Xbox Series S

Product Information

Unless you're on a particularly strict budget, it's hard to recommend the Xbox One S in 2023 when the Xbox Series S is at a relatively affordable price already. In addition, since Microsoft discontinued production of the last-gen machine two years ago, the Xbox Series S has become easier to find and is in much better supply compared to the Xbox One S. Are Xbox Series S and Xbox One S the same? Coming from the Xbox One Controller, you'd be forgiven for thinking that the Xbox Wireless Controller for Series X/S isn't that different. However, it's now more comfortable and easier to use than ever before, due to subtle changes in the controller's ergonomics.

Up to 120 FPS: Requires supported content and display. Use on Xbox Series S as content becomes available. It's worth noting that the Xbox Series S can render some games in native 4K if a developer chooses to enable that option. Just be aware it's done on a game-by-game basis, and isn't something you’re going to see on every game on the system. Smyths Toys UK Limited acts as a credit intermediary and not a lender. Smyths Toys UK Limited offers credit products provided exclusively by Klarna Bank AB (publ). The Xbox One S only has one real advantage over Microsoft’s newer model: the 4K HD Blu-Ray drive. If you’re looking for a cheap 4K Blu-Ray player that also allows you to stream Netflix and play games, the One S is a great choice.The UI that greets you when you’ve finished setting up the Xbox Series S will be instantly familiar to anyone who's used an Xbox One in the last three months. The 'new' Xbox Dashboard rolled out in August 2020, and is the same across both Xbox Series X and S and the older hardware. It isn’t the most intuitive of interfaces, though. If you’re used to the dashboard UI of the old One S or One X, you’ll find no surprises with the Series S, as it’s now the same across all of Microsoft’s consoles. Where it differs, though, is in the performance. The combination of the faster CPU, high-speed RAM, an SSD and the whole Velocity Architecture makes the Series S feel significantly faster. The number of games that can be suspended varies – we had as many as eight in rotation at one point – and it won't work with every title, especially those with ever-changing online worlds, like Sea of Thieves. It's a handy, time-saving feature that's only possible thanks to the console's SSD, and game states are preserved even if the console is completely powered down.

The end result is a noticeable boost in image clarity and anti-aliasing (the removal of jaggies and pixelated edges) and means that gamers who aren't using a 4K or 1440p -capable screen will still benefit from improved image quality from the Xbox Series S. There's a lot of information on display at once, and it's fair to say there's a small learning curve when it comes to figuring out how to navigate the UI effectively. The downside to the new consoles having the same user interface as the One series is that the Xbox Series S doesn't feel any different right away. It doesn't feel that new, even if navigating the dashboard feels snappier than before thanks to the extra power underneath the hood. Even if you don't choose an Xbox Series S, you’ll be able to play almost every new game on Microsoft’s older console. For now, anyway. They won’t run as well or look quite as good, but you won’t be forced to upgrade to experience key titles that are coming to Xbox Series X/S. However, between Fable, Starfield, Redfall, Perfect Dark, and Avowed, there's a growing list of upcoming new-gen exclusives. The Xbox Series S is equipped with AMD’s Zen 2 and RDNA 2 architectures, DirectX ray tracing delivers true-to-life lighting, shadows and accurate reflections to create dynamic, living worlds. Your games not only look better and play better, they also sound better! With the next evolution in audio technology, 3D Spatial Sound creates immersive audio experiences for your games. Can I play Previous Xbox Games on Xbox Series S?

Xbox Series S Console

If you are fortunate enough to have a display that's compliant with HDMI 2.1, you can enable 120fps at 1440p without having to drop down to 1080p resolution. To enable 120fps, simply pop into the console's audio and visual settings, where you can choose from various frame rate and resolution options. While the hardware powering the Xbox Series S is brand-new, the Xbox Series S design is reminiscent of the now-discontinued Xbox One S All-Digital Edition. Its GPU, while not as powerful as the one in the Xbox Series X, can upscale games to 4K (in a similar way to the Xbox One S) and still run games at 120fps at 1440p, but you'll need a HDMI 2.1-compliant TV if you want to keep the resolution at 1440p. It's also capable of ray tracing, and loads games faster than ever, thanks to Microsoft's Xbox Velocity Architecture. Use with digital games only; console does not play physical discs. Use on Xbox Series S as content becomes available. 120 FPS: Requires supported content and display; use on Xbox Series S as content becomes available. 4K streaming: with selected apps, see Xbox.com. Some apps require app provider-specific subscriptions and/or other requirements. Xbox Game Pass: Game catalogue varies over time. Visit Xbox Game Pass for details. Halo Infinite: coming soon. It's important to note that while the Xbox Series S only outputs at 1440p resolution when you're gaming, the console is capable of displaying streaming apps in 4K HDR. That means the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus and Apple TV Plus will output in 4K if you're using a compatible display.

You can enjoy all of this with the Series S, and there’s a real feeling that this is how the console was always intended to be used. After all, with no disc drive, Xbox Game Pass and the Microsoft Store are your only sources of new games. But here there’s just one problem, and it’s the Series S’s biggest: the amount of onboard storage is just tiny. Smyths Toys UK Limited acts as a credit intermediary and not a lender. Smyths Toys UK Limited offers credit products provided exclusively by Klarna Bank AB (publ). Terms and conditions apply. Subject to status. Only available to UK residents 18 or over. More third-party and first-party exclusives have since arrived like The Medium and Microsoft Flight Simulator, but Microsoft's first-party output is slowly catching up. Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5, Psychonauts 2, Grounded, and As Dusk Falls are all now available. The Xbox One S might look similar, then, but it's technologically inferior to the Xbox Series S. It's a great option if you want to play Xbox exclusives that you missed out on like Gears 5 or Forza Horizon 4, or simply want to give Xbox Game Pass a whirl, but if you're after a more futureproofed console, you'll want the Xbox Series S. New application with Klarna, including credit assessment, contract, terms and pricing apply. See Klarna Credit Agreement for terms and conditions.While the kit is obviously an extra expense that may irk some, there's an element of flexibility at least – and you're also not at the mercy of a lithium-ion cell battery, which can degrade over time, and which is more costly to replace should anything go awry.