The Evolution of Xbox Hardware: Xbox One S to Xbox Series S
The Xbox One S and the Xbox Series S
Comparing and contrasting two particular console iterations of their respective generation by Brittany Brown
Xbox consoles has spanned generations, from the Original Xbox back in 2001 all the way to the Xbox Series consoles (Series X/S) releasing in 2020. Today, we will be looking at 2 different iterations of each console line- that being the Xbox One S of the 8th gen and the Xbox Series S with the 9th gen. Why these two in particular? I think these two are one of the most unique of their respective generations, I had also gotten the S variant out of the Xbox Ones, so I have more to say about this one in particular in terms of personal experience.
Lets understand what roles each console played...
Xbox One S
In my opinion, this is one of the best looking modern consoles. The dashes of sleekness, stylishness, an minimalism-ness is candy for the eyes for me when looking at this console. The Xbox One S came out August of 2016, it was a revised version of the Xbox One that came out in 2014. The One S' performance was slightly better, is noticeably more compact and lighter (the power supply is inside the console) than it's predecessor, and featured native 4k for watching TV and movies, as well as 4K upscaling on supported games. This console was pretty much a refresh to address some of the issues with the Xbox One with a some extra features sprinkled in.
I received min on Christmas of 2016, it was bundled with the Xbox One edition of Minecraft along with some downloadable-content for the game. It was a worthy upgrade to my classic Xbox 360 in which I still hold dearly to this day.
Image Source - Brittany Brown, Christmas day 2016
Xbox One S trailer
Xbox Series S
Image Source - https://www.xbox.com/en-US/consoles/xbox-series-s
November 10th, 2020 marked the next-generation (at the time) of Xbox consoles. The Xbox Series X and S were released. Funny story about this one, I intended to get the Series X the year after these consoles came out, but ended up getting a Series S due to the chip shortage and heavy scalping of the Series X at the time. A year later I snagged the last Series X in stock before it was out again.
Image source - Brittany Brown, Christmas day, 2021
Though the Series S is less powerful than it's bigger sister-console- the Xbox Series X, the Series S was marketed as a cheaper alternative that also did not have a disc compartment. This model was even more compact than the One S', which we'll be getting into in a moment.
The price point was one of the most attractive aspects considering the Series X was around $500 retail; The Series S was around $300 and still delivered a solid next-gen experience even thought the performance wasn't as beefy as the Series X.
Xbox Series S trailer
Xbox One S and the Xbox Series S
Image source - Brittany Brown
They may be similar in names and in looks (sort of), but under the hood are 2 very different consoles in terms of performance and features.
Firstly as I mentioned before, the Series S is significantly smaller than the already compact One S....
Image source - Brittany Brown (Top and bottom)
One of the most obvious physical characteristics is that one has a disc drive and one does not. The Series S is a all-digital console, so you would make use of the digital library of Xbox's Game Pass subscription or buy your games digitally only. This can be a plus, minus, or something in between deepening on the person. Personally, I am a hybrid gamer these days, I have Xbox Game Pass and buy my games on digital storefronts, but I also buy games physically too. I am also a game collector so physical copies and collection items are a must for me.
Performance-wise, obviously the Series S is significantly more powerful an contain more software features than the One S. The upgrade from the One S to Series S is noticeable to its faster loading times and better graphical fidelity. Going from a HDD to an SDD aided in these faster launches, and introduced one notable feature for both Series models- quick resume. Quick resume allows you to exit your current game and switch to another. When switching back you pick up exactly where you left off without completely restarting the game, so switching is seamless.
Video output for the One S is up to 4K 60 FPS, thought its not native 4k for gaming. The same is said for the Series S, both natively reach 1440p and support HDR with supported games and displays. Yet the Series S is marketed to reach 120FPS in gameplay. There are some caveats to the higher resolutions and frame rates because of game and display compatibilities.
Growing up with the Xbox One S after upgrading my Xbox 360 was a formative experience that exposed me to so many memories and great games, and when I got older getting the current-gen consoles were a treat to experience the prowess of the Series consoles, notably the Series S first. Both will always have their pros and cons, but they will forever be great consoles on how they presented themselves with their strengths.
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