Five years on from HD DVD's failure, the Xbox One has a Blu-ray drive. Microsoft's Xbox One will come complete with a Blu-ray drive. Games for the new console will be stored on Blu-ray discs, matching the PlayStation 4 as well as the Wii U's high-capacity proprietary media. It's not currently known what speed the Blu-ray drive runs at. The move marks an about face from Microsoft, which opted to support DVD media on the Xbox 360 while Sony's PlayStation 3 made use of Blu-ray technology. Microsoft released an HD DVD drive accessory for the Xbox 360 in 2006, but it was only ever used to play movies stored on the ill-fated format. The player was discontinued in early 2008. There's palpable irony in Microsoft's shift to Blu-ray. There may be palpable irony in Microsoft's shift to the optical media format pushed by rival Sony, but Redmond won't have had many other options on the table. While the limits of DVD as a storage medium meant the next Xbox was always due for an upgrade, it's unlikely that Microsoft will have considered going digital-only a viable path given the lagging state of broadband penetration worldwide. And, while the company could have followed Nintendo's lead and created its own optical discs, using a Blu-ray drive — with movie playback intact — should help position the Xbox One as an all-in-one box for the living room. Check out our Xbox One Live Blog for the latest updates! In this Storystream. Xbox One: Microsoft's new console, Kinect, and a big bet on TV. Next Up In Gaming. Now Trending. Command Line. Command Line delivers daily updates from the near-future. xboxone. 5 712 пользователей находятся здесь. МОДЕРАТОРЫ. Arowin Arowin MikeyJayRaymond Simple Rlight #teamchief _deffer_ deffer delicious_cheese DeliciousCheeze tobiasvl tobiasvl - #teamchief ClassyTurkey Enter Gamertag XboxCountdown XbotOne AutoModerator . и ещё 5 » Welcome to Reddit, the front page of the internet. and subscribe to one of thousands of communities. Это архивированный пост. Вы не можете голосовать или комментировать. Want to add to the discussion? помощь правила сайта центр поддержки вики реддикет mod guidelines связаться с нами. приложенияи инструменты Reddit for iPhone Reddit for Android mobile website кнопки. Использование данного сайта означает, что вы принимаете пользовательского соглашения и Политика конфиденциальности. © 2018 reddit инкорпорейтед. Все права защищены. REDDIT and the ALIEN Logo are registered trademarks of reddit inc. π Rendered by PID 72047 on app-88 at 2018-02-02 18:32:12.573336+00:00 running 1cce75d country code: RU. Set up and install the Blu-ray and DVD player app on Xbox One. To watch Blu-ray or DVD movies on your Xbox One, you first have to install the Blu-ray app. To install the app, choose one of the following options. Install from Xbox Home. Press the Xbox button to open the guide, select Home , and then scroll right and select Store . Select Search . Type Blu-ray in the search bar, press the Menu button on your controller, and then select Blu-ray Player app when it appears. Select Free or Install to download and install the Blu-ray Player app. Install by inserting a disc. Insert a Blu-ray or DVD disc into your Xbox One. Select the Blu-ray Disc app when it appears. On the Blu-ray player app details page, select Free or Install . Your disc should start playing automatically. After the app is installed, you can watch Blu-ray or DVD movies by inserting the disc into your Xbox One and selecting Blu-ray player on the Home screen, or by finding it under My Games & apps. Supported regions and formats for Blu-ray and DVD movies on Xbox One. The Blu-ray player app allows you to enjoy Blu-ray and DVD movies available in your region through your Xbox One console. Note When you insert a disc for the first time, you’ll see a prompt to install the player app. For more information, see Set up and install the Blu-ray and DVD player app. Supported regions and disc formats. Each Xbox One console is manufactured for a specific Blu-ray and DVD region, following international standards. The Xbox One console can play Blu-ray discs and DVDs that are sold in the same region as the console. See the following tables for the countries in each disc region. Some Blu-ray discs and DVDs are not region-encoded or are coded to all regions. Region-free Blu-ray discs and DVDs will play on any Xbox One console. Note Game discs for the Xbox One console are not coded to regions. Supported regions. Blu-ray discs. Find the region code represented as A, B, or C on the packaging, and verify that it matches your region. Includes most North, Central, and South American and Southeast Asian countries and regions, plus Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong SAR, Macau, and Korea. Includes most European, African, and Southwest Asian countries, plus Australia and New Zealand. Includes the remaining Central and South Asian countries, as well as China and Russia. Standard DVD discs. Find the region code represented as a number between 1 and 8 on the packaging, and verify that it matches your region. United States, Canada, Bermuda, U.S. territories. Europe (except Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus), Middle East, Egypt, Japan, South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, Greenland. Southeast Asia, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong SAR, Macau. Mexico, Central and South America, Australia, New Zealand, Oceania. India, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Africa, Central and South Asia, North Korea. People's Republic of China, Hong Kong SAR. Special international venues, such as airplanes and cruise ships. Supported formats. Mastered Blu-Ray discs. The Blu-ray player on the Xbox One console supports mastered Blu-ray discs. 3D Blu-Ray discs. Xbox One supports 3D Blu-ray discs when played on 3D TVs.

Xbox one hd dvd

I’ve had a high definition (HD) television for some time now, although just recently I have come out of the stone ages and shelled out the extra money to have HD cable service. I once thought that watching a regular DVD at 480p looked sharp as can be, but now that I have 1080i HDTV it has left me wanting better quality for my DVD’s. I’m not alone it seems as HD content is gaining in popularity thanks to increasing availability and affordability of HD-capable television sets and movies on HD media. I was left looking for something to replace my aging DVD player that tops out at 480p as I wanted HD for my movies. With the Blu-ray and HD DVD format battle still raging I found myself looking at the Microsoft XBOX 360 HD DVD player as it should hold its retail value down the road should I ever choose to go Blu-ray as there are plenty of Xbox 360 owners in the world. The retail box that Xbox 360 HD DVD player comes in clearly states that a Microsoft Xbox 360 is required, but that isn’t true as you are about to find out. After getting the Xbox 360 HD DVD player from Best Buy we were set and ready to go. This particular HD DVD player is an external model that can be placed flat or standing up, which means it will fit in the entertainment center next to the HTPC and other audio equipment. It also comes with the HD DVD title King Kong, which means we will have something to watch once we get the system ready to use. Many older computer systems will struggle to play smooth HD content playback as both Blu-ray and HD DVD media require up to six times the rendering required over standard-definition content and are memory bandwidth intensive. Digital rights management (DRM) technologies also create issues on older systems as High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) support is needed on both the PC and the monitor in order for Blu-ray and HD DVD media to play in HD. This means that to play HDCP content you must have HDCP ready components, including, but not limited to, an HDCP ready monitor, disk drive, multimedia application and computer operating system. If you don’t pass these qualifications the copy-protected DVDs restrict playback to 480i and 480p modes, so make sure you have all the right components. HDCP is a form of Digital Rights Management (DRM) developed by Intel Corporation to control digital audio and video content as it travels across Digital Visual Interface (DVI) or High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) connections (so thank Intel for this one). My home theater personal computer (HTPC) has Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate installed along with an ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT series video card, which makes setting everything up a breeze. The Xbox 360 HD DVD player was connected to the HTPC via the supplied USB cable and plugged into a power source. After connecting the HD DVD player to the computer with nothing more than the USB cable we can now worry about getting the HD content from the computer to the television. To be compliant with the Windows Vista Premium logo requirements, a system with enabled HDMI outputs must include two distinct audio source – one main system source and one for HDMI output. All ATI Radeon HD 2000 series cards have an HD-audio controller on the ASIC, which creates a protected audio path separate from the system’s main audio source. To use this source, one must use the ATI Radeon DVI-to-HDMI adapter to get full HD video and audio support. This adapter means that these cards can support Dolby Digital and DTS (AC3) enabling six channel (5.1) audio when connected to an HDMI receiver. This also makes installation simple as just one cable is needed for both the video and audio feeds, which makes for less clutter than component cables that many of us are used to running. We picked up an RCA six foot HDMI to HDMI cable from the local Wal-Mart and had the system setup for full HD support. Xbox One S. Over 1,300 games, 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray™ and 4K video streaming. Now that’s a big fun deal. Xbox One S. The best value in games and entertainment. Xbox One S has over 1,300 games: blockbusters, popular franchises, and Xbox One exclusives. Play with friends, use apps, and enjoy built-in 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray™ and 4K video streaming. Brilliant graphics with High Dynamic Range. Ultra HD Blu-ray™ and video streaming. Premium Dolby Atmos and DTS:X audio. Xbox is the best choice. for your family. Xbox has something for all ages and interests, and will grow with your family. The only console designed to play the best games of the past, present and future. Play over 1,300 great games from the biggest blockbusters and most popular franchises to three generations of favorites you can play again or experience for the first time. Minecraft is a game about placing blocks and going on adventures. Sea of Thieves. A Shared-World Adventure Game that lets you be the pirate you’ve always dreamed of. Super Lucky’s Tale. “Super Lucky’s Tale” is a delightful, playground platformer for all ages. Star Wars™ Battlefront™ II. Embark on an endless Star Wars™ action experience. The benefits of High Dynamic Range. Experience richer, more luminous colors in games like Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3. With a higher contrast ratio between lights and darks, High Dynamic Range technology brings out the true visual depth of your games. The benefits of High Dynamic Range. Experience richer, more luminous colors in games like Gears of War 4 and Forza Horizon 3. With a higher contrast ratio between lights and darks, High Dynamic Range technology brings out the true visual depth of your games. Xbox One has more ways to play. Xbox Game Pass gives you instant, unlimited access to over 100 highly-rated and fun games, with new ones being added all the time. 1. Now when you own an Xbox Play Anywhere digital title, it’s yours to play on both Xbox One and Windows 10 PC at no additional cost. 2. Experience legendary game franchises from the beginning and across generations with backward compatibility. 3. Watch and play alongside your favorite broadcasters with Mixer, an interactive livestreaming platform available on Xbox One. Xbox One games and accessories work together. The Xbox One accessories you’ve got now, or have got your eye on, work with Xbox One S.* The best in 4K entertainment. 4K Streaming. Stream 4K Ultra HD video on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and more. Watch movies in stunning detail with built-in 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray TM . Spatial Audio. Bring your games and movies to life with immersive audio through Dolby Atmos and DTS: X. 4. Endless entertainment apps. Enjoy your favorite apps like YouTube, Spotify, HBO NOW, ESPN and many more. 5. Connect and play with friends on Xbox Live. Connect with friends and find rivals and teammates in the best global gaming community. 6. Xbox One S bundles. Not sure which console is right for you? The new Xbox One X. "For those looking for the very best" -GameSpot. * Excludes the Xbox One S stand that works exclusively with the Xbox One S. Xbox Kinect Adapter (sold separately) required for Kinect on Xbox One S and Xbox One X. 1. Game Pass monthly subscription required; continues until cancelled. Game selection varies over time. Learn more at www.xbox.com/game-pass. 2. PC hardware requirements may vary for games on Windows 10. 3. Xbox One Backward Compatibility feature works with select Xbox 360 games, see www.xbox.com/backcompat. Xbox Live and broadband internet required for initial download of game to console. 4. Dolby Atmos for Headphones requires additional purchase from Microsoft Store. 5. Some apps require app provider-specific subscriptions and/or other requirements. See www.xbox.com/live. 6. Online multiplayer requires Xbox Live Gold subscription (sold separately). The Xbox One S could be 4K Blu-ray's white knight. And it plays games, too. The $300 Xbox One S will be the cheapest 4k Blu-ray player when it's released in August, making it a potent weapon in the disc format's battle against 4K streaming video. Could Microsoft's latest game console be the X factor that helps 4K Blu-ray become mainstream? The first 4K TVs hit the market in 2012, but the first actual 4K Blu-ray discs only began shipping this February. The new physical media format faces an uphill battle against streaming services like Netflix and Amazon, which beat it to the punch in delivering both high-resolution 4K and high dynamic range (HDR) video. Disc sales have been declining for years, falling 12 percent in 2015 according to the Digital Entertainment Group, compared to an 18 percent rise in digital revenues. The forthcoming Xbox One S game console could be the best thing to happen to 4K Blu-ray since, well, ever. Microsoft will release the new Xbox in August 2016, with prices starting at $299 for the 500GB model. The console will support both 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray discs and 4K streaming services, with HDR support for both. The only 4K Blu-ray player available today, the Samsung UBD-K8500, currently costs $100 more than the Xbox One S . Others announced but not yet shipping, namely the Philips BDP7501 ($399) and the Panasonic DMP-UB900 (no official US or Australian pricing yet, but the UK price is £600, which converts to $846), are just as expensive or more. Meanwhile Sony has announced it will also build 4K Blu-ray support into its "PlayStation 4 Neo," but that console is expected to cost at least $399. Sony has yet to announce a standalone player but says it will commit by March 2017. With its $100 discount compared to other 4K players, and the fact that it plays games, the new Xbox looks like a really good deal to people looking for a 4K Blu-ray player. Even if you're only curious about the new Blu-ray format, the game playing aspect and other home-theater facilities will likely make the purchase worthwhile. And it could also serve as a "Trojan Horse," getting a 4K Blu-ray player into the hands of gamers who might eventually use it to play discs, too. There's plenty of precedent for that. Can the Xbox One S pull a PlayStation 3? Previous game consoles have played big roles in popularizing next-gen video formats. The original PlayStation helped the DVD replace VHS as the defacto video standard, and the PlayStation 3 went a long way toward popularizing Blu-ray. Game consoles were also among the first to offer streaming video, and are still among the most popular streaming devices. Things are different this time around, however. While the Xbox One S and the new PlayStation 4 Neo will play back 4K Blu-ray and stream 4K content, they won't be the consoles' native format. Both models will use existing Blu-ray disks to store games, and of more importance to gamers, neither console will support 4K games. While format wars are largely a thing of the past -- there's only one 4K disc standard being proposed -- Microsoft has a long history with new disc formats. Back in 2005, Microsoft invested heavily in what turned out to be the loser of the "blue laser wars:" HD-DVD. While Microsoft did produce an HD-DVD solution for its console -- a $200 add-on drive for the Xbox 360 -- it wasn't enough to save the format. Meanwhile the PS3 had native support for Blu-ray, the winner of the war, and remains one of the most popular Blu-ray disc players to this day. Conclusion. If you're looking to buy a 4K player, the Xbox One S is the currently cheapest and most feature-rich option. Of course, we expect cheaper 4K Blu-ray players to hit the market in 2017 and beyond, and maybe a price drop is in store for that Samsung player. It remains to be seen if the new Xbox will have any effect on 4K Blu-ray sales, especially as most people will need a new TV -- and new discs -- to benefit from the format. But it can't hurt. And did we mention it plays games, too? Share your voice. Be respectful, keep it clean and stay on topic. We'll remove comments that violate our policy. Your Idea. Your Vote. Your Xbox. Share your feature requests and ideas for improving Xbox products and services. The feature teams working on Xbox One, Xbox on Windows, Xbox mobile apps, and Xbox Live regularly review the ideas you submit, incorporating them into their work to make your Xbox experience even better. Introducing the Clubs and LFG Feature Forum. Our newest Feature Area forum, Clubs & LFG, is now live! We've added a bunch of ideas that you can now vote on both in the Feature Area forum and in the Clubs & LFG category. Find ideas for hardware or accessory improvements or hardware ideas. HD DVD drive support on xbox one. I really feel that this should have been a no brainer from the start; after all the HD dvd drive is a piece of Microsoft hardware, and HD dvd's their favoured software. What frustrates me is I feel that all this would take to accomplish, would be one quick update (I may be wrong), and would give everyone who has the player and the disks another reason to keep gaining enjoyment from their collection; that they supported, regardless of it being a "dead" format. This should be an easy one. 31 comments. @SwordofWhedon: If Microsoft no longer supports HD DVD, why does it still work perfectly well on Xbox 360? The ask with this idea is that the existing Xbox 360 software support for HD DVD drive be added to Xbox One. Make it happen. C'mon man. @badger this is in no way a project for an intern. And again, not only is it impossible to do, but there aren't enough people who care to make it worthwhile to spend the time and effort. The DRM integration requirements are extremely complex, and there is no longer anyone to license it, certify it, or otherwise allow it. There are pikes of players out there for $50 or less. Buy one. Could see this as a simple project for an intern. Would be pretty simple. There are many projects such as backwards original xbox compatibility that will never be used by the majority. Would be a unique addition and welcome by those that have a descent hd dvd collection. Yes they do. The drive is just a data transport. I suggest you familiarize yourself with how disc playback software actually works. It doesn't matter though because it's never happening. The number of people who want this is virtually zero. ? The drive is already there. No-one needs to certify anything. All that needs to happen is for Microsoft create a driver for the 360 hd dvd drive. That is the whole point of this idea, to make the Xbox 360 hd dvd drive compatible with the Xbox one. There is no more HD DVD consortium to certify it and license an HD DVD Xone player. Microsoft no longer supports it. No one does. No one is going to invest money in supporting it. I suggest you hunt down a player on eBay, they can be had very cheaply. The software and hardware being obsolete is irrelevant. The drive won't need constant updates, it's not a new system so will not be receiving upgrade downloads. All it would take is driver support. Nobody will be expecting online content to be available for the disks, only the ability to play them back. And the same goes for the sound codecs. Nobody will be expecting enhanced support. The Xbox one is touted as being a multi midia device as well as a games machine, the addition of this support will definitely reinforce that point, and also give a service that both Sony and Nintendo cannot offer. That hardware is no longer being supported so this is something that would probably not make any sense. I'd like this to happen but realistically speaking there is no way they will do this. Adding this means that they have to add support for it. This means any time there is an update they will have to get someone to test that the update works with this hardware, provide customer support, etc. I can't see this being a difficult update to implement but one that would make a big difference to me. Having bought the HD Dvd add on and built a large library of HD Dvd titles it would be great to be able to watch them through my Xbox one. id like to see support for it to. It'd be GREAT for all the users that own a HD DVD (X360) player useful again in our Xbox One!! Come on Microsoft. Yes, you can. I would like the ability to play my 100+ collection of HD-DVDs also. I am running out of connections on my A/V receiver and this would also allow me to remove my stand alone player. With full quality audio pass through support ;)! Thanks people. This is well worth it I feel. Let's keep going. Not only would this be fantastic, it would be easy. It's an external USB drive that mounts on the PC. All that is needed is to modify the player app to support a second drive letter/mount. Yes, an app for the HD DVD drive would be awesome! As a owner of the HD DVD add-on, I support this message! I would be just as happy to have a new or updated app to run my collection from the internal drive. I mean, if my One S can play 4k Blurays, I don't see why it couldn't handle HD DVD. The Clubs & LFG Forum Is Live! Our newest Feature Area forum, Clubs & LFG, is now live! We've added a bunch of ideas that you can now vote on both in the Feature Area forum and in the Clubs & LFG category of theNew Ideas forum! Go to the new Clubs & LFG forum and vote for your favorite ideas! Console Hardware & Accessories: Xbox One. Post a new idea… All ideas My feedback Headsets and Other Connectivity 12 Other Controller Requests 7 Other Xbox Accessories 19 Xbox 360 1 Xbox One 21 Xbox One Controllers 35 Xbox One S 4 Xbox Opportunities 13. Feedback and Knowledge Base. Give feedback. Accounts & Subscriptions 265 ideas Apps 179 ideas Avatars 91 ideas Backward Compatibility 1,125 ideas Clubs and LFG 40 ideas Console Hardware & Accessories 100 ideas Cortana & Kinect 130 ideas Ease of Access 51 ideas Friends, Messages, & Activity Feed 57 ideas Games 523 ideas Home, Xbox Guide, and Settings 180 ideas OneGuide & Live TV 63 ideas Parties & Multiplayer 46 ideas Profile, Achievements, & Game Hubs 72 ideas Xbox App on Mobile (iOS & Android) 83 ideas Xbox App on Windows 10 77 ideas Xbox Store 130 ideas Xbox.com 41 ideas. New Ideas 11,146 ideas. More Information. Your password has been reset. We have made changes to increase our security and have reset your password. We've just sent you an email to . Click the link to create a password, then come back here and sign in. Xbox One S: 4K, HDR and what you need to know. The highly anticipated, newly designed Xbox One S starts hitting shelves today. Since Xbox One S features 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, 4K video streaming and High Dynamic Range (HDR) for games and video, we wanted to ensure those who are about to unbox their new console know all the ins-and-outs when it comes to 4K, HDR and what you need to do in order to enable your 4K TV. Getting Started: Three Things You’ll Need to Experience 4K. Before you can experience 4K and HDR games and video, you’ll need to make sure you’re set up properly and have the right equipment. 1. You’ll need a 4K capable device. Good news, the Xbox One S is 4K Ultra HD capable. To check if you have a 4K TV, you can consult the packaging or manual for your TV. Different manufacturers have different names, but here are somethings to look for: Commonly used names for 4K: 4K, 4K Ultra HD, UHD, UHD 4K, SUHD TV, Ultra HD, Ultra UDTV, 2160p Listed resolutions or modes: 3840 x 2160 at 24 Hz, 50 Hz, or 60 Hz Commonly used names for HDR10: HDR Premium, High Dynamic Range, HDR, UHD Color, Ultra HD Premium, Ultra HD deep color. To check your TV’s 4K and HDR capabilities, with your Xbox One S connected and on, double-tap the Xbox button on the controller to open the guide. Choose Settings > All settings > Display & sound , then choose Advanced video settings > 4K TV details . If your system should support 4K and HDR but it isn’t working (for example, you can’t select the 4K UHD resolution, 4K features aren’t supported in the 4K TV details screen, 4K content won’t play, or you’re seeing video quality problems), click here for some help. If you are using a monitor, you’ll also need to check if it is compatible. Pop in your favorite 4K UHD Blu-ray disc or open the Netflix app. As a reminder, if you want to check out programs in 4K on Netflix, make sure you have a subscription plan through Netflix that supports streaming in Ultra HD. More info can be found here. We also wanted to provide information on 4K, HDR and resources for trouble shooting – all in one spot: A simple question, but not everyone knows the answer. 4K is a new standard for consumer televisions. The industry term is 4K UHD but you may also see this referred to by various manufacturers as 4K Ultra HD or 4K Ultra High Definition. 4K UHD packs in four times the pixels (3840×2160) of a 1080p HDTV (1920 x 1080). This makes for a sharper, more detailed picture. To experience 4K, you must have three things: a 4K TV, a device that can play 4K content (like Xbox One S), and 4K content (like a new UHD Blu-ray or access to a streaming service that supports 4K, like Netflix). In addition to supporting 4K video content when used in conjunction with a 4K TV, Xbox One S will also upscale non-4K content to display at 4K when paired with a 4K TV. When you set your console resolution to 4K UHD, everything on the console — Home, games, and apps—will display at 4K. 4K content is displayed in its native 4K resolution, and other content (like 1080p content) is upscaled to 4K. To set your resolution and upscale everything to 4K, double-tap the Xbox button to open the guide, go to Settings > All settings , then choose Display & sound > Video output . For TV resolution , select 4K UHD . HDR is an acronym for High Dynamic Range. With HDR color support on your Xbox One S, your TV can display deeper colors and richer contrast, meaning the picture will appear more vibrant and realistic than on a regular HDTV. To display HDR, you must have an HDR capable TV, and HDR content. Content that’s recorded for regular TV and non-HDR games won’t appear different—to see true HDR, look for HDR Ultra HD Blu-ray discs, HDR content in video streaming apps, and HDR games. There are two HDR formats that your TV manufacturer can choose to support: HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Your TV must support HDR10 to display HDR content from your Xbox One S. See Troubleshooting 4K and HDR on Xbox One S for more info. If your 4K TV is set up correctly, it should automatically play HDR content—you don’t have to change anything on your Xbox One S. Check your TV’s settings menu to make sure HDR is turned on. We have seen that some TVs come with HDR-off by default. Your TV must also support the HDR10 media profile to display HDR with Xbox One S. If you have changed the video settings on your Xbox One S and want to double check that HDR is enabled, double-tap the Xbox button to open the guide, go to Settings > All settings , choose Display & sound > Video output , then choose Advanced video settings . Both the Allow 4K and the Allow HDR settings should be checked if you want HDR on. Connecting your Xbox One S to a 4K TV. If you have upgraded from an HDTV to 4K UHD TV, you may need to upgrade your cable as well. Getting all those 4K UHD pixels from your Xbox One S to your TV requires use of a High Speed HDMI cable . Xbox One consoles have all shipped with a High Speed HDMI cable, including Xbox One S. If you are using a device to pass-through the HDMI signal, such as an AVR or a device that extends the length of the HDMI connection, that device must also be capable of supporting 4K UHD and HDCP2.2. If you are experiencing problems, make sure you are not using an older, Standard HDMI cable, and eliminate any additional devices between the Xbox One S and the television. For best results, use the cable that is included with your Xbox One S and connect your Xbox One S directly to your 4K UHD TV. Calibrating Your Television. Once your Xbox One S is setup and ready to go, you may want to fine-tune your TV to get the best possible picture. The Xbox One S includes a very simple HDTV calibration walk-through, which can help optimize your brightness, contrast, and color to get the best possible picture for your Games and Movies. To access this feature, go to Settings > Display & sound > Video output > Calibrate HDTV . Here you can walk through a few simple steps to improve your visual experience. Modern televisions do a lot of work to process incoming video signals. Sometimes the television’s onboard processing effects can introduce latency, often called display lag, between what is going into the TV and what the player sees on screen. For watching movies and videos, these few milliseconds of latency are not noticeable. However, for fast-paced gaming this lag can introduce a very small delay between when you press a button and when the character reacts on screen. Many modern TV’s implement a setting called “Game Mode” which reduces the amount of processing the TV does, thereby reducing the latency between the game and the screen. For gamers looking to maximize the responsiveness when playing competitively, we suggest trying your TV in “Game Mode” to see if that improves your experience. What if I don’t have a 4K TV? Xbox One S automatically scales down any 4K and HDR content to the resolution your TV supports. If you’ve done everything right but 4K doesn’t work or you don’t see these settings, see Troubleshooting 4K and HDR on Xbox One S. Note: You must have an Xbox One S console and a 4K TV with HDR10 support to display 4K and HDR content. If you’re not sure, see Troubleshooting 4K and HDR on Xbox One S to learn how to check your console and TV. Microsoft Xbox One Blu-ray & DVD Player + TV Integration Review. By David Mackenzie 1 December 2013 Verdict: Qualified Recommendation Typical price: £429. It’s impossible to begin a review of the Xbox One without mentioning its unfortunate public outing back in May. If you don’t follow gaming (this subject isn’t our focus), here’s a quick briefing: Microsoft announced the new machine back in May 2013, repelling gamers with obnoxious digital “rights” management (which although commonplace on other delivery platforms, was new to the gaming world) and a lack of a clear focus on gaming, with the system’s TV integration receiving an amount of attention that was deemed unjust given the brand’s gaming roots. The system would have to “phone home” every 24 hours in order to keep playing games. Games would have to be activated over the web before playing, which would apparently have translated into heavy restrictions on buying and selling used games – although executives weren’t clear about what they were. Essentially, the Xbox One would manifest all of the worst parts of non-physical delivery, and apply them to games on disc as well. The reward for accepting all of this was to be better integration with “the cloud”. The PR disaster that followed created a golden opportunity for Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) – who, without the backlash, may have attempted to push through similar measures. Smelling blood, they seized their chance to play the “good guy” and unveiled the Playstation 4 (PS4) to riotous applause, dedicating a good few minutes of their E3 press conference speech solely to announcing that there would be no such draconian restrictions on the Sony platform. It was a rare feel-good moment for consumer rights in the face of DRM, and a clear sign to the industry that the rights we enjoy with physical media are not to be threatened so easily. The cherry on top came when Sony announced that its system would launch for $100 less (£80 less in the UK) than the Xbox One. The move is sure to go down in gaming history as being at least as memorable, and in fact eerily similar to Sony’s 1995 “$299″ announcement, where it revealed it was positioning its first PlayStation system to ruthlessly undercut the price of the competing Sega Saturn by the same amount. Fortunately for consumers, Microsoft was humble enough to admit its mistakes, and revised its policies in line with its competitor. Whether or not this is enough to stem the good feeling that Sony seized upon is another matter – reputations are slowly built but quickly destroyed, and it’s not unfair to suggest that Microsoft forfeited their assured first-place position (built up with the overall success of the Xbox 360) with the stunt. HDTVTest recently took a delivery of an Xbox One, and we’ve been putting it through its paces as a media player, specifically with regards to how well it plays Blu-ray Disc (and DVD). We’ve also been checking out the much-discussed TV integration features. We won’t be touching on the gaming performance, because our speciality is in AV, so consider this review one for gamers who also happen to be AV enthusiasts (not an uncommon crossover). Is the Xbox One truly the only device that needs to be under your TV? Or, are gamers better served with a standalone machine plus the console of their choice? Read on! After the unveiling, the predictably snarky online response was to suggest that the system looks like an old VCR. We think that a fairer comparison is to a home theatre PC, but it’s easy to see where the description comes from – the Xbox One is a fairly nondescript black box – you won’t find the more appealing styling of first two Xbox 360 designs here. Granted, it’s not an eyesore like the original PS3 was, and it does have some slick features like a slot-loading, front-mounted Blu-ray Disc drive (a stylistic and technological improvement over the original Xbox 360′s tray-based DVD drive). It’s clear that the idea was for it to be slipped in a media cabinet and out of the way. Unfortunately, the entire system and accessories feature the gloss black finish in abundance. The fact that most of the hardware ships with protective plastic stuck over these shiny black surfaces speaks for itself: if you’re a little OCD-ish like we are, you’re probably best getting used to the fact that attempting to clean the system is probably going to leave small scratches. (Our Japanese launch PS3 from 2006 now looks like it’s been sandpapered if it’s seen under strong light, although granted, in our test environment these devices are shuffled around more than in the average home). Even part of the power supply unit, which is likely to sit on a corner beside the wall, has the finish. The relatively unloved Kinect camera add-on from the previous Xbox 360 has been upgraded, and the new version is a mandatory part of the package, appearing to add quite a bit to the system’s selling price. Most of its obvious uses are for motion-controlled gaming (both Sony and Microsoft announced motion controlled “innovations” after Nintendo brought the idea to market), although the built-in microphone and infra-red blasters play key roles with the integrated TV feature. Upon initially powering the machine on, we were greeted by a long pause of black, followed by the Xbox One logo and setup screens. After around 20 minutes (on a 60mb downstream connection) we had downloaded the necessary software updates and could use the system. The main user interface is similar to that of the most recent Xbox 360 update, which in turn is similar to that of Windows 8′s “Metro” interface. Fortunately, unlike on Windows 8, the implementation on the Xbox One is consistent rather than irritating. It features basic green squares and is navigated with the gamepad, or optionally with voice commands (“Xbox, go to TV”) which seemed more reliable than Samsung’s similar in-TV feature (albeit not 100% of the time). Blu-ray Playback. Like most of the services on the machine, the Xbox One’s Blu-ray playback software is a free download, and is not installed out of the box. The first hurdle we came up against was that we were unable to get our own HDTVTest custom test pattern disc to play on the machine. The Xbox One does not play Blu-ray movie (BDMV) content from recordable BD-R discs. We tried both single and dual layer discs of various brands and types to rule out media incompatibility, and none would play. This is not the fault of the drive, but is a designed-in software limitation – one of the stringent DRM policies that apparently has made it into the finished product. Microsoft’s own support site mentions that: The Blu-ray player on the Xbox One console only supports mastered Blu-ray discs and DVDs. We don’t intend on paying to have 1000 copies of our internal test pattern disc professionally replicated just to get past this silly lockout system, but it is nice to know that Microsoft are so concerned about our test patterns being illegally copied without our permission that even we are not allowed to view them. As a result, we had to find content on store-bought films that we could use to assess the performance, and fortunately we also had the excellent Spears & Munsil v2 Blu-ray Disc with its multitude of tests. Contrary to the official suggestion, the Xbox One does play DVD-Rs. This also means that home-produced Blu-ray Discs – wedding videos recorded to BD-R, for example – will not play (although admittedly this content is rarer now since most home-produced content is online). Want to calibrate your HDTV and all-in-one media playing console using a burned copy of the freely downloadable AVS HD 709 disc? You’re out of luck. Most seriously of all, if independent studios ever release niche “Burn on Demand” content on Blu-ray recordables (such as what Warner Home Video are doing now on DVD via their Warner Archive series for niche content that they deem not profitable to manufacture the traditional way), the current iteration of the Xbox One will not be able to play this legitimately purchased content. Newsflash, Microsoft: the people who are ripping and illegally copying Blu-ray movies are generally too cheap to pay for blank discs and Blu-ray burners anyway – they are pirating via downloads. (We did try copying our patterns to a USB memory stick, but the Xbox One can’t currently play video from these, either). Fortunately, after this, it was smooth sailing: the experience for end users who are likely to only be watching store-bought BD-ROM movie discs is NEARLY all good news. The first thing we noticed was that, unlike the kludgy 50hz support (more on that later), the Xbox One properly jumped to 24hz output when we played back 24hz Blu-ray content (after enabling the necessary menu option). We investigated the menu options to see what we have to work with, should we need to adjust anything: The [Display & sound] menu has a few basic options to set up resolution, connection type (HDMI vs DVI), Colour depth (8-bit, 10-bit and 12-bit, expressed x3 as 24, 30 and 36), RGB levels range (called “Colour space”), and some audio options. Strangely, there is no option to output Blu-ray and DVD natively in Y/Cb/Cr (Digital Component) format. All compressed video formats relevant to this discussion encode video in this way, which is more efficient than the computer-centric RGB (which is the native format for games and computers). Normally it’s best not to tempt fate by converting one between the other, and sometimes TVs have better reproduction of fine coloured details in one format over the other. That’s why, ideally, we’d have the option to output in either format. Currently the Xbox One only allows output in RGB, both at video and PC levels (TVs are generally adjustable between both, computer monitors often require PC levels to avoid a washed-out looking picture). That’s not really a huge deal, unless you know for a fact that your TV (or some other device in your system) is flaky with the RGB format. Interestingly, there’s a [Calibrate HDTV] wizard. This is a nice attempt at instructing users to set up their basic. TV controls, and we’re glad to see Microsoft instructing people to shut off dynamic contrast and edge enhancement. Oddly, they also suggest a colour temperature setting of “warm 1, low, mid or neutral”, which still allows a wide range of off-base colour temperatures – in our experience, it’s “Warm2″ which is consistently closest to the D65 standard. Still, this is an improvement on the ice-blue “Cool” setting that many people will be currently watching with. The wizard also takes users through steps to eliminate overscan and edge enhancement, black and white crush, and has a basic colour adjustment step which can be used with a “Blue only” mode (Samsung and LG TVs have this). The only thing we really object to is the closing line: “That’s it! Your TV is now calibrated” – we just hope users don’t go through this quick adjustment process and hope that they have the equivalent of a fully ISF/THX-calibrated display, although we do commend Microsoft for including it. There are few setup options of note elsewhere in the system menus. The [Disc & Blu-ray] menu has an option for “24 Hz” which has to be enabled to get 24p output from BDs (it’s not on by default). We’re happy to see that there are no unnecessary video processing adjustments to introduce problems. Based on a close-up visual inspection during playback, everything seemed A-OK at first. There was no forced edge enhancement, no unwanted noise reduction, just what appeared to be an unadulterated display of what’s on the disc – bravo, Microsoft! With 1080p/24 content going to a 1080p/24 display, there is no reason why the Blu-ray playback quality can’t be perfect (barring the subtlety of chroma interpolation, there’s really no room for “middle-ground” performance in the same way as there is with interlaced content, or content that has to be scaled) – after all, the PlayStation 3 has managed this since day one. However, if you thought the Xbox One’s motion stutter issue were limited to European 50hz video, you’d be mistaken. It’s much rarer, but there is a bug in the Blu-ray playback software which introduces motion stutter. We encountered it when playing 24p movies, with the console correctly outputting 24p. Irritatingly, sometimes after pausing and unpausing the video, the video decoder would somehow “lose sync” with the output timing, creating motion stutter every Xth frame. Skipping back a chapter enough times would cure the problem, until we skipped chapter again. We had to power cycle the machine to totally avoid it. Using a known-perfect player (in this case a resident OPPO BDP-83), we ran some greyscale and colour gamut measurements, then immediately swapped HDMI cables over to the Xbox One and measured the same patterns from its internal Blu-ray playback software, in order to check for any image manipulation hijinks. Any large discrepancy between the two measurement runs indicates an inaccuracy in output. In fact, the Xbox One did display a small deviation in terms of overall gamma, meaning that the distribution of light output between the darkest and lightest shades was a little off-standard. That’s not too surprising, since the difficulty in getting flat gamma output from the Xbox 360 was well-documented (most notably in this typically excellent analysis from EuroGamer ‘s Digital Foundry). It really shouldn’t be there, but viewers shouldn’t worry given how small the error is (we didn’t notice it until we measured it). It certainly isn’t enough to alter the intent of the image. Most importantly, the Xbox One’s BD player did not add any discolouration to the image, only this slight tonal shift. After this, we checked various aspects of core video performance. We confirmed that the Xbox One’s Blu-ray player does not crop any pixels from the edges of the image (tested outputting to a 1080p HDTV), and that it correctly maps pixels from the source to the display output (1:1) with no distortion of frequency response: tiny pixel details are reproduced perfectly without blurring or exaggeration. We also confirmed that, unsurprisingly, the video decoding path for progressive content is 100% progressive with no steps inbetween. Accordingly, the Xbox One does not suffer from Chroma Upsampling Error (CUE). It also filters the Interlaced Chroma Problem, correcting an inherent error with interlaced video whereby strong coloured edges could appear jagged. (We were unable to test the 50hz performance here, because those patterns are on our own recordable disc, which the Xbox One won’t play). So, playback of the dominant 1080p/24 films on Blu-rays features a small inaccuracy, but nothing worth losing sleep over. More problematic is the capability for the machine to begin skipping frames if the disc is paused, unpaused or chapter-skipped. More difficult is the rarer video-based content, which is where we get into the subjects of film mode detection and video deinterlacing. It’s not of much relevance given that films encoded interlaced on Blu-ray are very uncommon, but if you’re interested in comparing how the Xbox one handles difficult video-to-film cadence detection, here’s a checklist. (To understand what these all mean, check out this article on the Spears & Munsil site and scroll to the section titled “Source Adaptive Cadence Details”). We’ve marked the most common types in bold. 2-3-2-3 PF-T (24fps inside 60i with MPEG metadata): Pass 2-3-2-3 (24fps inside 60i): Fail. The Xbox One does not successfully engage film mode deinterlacing for the common 2:3 cadence unless the video stream has progressive repeat field flags in it. Fortunately, content encoded as 2:3 60i on Blu-ray is very rare. It does attempt the detection, however, slipping in and out of film mode. The Xbox One also did a decent job with the mixed-mode tests on the Spears & Munsil v2 disc, where film content has had a scrolling 60-fields-per-second ticker overlaid. It avoided the worst case scenario of processing the entire screen in film mode, which would have caused the ticker to “shred” and appear illegible. However, it didn’t do what the absolute top-tier processing would do, and process the film area of the screen with film mode deinterlacing, and the video area with video deinterlacing. Instead, the Xbox One simply deinterlaced the entire screen in video mode, offering good but not top-tier quality for this difficult (and rare) content. The biggest issue with the Xbox One’s Blu-ray playback is a small one: lack of 50hz support. As we initially reported, the system even outputs 50hz TV feeds (via the HDMI input) at the wrong output refresh rate. The same holds true for Blu-ray: 50hz BD content judders because the video output from the Xbox One is 60hz. Given that Microsoft has no problem switching between 24hz and 60hz, we’re assuming it’s either an example of American insularity, or is evidence of how pressed for time the developers were in shipping the machine. It’s a trivial issue given how little 50hz content there is on Blu-ray, but it’s also trivial to get working properly, so we’re a little surprised. 25fps is not a legal frame rate on Blu-ray Disc, meaning that any material shot at this speed (we’re looking at you, BBC) is encoded as 50i, and due to a feature in the AVC encoding standard, this doesn’t (shouldn’t) have any effect on picture quality provided the player knows how to handle it. The Xbox One actually does, for the most part. The Spears & Munsil test disc doesn’t include any Euro-centric tests, and we were unable to play our own custom-built test on the Xbox One because of the system’s blanket ban on recordable Blu-ray media, so we instead had to improvise and look at some 25fps content encoded to UK Blu-ray as 50i and check for problem signs. The console would occasionally process the content as video and create small jaggies, but on the whole, the performance here was very good – except of course for the fact that after deinterlacing the video correctly, the Xbox One added judder by outputting the end result at the wrong frame rate! Anyway, given how rare this type of content on Blu-ray actually is, we don’t recommend anyone worrying about it. Oh, by the way, the Xbox One does not play movies from HD DVD. Out of perverse curiosity, we actually hooked up our Xbox 360 HD DVD drive. Not surprisingly, it was a no-go. But hey, the machine has an HDMI input, so if you want to relive the early days, you can still hook up your Toshiba, throw in your copy of Serenity , and party like it’s 2006. One last thing to note, on a more current topic – sometimes, we experienced issues where we removed a Blu-ray Disc from the Xbox One and inserted another disc, but the console didn’t reset playback, then giving us a bizarre error message about BD-Live restrictions (even on discs that don’t include this feature). We had to reset the system to get the disc to play. DVD Playback. On the whole, the Xbox One does not produce a very appealing DVD image. That’s not because of any unwanted processing done to the decoded video; the reason we say that it’s unappealing is largely due to the scaling algorithm used. In calculating a 1080p output from a 720×480 or 720×576 DVD source, new pixels are calculated using an algorithm which doesn’t produce an obviously sharp image. On the plus side, it doesn’t produce any ringing, either. Unusually for a soft image, there’s some aliasing present, which might pose a small problem on large screens. Surprisingly given the lack of attention to all matters European, the Xbox One does properly deinterlace PAL DVDs. Perhaps we shouldn’t be too surprised, since we did earlier discover that the device has correct film mode detection with 1080i/50hz in HD. It’s a little known fact that the DVD format does have the provision for PAL discs to be flagged as containing Progressive video, but almost all PAL DVDs as films are encoded as interlaced. That means that instead of just asking the disc which deinterlacing mode it should use, the player has to analyse the video content and decide the correct mode for itself. The Xbox One does this properly. Unfortunately, it then goes on to goof by outputting PAL DVDs at 60hz, suffering all of the same frame rate mismatch issues as we already noted with TV. Owed to their lower frame rate, it’s less obvious for films, whereas the stutter with video camera material can be quite pronounced. At least, it doesn’t feature Chroma Upsampling Error or Interlaced Chroma Problem with DVD, although there actually is a similar effect, since the scaling of the low-res chroma channels does look a little pixellated (just as the luma channel does). TV Integration. We were very impressed that the Kinect sensor was able to beam IR signals to our TV and satellite decoder, despite us not positioning it in the easiest-to-see location in our review setup. In fact, the process of setting up the console to send IR commands was flawless. Within minutes, we had our Xbox One controlling our HDTV and receiver. Unfortunately for now, that’s really it, if you live outside the USA. The heart of the TV integration feature, which is Microsoft’s own programme guide, doesn’t work for European service providers yet, so the only point, for now, is being able to “snap” the television image to the side of the screen and overlay it onto your gameplay, or to be able to switch to and from your TV signal with voice commands. We set our locale to US and plugged in a California ZIP code to get an idea of how the feature will work, and when it’s up and running here, we’re sure that it’ll be very impressive. The Xbox One asked us for our cable/satellite provider, then asked us to identify the set-top box brand. Once this was done, we were treated to a slick, responsive EPG, and could tell the system to jump to specific channels (“Xbox, go to Comedy Central”). While we understand that Microsoft weren’t able to get programme guide and channel information working here in time for launch, they could have made the interim easier by at least allowing us to surf channels up and down with voice commands. Strangely, saying “Xbox Channel Up” with the box in UK mode didn’t give us any results, so we had to reach for the traditional satellite receiver remote, defeating the point. In fact, even “Xbox, go to channel 123″ (as on Samsung voice-controlled TVs) could have been a reasonably satisfying stop-gap, but that doesn’t work either. Trying to pull up the Programme Guide in the UK instead gave us suggestions for internet video services. Well, it can only get better. One other thing to note: like most of the Xbox One’s features, the TV EPG is only available to Xbox Live Gold subscribers (a point that our friends at CNET reported earlier). That service costs £34.99 a year (price from Amazon UK), and also gives you access to the Xbox Live online gaming platform, but it’s another “hidden cost” to consider for when the feature is actually available here – plus, that’s obviously on top of BBC’s legally enforced tax, as well as whatever you’re already paying your satellite/cable provider. If you aren’t an Xbox Live Gold member, you’ll still be able to use the HDMI input to see feeds from the TV set-top box, but you won’t be able to use the neat control features. TV Video Processing. The worst non-US issue is one we’ve already reported: the Xbox One does not have any feature (yet?) which allows the output refresh rate to match the input refresh rate. Just as we found when playing 50hz BD material, the Xbox One does not output it at the same 50hz field rate, instead pushing it out at 60hz. Unlike the Blu-ray scenario, this is a huge deal, because ALL TV feeds in Europe are in 50hz format. The result is ugly motion stutter due to the mismatch. In countries with 60hz-centric broadcasting chains, this isn’t an issue because the frame rate of the games matches the frame/field rate of the TV system. Unfortunately due to historical reasons, we’re stuck with 50hz in Europe. In fact, historically, European gamers were also stuck with appalling 50hz conversions of video games too (many of us, this writer included, voted with our wallets and imported American hardware and games instead), but thankfully this is no longer the case: gaming in Europe has moved onto 60hz, but the existing 50hz broadcast infrastructure remains in place, even though all European TVs are capable of handling the higher rate. The stutter that results from the frame/field rate mismatch is actually worse than expected. We were expecting the effect to only be truly problematic with full-speed 50-fields-per-second video content (like sporting events), but the judder was distracting (to our AV-enthused eyes) even on 25-frames-per-second film content. Not surprisingly, there is no motion adaptive processing performed to smooth the frame rate transition, like what’s done on expensive high-end studio hardware to adapt 60hz US TV shows for European broadcast, and indeed no consumer-level processing, like what 100hz LED LCD TVs uses to perform frame interpolation (which wouldn’t be a good thing anyway). The frames are simply repeated in the most basic way possible in order to make up a 60hz output. In fairness, we should point out that Microsoft themselves have mentioned that the TV integration features are not yet finalised for Europe and we’re not dealing with a final product – it’s quite likely they’ll address this with later firmware update when the full TV Integration is added. We are, however, dealing with a product which is on sale in Europe, so some early adopters are understandably angry with the situation. To get into video politics for a second, we honestly sympathise with the American company – and in fact, every other major hardware manufacturer, all of which are headquartered in 60hz countries – when 50hz compatibility issues come up, as they frequently do. The United States and Japan are ex-NTSC areas, and these countries led the HDTV movement as we know it. Europe’s own attempt at its own European HDTV system quickly fell by the wayside. HDTV as we know it is an American-dominated technology. Although most of that has been adopted here, we’re still stuck with the 50hz field rate. Still, Microsoft should have been on top of this for launch. Their BD Player application already switches between 24hz and 60hz output as appropriate, so the fact that their TV integration does not is a bizarre oversight. It’s too silly a problem to stay in this state, so we’re very sure they’ll fix it. In the mean time, especially if you want to watch smooth video content like football games, then skip the Xbox One and connect your set-top box directly to the display. We’ve seen some user comments online – amazingly, sometimes even from Microsoft support staff – suggesting this problem can be solved by changing the output settings on your cable or satellite STB. These users are mistaken. The output settings on these devices allow you to change the output resolution (e.g. from 720p to 1080i), but NOT the frame rate, specifically because frame rate conversions are so destructive. Any European set-top boxes that in fact do allow a 60hz output will themselves introduce the same problem Microsoft are running into. The only way to watch content while preserving motion quality and avoiding stutter is to watch in the original frame rate. (Incidentally, there’s a common misconception going around the web that the output rate of the display is tied to the electricity supply in the country. That WAS true and is in fact the reason why we have the international rate discrepancies we have, but hasn’t been true for decades – after all, plasma televisions worldwide output 24hz signals at 96hz, and no country has a 96hz power supply). We’ve also seen reports, again from Microsoft staff, that suggest some European users will be affected, and others won’t be, suggesting that it’s not a widespread issue. The reality is surely that all 50hz input is affected, and some users are more aware of it than others. For example, some TVs’ motion interpolation features (if enabled) might be able to partially conceal the effect. There is one way around this which a reader pointed out to us, but this forces all video output to 50hz, including games, which we want at 60hz. In other words, it’s impractical for now and would not make for a seamless experience. Although reports have made much of Xbox One’s broken 50hz TV input capability, 24hz is impacted as well. Although not used for broadcast television, DirecTV is sending films in their native 24p output in the United States, so running those through the Xbox One will result in the usual 24hz->60hz pulldown judder. (We’d appreciate it if US-based users could confirm this implementation; it’s certainly the case outputting 24p from a Blu-ray player to the Xbox One’s TV input). On the other hand, the Xbox One’s 60hz TV integration is excellent. Obviously we don’t get 60hz broadcasts here, but to simulate this, we connected a Blu-ray player outputting 1080i/60hz and ran the same tests from the Spears & Munsil disc as we did on the Xbox One’s own internal Blu-ray playback software. Amazingly, ALL of the tests passed when using the HDMI input! In other words, having an external Blu-ray player feeding the console’s “TV” input actually produces better quality with rare interlaced Blu-ray Discs than the machine’s internal Blu-ray player software does! We had expected both to use the same hardware video processing, but apparently that isn’t the case. Still, that’s great news for users in the 60hz countries – provided they can get a clean 1080i/60 output from their cable or satellite set top box without any hijinks going on inbetween. So, just to recap: 60hz users get film mode detection performance similar to standalone video processors but judder with rarer 24p sources, European users get judder. It’s telling that Microsoft are able to handle the multitude of esoteric 60hz transfer cadences but didn’t think to provide simple 50hz output timing. Conclusion. If Microsoft want the Xbox One to be the only entertainment device under user’s TVs, then they have a lot of work still to do. While the entire package shows promise and does do a good job of fulfilling basic media playback functions, the machine is currently another example of customers beta testing a rough-edged product. Despite featuring graphical capabilities that so far don’t seem to be a match for a high-spec gaming PC, we’re sure that the system is delivering gaming fun, but that’s not our call to make, so we’ll leave games reviewing to the gaming experts. At present, we can’t recommend any observant video users outside the 60hz countries buy it on the basis of its TV integration functionality. In its current state, it is not suitable for this task in much of the world, which uses 50hz broadcasting. If you’re based in the US though, where the slick integration features are up and running and mostly compatible with that country’s frame rate, then the news is much more positive. As a Blu-ray player, the Xbox One does a good job. Provided you’re not attempting to play rare 50hz discs (for example, the UK release of Planet Earth ), its Blu-ray playback quality is of a high standard, with its slight picture inaccuracy not really being noticeable. We did also run into an issue with the video output with Blu-ray movies stuttering after we paused and unpaused the film, which we’re sure Microsoft will address soon. It’s obviously not worth spending the machine’s asking price purely for BD playback, though, because standalone Blu-ray players which incorporate many of the same features are available for considerably less. They also don’t suffer from the draconian block of BD-R recordable media that the Xbox One has. The fact that they come with traditional remotes – none is available as an accessory for the Xbox One yet – will also suit users who don’t like the idea of navigating Blu-ray menus with a game pad. If you’re into online video, keep in mind that in order to be granted access to Netflix, Microsoft charge you for Xbox Live Gold service (on top of Netflix’s own fees). That will obviously kill any interest that non-gamers had in this feature immediately; their current pricing strategy only makes sense if you’re a gamer first and viewer second. Ultimately, we’re not sure, based on the performance, if Microsoft actually intended the Xbox One to be a single-device solution for everyone. Given the aforementioned reliance on Xbox Live Gold, it seems more like it’s a single-device solution aimed at users who are gamers first, but who enjoy other types of content as a secondary feature. There’s little about the system in its current state that would lead us to seriously recommend it for media usage. Given the job Sony did with the PS3, which produces as good a Blu-ray image as you could possible hope for, we’d guess that the PS4 will be a better media player. Many of the quirks seen on the Xbox One are echoes of those made on the Xbox 360, whereas Sony by comparison have demonstrated better attention to detail on the video front – which is not surprising given their history. With that said, the PlayStation 4 doesn’t offer TV input at all, even if Microsoft is sort-of offering it now. We’re sure Microsoft are paying attention to the desires of AV users in order to reach the widest possible audience, so we look forward to seeing what they do to improve the overall experience with firmware updates (the online chatter has shown that the 50hz judder is noticeable even to users who aren’t video experts). After all, right now nearing the end of its lifespan, the Xbox 360 is a very different machine compared to when it was launched, and given that this is a video game console rather than one model in a line of devices which is refreshed each year, Microsoft is in it for the long haul. Right now though, this succeeds only at being the beginnings of a games machine with optional AV functions.