards compatibility: you can pat yourself on the back for standing up for yourself and not bowing to pressure by not purchasing one, while everyone else keeps enjoying exclusive titles not on the PC or Wii-U.

Originally posted by Mysttic:

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...while everyone else keeps enjoying exclusive titles not on the PC or Wii-U.

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Thankfully I have never really been into the XBOX or PS4 exclusives all that much. Who knows, maybe once the actual details emerge instead of the bits of information and speculation I will change my mind. If I ever get one I will still wait at least a year or two and probably for revision 2 and a price drop because the projected prices of these consoles seem a bit steep.

If they are going to kill backwards compatibility for the sake of unifying the gaming systems to make things easier and cheaper for developers then they should institute a program for loyal fans of their previous systems if they play to re-release games on their new platforms. You know kind of like what Nintendo did with a heavy discount if you purchased a game on the Wii. Not everyone has multiple TVs or the space/inputs on the TV to hook up all this stuff. New console, all new controllers, plus what you may have existing is a lot of stuff to keep around ya know??

Originally posted by g_slide:

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Peoples knowledge of stacking components make me laugh. I guess you still don't understand that stacking components is the worst thing you can do for any electronic equipment because it's not distributing the heat evenly.

There are air vents typically on either top, bottom or sides, and stacking them blocks those vents.
I highly recommend not to that.

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I guess maybe you haven't quite grasped that some of us have given this some thought & know that a Sky HD box, CD/DVD or Blu-ray stand-alone doesn't actually produce much heat but can take up quite a bit of space volume.

I wasn't talking about & I didn't say I wanted to put the Xbox (or anything else for that matter) on the hottest components in my a/v rack (hello Onkyo).

Originally posted by Mysttic:

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They are once again attempting to ignore the real issues by dealing with the minor ones. They are hoping when they show off their game library at E3 people won't care about its looks and the many multitude of drawbacks that devalue this console.

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No matter how many 'vote with your wallets' posts come up, the number of parents who buy the new console because their child wants one, and the child isn't old enough, and they're not technologically-savvy enough to recognise the drawbacks, will far outweigh the number of people who manage to band together and boycott the console. It'll succeed regardless. The best I can see coming of the shortcomings of the Xbox One is either a watchdog enquiry or maybe even some sort of class action when they start disabling older titles they don't want to support (or use a terms & conditions update to forcibly make people agree to something in order to keep playing single player games), or a realisation that the console doesn't work without a proper broadband connection, and people buying a PS4 instead of, or in addition to it, if taking the console away with them is a big enough deal. This won't happen to the sort of extent that stops the One being successful (and therefore MS doing it again), it just may lose the console the top spot in the market.

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No matter how many 'vote with your wallets' posts come up, the number of parents who buy the new console because their child wants one, and the child isn't old enough, and they're not technologically-savvy enough to recognise the drawbacks, will far outweigh the number of people who manage to band together and boycott the console. It'll succeed regardless.

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You made a fair point here, however this usually worked in the past when the console had the same functions or lost only minor functions in the unit globally. The fact that MS is selling this unit outside the US at launch, but showcased XBLTV over any other function during their unveiling and even claimed it will not work in any other at launch kind of strips the value globally in half. Half the console value is their "snap" kinect feature and XBLTV, which why would I bother to care about "snap" if I can't switch fast through TV? Sure it will work with Netflix and other stuff but again its limited outside US market. It's a huge risk, and I just can't see the payoff being as great.

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Not everyone has multiple TVs or the space/inputs on the TV to hook up all this stuff. New console, all new controllers, plus what you may have existing is a lot of stuff to keep around ya know??

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Although true, that is what separates a collector from the casual or hardcore gamer. Again only you can find value in what you keep nobody else. That value should not be placed on companies to keep it existing for decades to come simply because people can't find room, or don't want to find room to keep their own consoles. Take enjoyment for the fact that you enjoyed the unit and can cash on it again later on. (This is also another factor why forbidding or restricting used game sales is bad, it's bad for collecting value).

I understand the benefits of a backwards compatible system, I have a lot of consoles being a collector myself, and alot of them because of backwards compatibility get to set nice in their box without risk of losing value because they all still work and are mint condition in their box safe in proper storage. However I still have systems that never had backward compatibility and it never bothered me in the slightest because I "accepted" the value in what I played through them, and "accepted" again that I wish to keep it whether I play them again or not. Whether or not you do or others do is solely up to you and only you; I can't stress that enough. And if lack of backwards compatibility means easier development, which will mean more games pouring out next gen cause there will be less time spent on coding 3 different versions for 1 game, than so be it: how is that not for the better?

But it's also how you said: wait a year to see how the trend goes is the smartest choice. It could still take 5+ years to get a AAA game to develop and Bethesda could still favor Xbox first over other consoles and make everyone else wait a year+ for the same game to be fixed or released. The same issues could still plague: to which that all I can say is, I hope not, otherwise the value of Sony and MS decision to change to PC architecture will be deem for naught, and may consumers be wiser for it. Considering history has shown that games announced for launch of a new system rarely release at launch: the only usual benefit to getting a console on launch is if you wish to modify it later on as the first firmware out on a console is usually the easiest to crack.

I think the 'not enough room to plug them all in at once' viewpoint, though it still has some merit, is less of an issue now that it's very common for TVs to have several inputs. Also bear in mind a large proportion of original 360s only had component outputs, so assuming you didn't buy lots of other recent generation video hardware, plenty of space left for its successor.

I would have thought the kinnect came as standard with the one. Considering Microsoft are bumming up that you just talk to it, it must come compete with the kinnect. Also, heard Sony will do a software update to make the PS4 backwards compatible.

Unlikely, as you would need to include the physical PS3 hardware in the PS4 for backwards compatibility to work - that would mean a different version of the console.

...Install a game first to be be playable .I hate this on PS2.