Xbox One S All-Digital Edition (Xbox One)

Product Information

No. If you have a complete aversion to physical media or want a game console in a second room, you might get your money’s worth, but the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition will need to be priced lower before it becomes worthwhile beyond those two scenarios. The release of the Xbox One X raised the bar for gaming consoles and while it didn't make the Xbox One S necessarily redundant, it certainly highlighted the aged system of the Xbox One S. That's why it's surprising that Microsoft has chosen to release a disc-less version of the S, which is essentially the same console but without a disc drive. The Mega Showcase Microsoft Xbox 360 Collector Building Set releases exclusively at Target on October 8. Again like the Xbox One S, the All-Digital boasts 4K resolution - but that's upscaled 4K, not native 4K like the Xbox One X. You'll notice a few more details with the latter, but the former still proves capable. For example, while playing Forza Horizon 3, we had no issue with dropped frames interrupting our experience. However, there's no doubt the game looks better - and runs smoother - on the X. Once built, this model will actually have working lights and a disc drive, as well as a hard drive and side shell panels that are removable. It obviously won't be able to play actual Xbox 360 games, but it still looks like a faithful recreation of Microsoft's classic game console. This is far from the first time we've seen video games and their consoles branch over into the work of buildable toys, as Nintendo patterned with Lego to create various Mario sets as well as a replica NES.

The S All-Digital could have done with a more ambitious execution to help it stand out. A slimmer, unique design might have helped offset the lost disc drive. Instead of a bunch of older games, Microsoft should have bundled a 12-month Xbox Game Pass key instead, to really impress the digital lifestyle aspect this console aspires to. The All-Digital Edition is a sleek, small system that will take up far less space than the original 2013 Xbox One. It's frankly odd that Microsoft bundled some older games with this console, rather than Xbox Game Pass. It would've made far more sense to call this an "Xbox Game Pass Edition" console, to push the existence of Game Pass towards thriftier, less-engaged gaming consumers. The games this console comes with are available on Xbox Game Pass, too. The Xbox One S All-Digital was Microsoft's first disc-less console and a sign of things to come, especially with the launch of the Xbox Series S. However, Microsoft is no longer producing new Xbox One S All-Digital or Xbox One X consoles.

With Microsoft’s Project xCloud game streaming service on the way, it’s feasible that you could continue using the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition for several years. However, Project Scarlett is scheduled to arrive in late 2020, and you can expect most new games after that point to release for the newer system rather than Xbox One. Should you buy it? Starfield is one of the biggest games of the year and space exploration has never looked so good (especially on a new PC with the correct settings tweaked). Released natively for PC and Xbox Series X, a lot of gamers are going to be left out of Bethesda's latest RPG — it'll never be released on PlayStation 5 or Nintendo Switch. But there's good news if you're still playing on a last-gen Xbox One. While Starfield isn't being released on the older console directly, there's still a way to play on Xbox One. With comparative price points and similarly sleek designs, the Xbox Series S and Xbox One S are easily mistaken at a glance. Delve deeper, though, and the power gap between Microsoft’s two cheap consoles becomes abundantly clear. The Xbox One S All-Digital Edition looks to a digital future, but the savings are pretty slim for what you lose. Xbox accessories you'll love Two of the three games can be played offline, but Sea of Thieves requires a persistent online connection, and only one free month of Xbox Live Gold is included. This means you’ll need to fork over additional cash if you want to continue playing the game after the initial month. Gabe Gurwin/Digital Trends

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. Game Pass monthly subscription required; continues until cancelled. Game selection varies over time. Learn more at www.xbox.com/game-pass. The Xbox Series S might be tiny, but there’s a lot of power inside. The console targets a resolution of 1440p instead of native 4K (though some titles can output at a full 4K), and is capable of 120fps gaming. Though its GPU is considerably less powerful than the Xbox Series X's, it boasts an almost identical CPU and 10GB of GDDR6 RAM. That’s less than the 16GB the Xbox Series X, but it’s considerably more than the Xbox One S, which only has 8GB of GDDR3. 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. One important thing to note is that there’s no disk drive on the Xbox Series S, and you’ll only have 512GB of storage to play with. Unlike the One S, though, it comes with a super-fast NVMe SSD instead of an achingly slow mechanical hard drive, and it can be expanded with the 1TB Storage Expansion Card from Seagate. And while an expensive extra, Seagate's card should give you peace of mind when it comes to storage. Plus, it gets discounted at various online retailers with surprising frequency.Here's where the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition will divide players. As the console doesn't have a disc-drive, you can't use physical games with it – at all. However, the price difference compared to the standard Xbox One S is still very small – less than the cost of a single game. If you are buying the console purely to save cash, you’ll find it’s actually not the best investment in the long run. Is there a better alternative? When the Xbox One S arrived three years on from the original Xbox One, it offered smaller, quieter, higher-quality gaming machine. It soon became the de facto Xbox system. But since then, we've seen the release of the powerhouse Xbox One X console, which offers 4K HDR gaming and the most premium gaming experience on a console. That's now been replaced by the Xbox Series X, too. As it stands, there's virtually no reason to recommend the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition. Disc-based versions are available for just as much, often cheaper. Microsoft's digital movies and TV store is embarrassingly weak, with no mobile offering. And since the console is the same size as the S, you're not even gaining a slimmer, more portable design for the disc drive sacrifice. 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.

So what are your options? For a start, the console came with three digital codes: Forza Horizon 3, Sea of Thieves and Minecraft. While getting three games straight off the bat is great, arguably Microsoft could have included some newer titles - maybe Forza Horizon 4 instead of 3, for example. Still, Minecraft and Sea of Thieves are still quite popular and all games are family friendly. Some apps require app provider-specific subscriptions and/or other requirements. See www.xbox.com/live. HDMI-in; HDMI-out; one front-facing USB 3.0; two rear-facing USB 3.0; IR receiver/blaster; SPDIF digital audio That said, it’s essential to remember that the Xbox One S is a whole generation behind the Xbox Series S, which limits your gaming experience since the best games on Xbox Series X cannot be experienced in the same way. Although the Series S is highly praised, it may also be slightly out of your budget.

If you are in need of a second Xbox One for your home or have so little room that you will never be able to store physical media, then the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition will serve you well. It’s a sleek and capable version of the Xbox One that can play its full library of games, and with Xbox Game Pass, you can play a whole bunch of them in very little time. You could make the case that the Xbox One S has more storage space than the Xbox Series S, but the One S still uses a HDD rather than an SSD. That means it has larger capacity at the expense of speed. In every other department, though, the Xbox Series S comprehensively beats the Xbox One S in terms of technical power and cutting-edge design. 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?