State of XBOne September 2014

Technology Grade 4

With the surprise September update released at the end of August, a lot of questions and concerns that plagued the XBOne at launch have either been answered, addressed or in the process of being addressed. The one thing that can be said about Microsoft is that they are listening to their consumers and are addressing issues consistently and quickly.

3D movie playback – check, media playback from external hard drives – check, better access to connecting and sharing with friends – check, booting directly to TV mode option – check, etc, etc. Microsoft has settled into an average monthly update cycle for their console which has led to a device that is slowly becoming a multimedia power house. My synopsis on what Microsoft is attempting to do is that they want to be the hub of entertainment in the home. It doesn't matter what you want to do from an entertainment point of view, the XBOne can have you covered. What also helps is the adjustment of the pay wall under Xbox Live allowing for apps like Netflix and Amazon instant video to be used without a live account.

The XBOne might not be the most popular choice in consoles right now but Microsoft continues to give gamers and consumers alike, more reasons why they should pick the XBOne. The number and caliber of games available for the XBOne continue to grow and this will keep gamers interested.  To follow up on my XBOnefollow up post, Microsoft is slowly fleshing out its console. They started with a skeleton when the XBOne was released almost a year ago and they have slowly fleshed it out so next is for Microsoft to muscle up its console with even more features and options that consumers are looking for.

The real question here is “What feature do you want to see on the XBOne?” Think about it, ask about it and make it know because you can never say who else wants that feature as well and Microsoft seems to be listening. With that being said, when am I going to get my multi-sized snap window for the TV app? That’s what I’m waiting for. Anyone else looking for this feature?