Microsoft has long been rumored to be working on two next gen ‘Project Scarlet’ consoles codenamed ‘Anaconda’ and ‘Lockhart’. The former has already been officially revealed as the Xbox Series X, while the latter is still under the wraps. The Lockhart console – rumored to debut as the Xbox Series S – will pack in less power and will be a more affordable alternative to the Xbox Series X. If you’ve been wondering about its design, well, a fresh leak claims to give us our first glimpse of the Xbox Series S. The leaked render not only reveals the design of Microsoft’s upcoming console for the masses, but also the alleged pricing of $299.
The leaked render, which comes courtesy of Thurrot, shows a white console with a familiar design. As per another leaked animation, the Xbox Series S will be smaller and much thinner than its pricier sibling. When placed vertically, you’ll see is a huge circular heat vent on the front with a contrasting black finish and the same cross-mesh pattern as the one we’ve already seen on the Xbox Series X. There are vents all across the top edge too. Over at the right side, we see a USB Type-A port. Notably, the Xbox Series S appears to lack a disc drive, which falls in line with previous rumors claiming that the cheaper next-gen console will be all-digital to bring down the price.
Additionally, the leaked render also mentions a pretty aggressive asking price of $299, indicating that Microsoft wants to seriously undercut the PlayStation 5 by offering gamers a much lower entry-point into the next-gen console ecosystem. This will help gamers decide how much power they want from their console, and will also allow Microsoft to price the Xbox Series X in the same range as the PlayStation 5, taking on it mano-e-mano on power, performance, and pricing fronts.
Talking about the differences, the Xbox Series S will reportedly churn out 4 teraflops of power compared to the Xbox Series X’s 12.5 teraflop output. It will also limit players to gaming at 2K 60fps, while its more powerful sibling will go up to 4K at 60fps and even 8K resolution. Additionally, there will be 10GB of GDDR6 RAM fitted inside the Xbox Series S, while the Xbox Series X ups that number to 16GB for a smoother experience. You can check more comparisons between the two upcoming Microsoft consoles below:
so @TweakTown did a great overview of Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S specs. Here’s one of the missing gaps
So far, the only launch window for the Xbox Series X known to the masses, in Microsoft’s words, has been the holiday season. That changes now, sort of. Microsoft has today announced that the Xbox Series X is launching in November. However, the company has still not revealed a specific launch date though.
But if rumors are to be believed, the Xbox Series X will most likely arrive in the first week of November, that is assuming the ongoing pandemic doesn’t affect the launch plans any further. We also don’t know if Microsoft will finally reveal some official information about the affordable (read: less powerful) ‘Lockhart’ console which might debut as the Xbox Series S.
Microsoft says that when the Xbox Series X finally arrives, players will be able to enjoy over 100 Optimized for Xbox Series X titles that will debut in 2020, and are tuned to take full advantage of the console’s powerful hardware. All that, in addition to titles spanning four generations of Xbox consoles, that will be at the disposal of Xbox Series X buyers.
Microsoft has today announced that its Project xCloud game streaming service will be offered as a free addition to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate members. In an official blog post, Xbox division head Phil Spencer revealed that xCloud will arrive at no additional cost for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers in September.
What this means is all titles that are available in the Xbox Game Pass library will be playable on your smartphone and tablet as well. Plus, you will also be able to join in on the fun with millions of other gamers with multiplayer mode support irrespective of the machine you are playing on, provided the title supports cross-platform gaming.
In case you’re not aware, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the company’s subscription-based service that provides access to over 100 games that you can play on both your console as well as PC, alongside perks such as free games every month and multiplayer capability. Right now, you can purchase an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription for $14.99 in the US.
The latest Mac mini, and more Apple products are on sale today
Deals. You saw the title so, let’s begin with some Galaxy Note deals. The Note 10+ is currently $150 off on Amazon, leaving the 256GB of storage variant for $950 shipped. The S20 5G which we didn’t exactly mention yesterday is also $150 off, leaving it at $850 shipped. Moving on, the latest Mac Mini is getting that same $150 discount, meaning you can get the Intel Core i5, 8GB of RAM and 512GB of storage one for $950. We also have more deals on AirPods, 4K TVs and more in the links in the description.
Microsoft schedules an Xbox Games Showcase event on July 23
You could get your new Samsung Galaxy Note 20 on August 21
Microsoft just sent out some press invitations for their new Xbox Showcase Event which will happen on July 23rd at 9AM PST. You’ll be able to watch it on YouTube, Twitch and the official Xbox social media handles. We’re expecting to see some exclusive titles like Halo Infinite, Gears of War, Hellblade 2 and more. At Sony’s Game Showcase Event we got to see the PS5’s design for the first time so we do hope that Microsoft has something nice prepared for this event as well and a couple of weeks ago we heard some leaks about a more affordable Xbox Series S so we hope that happens at this event.
New AirPods 3 would include System-in-Package technology
We’re expecting some new entry level AirPods for next year and, according to the latest research note from Ming Chi Kuo, we’re due for a design refresh. According to Kuo, the new AirPods will adopt a similar System-In-Package to the AirPods Pro to integrate the audio features into a smaller casing as, we know that the Pros bring smaller stems. These AirPods 3 are supposed to arrive in the first half of 2021 and that the current AirPods will be discontinued. This also means that the AirPods Pro should see components shipments grow from 50 to 100% due to the demand.
This alleged iPhone 12 box insert could confirm, no EarPods or power adapter
Speaking of Apple, let’s talk about the iPhone 12’s box… yeah the box. We have a new render that allegedly comes from a reliable source of the new box, and from the image we can tell that it’ll only bring two slots, one for the USB-C to Lightning Cable and the other one for the paperwork including the stickers that come with. We assume the second one is for paperwork because, it’s way too thin for the EarPods and for the charging brick. It also has a slim cutout at the top were we think the iPhone 12 will sit. Of course this isn’t official yet but, everything points to Apple making this move.
OnePlus Nord packs four rear cameras with a 48MP main snapper
OnePlus Nord is launching in India on July 21
We have some new leaks for the OnePlus Nord as well as an official announcement. Recently Carl Pei confirmed that we would be getting OIS on the Nord’s camera and now we have more details on the actual array. According to a new Android Central report, the Nord will bring a quad-camera array that consists of a 48MP main camera, an 8MP wide angle, a 5MP macro and a 2MP portrait lens. The dual selfie camera will also bring a 32MP shooter according to the previous leaks. Now, on the official announcement, OnePlus just revealed that the event will be happening on July 21st, kicking off at 7:30PM, Indian time. To watch the event you have to download a certain application which we have more details of in the links in the description, or you can tune in via the OnePlus Nord Instagram account. You can pre-order the phone in India starting July 15th on Amazon for Rs. 499, if you buy it before August 31st, it comes with a gift box.
Story of the day:
Here’s your first real-life look at the Samsung Galaxy Note 20, and it’s gorgeous
Here’s the first look at Samsung Galaxy Note 20’s display
We have an official date for the next Samsung Galaxy Unpacked event
And finally the hottest news today is that well, today seems to be official event confirmation day. First Microsoft, the OnePlus, now Samsung. The new Galaxy Unpacked was just made official for August 5th at 10AM Eastern Time, we’ll obviously have some live coverage and a dedicated Daily so make sure you subscribe. Thing is the image only reveals that special new copper color we saw leaked by none other than you know who. And speaking of leaks, the Note 20 just went through a 3C certification so we have some IRL images of it from a tipster on Twitter. These images are of the black color variant and we get to see the new triple camera array which still includes the periscope lens. We also get to see the S Pen which doesn’t look like it has changed much from the Note 10. Some users on Twitter claimed that these were dummies but according to another tipster, this is a fully working unit and we can confirm as the tipster also shared images of the display. These show off the tiny bezels, the centered punch hole and we’re assuming that this is the Note 20 Ultra or Plus because it brings a curved display instead of the flat we’re expecting for the regular Note 20.
Microsoft has announced the date for an Xbox Games Showcase event on July 23 that will, of course, be held online. As the name makes it abundantly clear, the event will be used to showcase games for Microsoft’s next-generation console – the Xbox Series X, or simply the ‘Xbox’.
The event will start at 9am PT (12pm ET/ 9:30pm IST) and will be livestreamed on YouTube, Twitch, and the official Xbox social media handles. So far, Microsoft or its Xbox division have been mum on what we can expect at the games showcase event later this month.
However, rumors suggest that Microsoft will finally reveal more first-party games developed by Xbox Game Studios for its upcoming console. We can also expect to hear more about Halo Infinite, Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II, Gears of War, possibly Fable, and more titles.
Earlier this month, leaked devkit documents revealed more details about another Project Scarlet console from Microsoft codenamed ‘Lockhart’ that will reportedly debut as Xbox Series S. Now, a new report from Eurogamer suggests that the more affordable next-gen Xbox console will be announced in August.
Microsoft is said to have planned a debut in June, but those plans were nixed, and the announcement has now been moved to August. We don’t know what the Xbox Series S will look like, but it is claimed to target 1080p and 1440p gaming compared to the 4K benchmark of its more powerful sibling – the Xbox Series X.
Notably, the Xbox Series S will reportedly have the same CPU as the Xbox Series X, but will come equipped with less usable RAM and less powerful GPU. Unsurprisingly, it will command a lower price tag and will reportedly hit the shelves alongside the Xbox Series X in the fall season.
During the early development phase of Project Scarlett, there were reports that Microsoft is working on two consoles codenamed ‘Anaconda’ and ‘Lockhart’. While the ‘Anaconda’ console made its debut as Xbox Series X, the ‘Lockhart’ has now been namedropped again in the latest Game Development Kit (GDK) released for developers.
While peaking around I also updated the console revision types in XRF: https://t.co/kXH9vxYxLi
The leaked documents clearly mention “Project Scarlett consoles” and a distinct LockhartProfiling mode. As per a report from TheVerge, the latter is a part of the Xbox Series X devkit that will allow game developers to test their games with the performance profile of the less-powerful ‘Lockhart’ console.
The performance profile reportedly caps the resources at around 7.5GB of RAM and 4 teraflops of GPU output, which is lower than the 13.5GB of usable RAM and 12 teraflops of GPU power delivered by the Xbox Series X. This cheaper console might arrive under the Xbox Series S name alongside the Xbox Series X this fall, and will reportedly target 1080p and 1440p gaming compared to the 4K prowess of its more powerful sibling.
Microsoft has made it clear on occasions more than one that the Xbox Series X will be crazy fast, and that backward compatibility will be a big part of the package. Today, the company has announced that Xbox Series X can apply HDR effect to older games released as far back as the original Xbox console, and it will also boost the frame rates by double the margin.
The company will rely on an HDR reconstruction technique that enables the platform to automatically add HDR effect to older games without any help from developers, making them look much better on the Xbox Series X than their original platform. However, Microsoft assures that adding HDR to an older title won’t have any negative impact on the gameplay experience.
In fact, Microsoft says that the Xbox division is also working on a new feature that will double the frame rate of older games running on its next-gen console. In case of some titles, the frame rate will go up to a silky smooth 120fps from 60fps. Moreover, compatible classic games will also be able to take advantage of faster load times and resolution upscaling on the Xbox Series X without having to change any core element.
Microsoft has introduced a new app for parents to help them keep an eye on the Xbox gaming sessions of their children, allowing them to control screen time and who they can communicate with. Called Xbox Family Settings, the app is currently in a preview mode and is now available on Android and iOS.
Parents can create a family account and add members to it. But more importantly, they can set console screen time for the Xbox gaming session of their children, aside from blocking/ unblocking content based on their age. The app will also show daily and weekly activity reports as to how much time their children spend on an Xbox One series console.
There is also an option that will let parents decide if their children can communicate with other online players, while another one lets then accept or reject friend requests on their behalf. Content and screen time limits can be set for PC gaming too if the Microsoft account is linked to the same Xbox profile that is part of a family group.
We keep on getting amazing deals for this Memorial Day weekend. This time we’re going to focus on the best deals from Microsoft. Several options let you save when you trade in an eligible used device. You can also save when you buy select bundles and more.
If you feel like getting a new laptop and you’re willing to trade in your current device, you can get a new Surface Book 3 from $1,600; a Surface Go from $400 and a Surface Pro 7 from $750. You can even get up to $300 off the Surface Pro X.
Next up, Microsoft lets you save when you buy bundles that can get you up to $360 savings. The Surface Pro 7 plus Type Cover bundle can be yours for $700 after a $210 discount, or you can also go for the Platinum Surface Pro 7 with an Intel i5 10th gen processor + Black Pro Type Cover Bundle for $800. Check out every possible option by clicking on the button.
You can also get free games when you purchase a new Xbox One S console and save up to $400 on the Samsung Galaxy S10 and S10+ models. You can also get exciting deals on games, accessories, laptops, PCs, and more. Take a look at every Memorial Day deal that’s currently available by following these links.
During the recent Xbox 20/20 show, Microsoft unveiled a new badge called “Optimized for Xbox Series X.” As the name clearly suggests, these are games that can take full advantage of the Xbox Series X’s powerful hardware and can deliver lower load times, better visuals at higher frame rates, and more.
The key upgrades will be improved visual quality with support for up to 4K gameplay powered by hardware-accelerated DirectX Raytracing, creating a more realistic environment with better lighting and reflections. The second key upgrade will be support for frame rates up to 120fps.
Another advantage of Xbox Series X Optimized games will be significantly lower load times and Smart Delivery. The latter means you’ll only have to pay once for a game, and as soon as an upgraded version of that game is available, you’ll get it for free irrespective of your console.
Here’s the full list of games that will come with the “Optimized for Xbox Series X” badge:
Microsoft's chief of Xbox division, Phil Spencer, has assured that the company is still on track with its plans to launch the Xbox Series X later this year.
Xbox Games Showcase
July 23rd
9am PT
