Apparently, our prediction of Xbox Series S name was right. The existence of the second version of Xbox Series X has been leaked via photos of controller packaging. Twitter user @TinyRakan and @zakk_exe managed to grab them early and took photos over the weekend. While there are no pictures of the new console itself, written on the manual the Xbox Series X controller will work for Xbox One, Windows 10, Android, iOS, and an ‘S’ type.
Xbox Series S controller will also be equipped with a new ‘hybrid d-pad’ in the vein of Xbox One Elite’s, textured grip, and a Share button to easily share your in-game clips and/or screenshots just like PS4’s.
This so-called Xbox Series S might be the real name for the highly-rumored ‘Lockhart’, what internet users consider to be the cheaper version of Microsoft’s next-gen console. Back in June, a leaked Microsoft document mentioned a special “Lockhart mode” in an Xbox Series X developer kit. Through enabling that mode developers can build and optimize their games for weaker hardware specifications. For comparison, these are the specifications of the two Xbox Series X models:
Basic Xbox Series X:
- RAM: 13.5GB of usable RAM
- GPU speed: 12 teraflops
- CPU clockspeed: 3.8GHz
- Memory: 1TB SSD
Xbox Series S ‘Lockhart’:
- RAM: 7.5GB of usable RAM
- GPU speed: 4 teraflops of GPU
- CPU: underclocked CPU
With this information revealed, it seems both Sony and Microsoft are planning to launch ‘economical’ versions of each of their next-gen consoles. Sony cutting price with a disc-less, digital-only PS5; Microsoft with Series S. But unlike the new Xbox controller, PS5’s DualSense has been confirmed to not be compatible with PS4. Well, with this, at least Xbox wins in the controller department.
Do you think this is the reason why Halo Infinite had lackluster graphical fidelity; because they have to accommodate weaker hardware as well? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
