It’s been a few years since the Xbox Series X and Series S launch, and while the console hasn’t broken sales records, there are a respectable number of them in the wild. It’s about time for a refresh, and Microsoft is delivering new all-digital versions of its consoles (say goodbye to the optical drive). They launch on October 15, but you can preorder them right now.
Whether you should is another question entirely. Microsoft has been pretty open about the fact that the company envisions a future where “every screen is an Xbox.” PC gaming on Windows—whether on gaming laptops or handhelds—is just as important to the company as the living room console. You can even stream Xbox games through a Fire TV stick now. Still, there are plenty of reasons to buy an Xbox Series X/S. It’s the most convenient way to set up a Microsoft-centric gaming system to play from your couch. So, if you’re interested, here’s how to buy one.
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What’s Different About the New Xbox Consoles?
Similar to the recent PS5 Slim, there’s not much of a difference in this mid-cycle refresh of the Xbox; both the Series X and Series S have largely the same hardware under the hood.
But there are a couple of small changes. The Xbox Series X loses the disc drive and gets a white coat of paint. As an unapologetic Xbox Series S-owner, I like the white look more, so it’s nice to see it available on the more powerful hardware. This “all-digital” Xbox Series X starts at $450, about $50 less than its predecessor, a decent trade-off if you never bought physical copies of Xbox games.
The smaller Xbox Series S never had a disc drive, so there’s no drive to eliminate. Instead, for this refresh, Microsoft doubled the storage from 512 GB to 1 terabyte. The price has also gone up by $50 to $350. Given how huge AAA games can get, this seems like a no-brainer, though it’s worth noting that you can easily increase the storage of the current Xbox Series X or Series S with an expansion card.
Finally, Microsoft is releasing a special, limited-edition version of the original Xbox Series X (which has a disc drive) with a unique “Galaxy Black” paint job. This one has a space-like pattern of white and green dots with a generous 2 TB of storage. This model costs $600 and ships when the other upgraded consoles drop in mid-October.
Alongside these new consoles, Microsoft is testing a replacement for the Xbox Game Pass for Console tier of its subscription service. The new tier, called Xbox Game Pass Standard, includes the same library of console games as well as online console multiplayer service. The catch is you won’t get access to day-one releases. You’ll have to wait a little while to play certain games. Xbox Insiders can try out the new tier for $1 per month during the trial period, but it will be $15 per month when it officially launches. Microsoft is set to raise the price of Game Pass Ultimate from $17 to $20 per month starting in September.
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