Xbox Series S: Everything you need to know

Xbox Series S Vertical Source: Microsoft

The Xbox Series Ten is set to be the world'south near powerful console, launching on November 10. Microsoft is also fix to launch an arguably even more than exciting console on the same day, dubbed the Xbox Series Due south.

What makes the Xbox Serial S exciting is its cost, which comes in at $299, making it cheaper than a Nintendo Switch in some markets. At this price, you become side by side-gen features such as gaming up to 120 FPS, aiming at 1080p to 1440p resolution, taking advantage of the fact many millions of people still oasis't upgraded to a 4K Tv set.

We've been writing about the Xbox Serial S, formerly known as Lockhart, for several months across tons of leaks and snippets of data. With the console finally outed as real, here's everything you need to know so far.

Leading 4K

Xbox Series X

Xbox Series Ten

The full side by side-generation experience.

Xbox Series Ten is Microsoft'south new flagship, as its most powerful console with over 12TF GPU performance and a custom SSD. It boasts upwardly to 4K resolution and 120 FPS, total backward compatibility across four generations, and ray-tracing support.

Next-gen in Hard disk

Xbox Series S

Feel side by side-gen gaming for less.

Microsoft serves the next-generation for less with its budget-friendly Xbox Series S. The panel packs the aforementioned loftier-performance CPU and SSD engineering every bit Xbox Series X, while scaling dorsum the GPU and removing the disc drive.

How powerful is Xbox Series South Lockhart?

Final year we noted that Lockhart would be around 4TF, which sounds far smaller than the 12TF on the Xbox Series Ten or even the 6TF of the Xbox One X. However, Lockhart volition boast a mod NVME SSD to match the Series X on load times and leverage Xbox Velocity Architecture, while as well boasting a far more than powerful CPU than that of the Xbox One X. The switch to the new "RDNA" architecture likewise provides improved per-teraflop returns over the "GCN" architecture used by the Xbox One X GPU, making information technology far from a 1:i comparison.

The SSD alone will make information technology a far more pleasant feel than the current-gen consoles, letting you fast resume multiple games, reducing loading speeds down to mere seconds or less. It will as well support ray tracing lighting and shadows, which is truly absurd given its $299 price point. This is the cheapest entry betoken to real adjacent-gen gaming.

Marketing materials we saw last year positioned Lockhart as an entry-level next-gen console, designed for those on a tighter upkeep, or parents who want their kids to be able to experience the latest games, but not necessarily at 4K resolution. Indeed, Microsoft's electric current marketing suggests that Lockhart will primarily be a 1080p machine, up to 1440p, far more capable than the current-gen Xbox 1 Southward on QHDTVs and monitors, which are far more than likely to exist nowadays amongst coincidental gamers, as well equally students' or children's bedrooms.

The exact spec sheet isn't known at this fourth dimension, but hither'southward how the Xbox Serial S vs. Xbox Series X stacks upwards based on our current information.

Category	Xbox Serial X	Xbox Series S
Processor	8x Cores @ 3.eight GHz (3.six GHz west/ SMT) Custom Zen two CPU	8x Cores @ three.half-dozen GHz (three.4 GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
Graphics	12.15 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @ ane.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU	4 TFLOPS, xx CUs @ one.565 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
Retention	xvi GB GDDR6	10 GB GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth	10 GB @ 560 GB/s, 6GB @ 336 GB/southward	8 GB @ 224 GB/south, 2GB @ 56 GB/s
Internal Storage	1 TB Custom NVME SSD	512 GB Custom NVME SSD
I/O Throughput	2.4 GB/south uncompressed, 4.8 GB/due south compressed	2.4 GB/s uncompressed, 4.8 GB/southward compressed
Expandable Storage	one TB Expansion Card (matches internal storage exactly)	one TB Expansion Menu (matches internal storage exactly)
External Storage	USB 3.2 External HDD Support	USB 3.2 External HDD Support
Optical Drive	4K UHD Blu-Ray Drive	None, digital-merely
Operation Target	4K @ 60 FPS, up to 120 FPS	1440p @ 60 FPS, up to 120 FPS
Color	Matte Black	Robot White, Black
Size	301mm x 151mm ten 151mm	Unknown
Toll	$499, £449, €499	$299, £249, €299
Release appointment	November 10, 2022	November 10, 2022

Xbox Series S blueprint, ports, and features

Xbox Series S And X Together Source: @_h0x0d_

The Xbox Series S is actually the smallest Xbox console always made, able to easily fit into a backpack, or squeeze inside its bigger Xbox Series X bigger brother. It'southward roughly sixty per cent smaller in volume, even smaller than Xbox 1 10.

We were also told by multiple sources that Lockhart looks similar to the Xbox One S, lacking a disc bulldoze, similar to the "All-Digital" edition, which has now turned out to be authentic. It will also sport the same SSD expansion port we've seen on the Xbox Series X, used with a defended Seagate-branded retentiveness card. Information technology sports a similar "Robot White" coloration to the Xbox One Due south, perchance to bring it in-line with that family of devices. The fundamental differentiator is the industrial-looking black fan grill, which gives information technology a very stark contrasting profile to previous-gen consoles.

Similar the Xbox Series X, the Xbox Series S will work with your best Xbox 1 headset, and all of your favorite current Xbox One accessories, including controllers. It volition likewise run every single Xbox One game (except Kinect titles), giving it the largest generational launch lineup in console history.

Xbox Series S, Series X, and GameCore

Xbox Series S Internals Source: Microsoft

Lots of armchair devs on net forums claim to be "worried" that the Xbox Series S will "concord back" game development on the Xbox Series 10, as developers build games for the lowest common denominator. This doesn't happen on PC, and nor will information technology happen on Xbox Series consoles. Game developers have been targeting vastly dissimilar hardware profiles for literally decades, and the tools for porting games and optimizing games for divide hardware levels take just got ameliorate as time has passed.

GameCore will bring PC and Xbox development closer together than always before.

Developers are able to target Xbox Series S through beta versions of GameCore, which is a new evolution environs gear up to supercede Xbox I'due south ERA arrangement in the coming years. Infosec engineer TitleOS previously revealed the June GDK documents recently, which mentioned both the Lockhart and Anaconda (Xbox Series 10) profile modes.

GameCore will bring PC and Xbox development closer together than always earlier, while also assuasive developers to more easily target different Xbox hardware profiles with every bit minimal code changes as possible. Some upcoming Xbox Series 10 titles will be amidst the showtime to employ GameCore in its early on form, every bit Microsoft refines and improves the organization for general availability.

GameCore will form a large part of how much more than hands it will exist for developers to seamlessly strip out different features in social club to meet the specific needs of both the Xbox Series Ten and Series S. A proficient example showing how hands developers can tone down a game's visuals to friction match hardware levels can be constitute in Gears Tactics, whose graphics settings showcase in real-time how sliding different graphical features up and downwardly tin help or impede performance.

Xbox Series Southward launch date, price, and preorders

Xbox Series X Game Awards Source: Microsoft

Microsoft has unveiled the Xbox Series S launch price to be $299, or at £249 in the UK, making it cheaper than the Nintendo Switch in some markets. Information technology will launch on November x, 2022, alongside the Xbox Series X. We've heard this will be a global simultaneous launch, moving far beyond the limited launch of the 2022 Xbox One. Every current supported Xbox market beyond the world should become the Xbox Serial South and Serial Ten day and date, on Nov 10.

Additionally, you'll be able to spread the price of the Xbox Serial South over 24-months using Xbox All Access, at $25 per calendar month on a two-year contract, which besides includes Xbox Game Laissez passer Ultimate, giving you hundreds of games right out of the box.

Every bit for Xbox Series 10 and Series S preorders, they'll open on September 22, 2022 for both consoles, alee of the Nov 10, 2022 launch.

Related: Xbox Series X, Serial South preorder stock checker

Counting downwards

With the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 set to be on the higher-finish in terms of cost, the Xbox Series S could exist a peculiarly compelling selection for specific audiences who desire to join in on the side by side-gen fun without breaking the bank. Peculiarly given the state of the economic system in 2022.

What do yous recall of the Xbox Series S? Let us know in the comments.

Xbox Series X/S

Main

Xbox Serial X: Everything we know
Best games coming to Xbox Serial Ten/S
List of Xbox Serial X specs
What is the Xbox Series X release appointment?
How much does Xbox Serial X cost?
Why you can't preorder Xbox Serial 10 yet
All-time Xbox Series 10 Headsets

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