Xbox One Fun

Are you up for some Xbox One fun???  We are big Xbox fans, we have the original Xbox, an Xbox 360, and now the Xbox One.  When Xbox moves up, we move up.  Xbox One has been out now for a year and Microsoft has been continuously upgrading the software to ensure their players are enjoying the experience.  So if you didn’t buy Xbox One last year, you were smart to wait, not only for the built-in upgrades, but also Microsoft recently lowered the price by $50, so you just saved $50!

The new Xbox One comes packed with a lot of features and due to its integration of a gaming operating system (OS) with Windows OS, it is the most significant revamp in Xbox One’s history.  This integration brings a Windows 8 type look to the  big screen through the Xbox One console.

Some of the most notable features to mention are the apps you can download and use, the vastly improved Kinect camera, and the inclusion of watching TV…without leaving Xbox One!  Now that’s what we call Xbox One fun!

The Apps

With a faster processor, more Random Access Memory (RAM), which is the ability to do several things at once, and superior HD graphics, the Xbox One is robust and definitely brings gaming up a notch.  And with the ability to download apps, you can get much of your favorite content and make it available on your Xbox One.  You can access YouTube, Skype, Pandora, NFL Sports, ESPN, Crackle, Hulu, and a bunch more.  Not all of these apps come downloaded on your Xbox One, you download only the ones you’re interested in yourself (it takes seconds) and pin your favorites to your Home screen.

What about games, how many are there?  There are at least 322 and the list continues to grow!  There a ton of good games like Monopoly, Lego Batman 3, Skylanders Trap Team, Madden NFL 15, Zoo Tycoon, Kinect Sports Rivals, Shape Up, Rocksmith, Call of Duty, Halo, Forza, and much more.

The Kinect Camera

The Kinect Camera is an optional device you can buy with your console, but it will cost you an extra $100.  You do not need it to play Xbox One and most games do not utilize the Kinect camera sensor.  However, more are being made.  Having the Kinect Camera also enables Skype and with the camera’s new improved width vision, it can easily capture the whole family during Skype calls.

The Kinect camera has also been redesigned to be much more responsive, scanning muscular movements and even skeletal joint movements (hips shoulder, thumbs, hand tips, etc) to capture more fully gamer movements.  In fact, with its wider field of view, the camera can now capture up to 6 people!  Very impressive.  The dance floor is getting bigger for Just Dance 2015.

Xbox One TV

What makes Xbox One unique over other consoles though, is its integration with TV content.  Simply by connecting your cable box to your Xbox One, you can view your content through your Xbox.  You can see your cable providers available channels on an online TV guide through Xbox One also.

If you have the Kinect camera, it can take advantage of voice activated commands, so you can say, “Xbox watch CNN” and the channel will turn for you.  I’ve tried it a number of times, it’s pretty cool.  You can also use the voice commands to start a game you have online…and a whole slew of other commands.  Anything on the screen written in green text can be used in a voice command.  Kids love this!

Xbox One Fun

Features

• 1080p HD Kinect sensor with IR to see in the dark more clearly
• Ability to watch games, TV, or apps side-by-side with Snap
• Has an 8-core processor with amazing processing power
• Comes with 8 GB of RAM
• Includes a 500 GB hard drive for plenty of storage
• Built-in Blue-ray player to play great HD games and watch HD movies
• Broadcast your awesome gaming skills live with Twitch
• You can also upload video clips to share on Xbox Live with the Upload app
• Similar to Windows 8.1, you can personalize your Home screen with tiles for quick access to your favorite games and apps
• Many popular apps are available for free downloads like YouTube, Skype, Vudu, Pandora, Bravo, and more
• Pay-to-view services are also available for movies and TV shows
• Voice-activation command menus to quickly navigate through Xbox One
• Ability to watch TV or play games without having to switch inputs – it’s all in One
• Using Microsoft SmartGlass, you can connect your phone or tablet to the system to search and download games and more
• You can surf the Internet with Internet Explorer

Pros:

• Xbox has one of the world’s largest cloud infrastructures, dedicated to multiplier games – there’s always someone to play with
• Xbox One has enriched their achievements systems to now achievements go across games and experiences, rather than a single game
• Xbox One is great for those who love sports, it is an official game console of the NFL – it shows the game with stats always available
• Love that family Skyping just got easier, as the Kinect camera was specifically designed for Skype
• The voice activated commands are great – you can open up games, turn the TV station, open up apps, and more
• If you are an Xbox 360 user, your Gamertag and Gamerscore follow you to Xbox One
• You can add to the storage with your own external storage and the USB 3.0 port
• The Xbox One console is very quiet
• As Xbox One was built also on a Windows OS, the Media Player can play nearly any format you have of video and music
• Microsoft has a number of gaming exclusives such as Call of Duty and Evolve
• Has DLNA streaming support so you can stream content to your Xbox One from your PC, phone, etc.
• You can now play a game and access the main dashboard (Home) at the same time

Cons:

• Although it comes with a 500 GB hard drive, Xbox One uses a good amount of this storage
• Though the Home page is customizable, navigating through the menus to find what you need is tiring at times
• Snap allows you to watch two things at once, but not all apps are “Snap”able
• You can’t play your Xbox 360 games on Xbox One
• When using Internet Explorer, you can’t use voice commands to say the name of the website, you have to type it in
• Voice-activation commands works most of the time, but in bigger rooms the success rate lowers
• Is pricey at $449 including the Kinect camera
• It’s not designed to be a TV DVR and will not record shows

The Xbox One console Assassins Creed Unity Bundle sells for $349 at Walmart and it includes just the console and one remote.  For a better value, you can get the Xbox One console Solution Bundle for $429.00, which includes the console, Assassins Creed, another game of choice (10 choices), and an extra controller (so you’ll have 2).  If you’re interested in the Kinect version, you can get the Xbox One with Kinect Assassins Creed Unity Bundle for $449.00, all at Walmart.

A Mom’s Perspective

The Xbox One console offers pretty amazing graphics, a lot of fun games, and the ability to watch TV, play games, Skype, and stream other favorite sites like YouTube, Vudu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, and more without having to change inputs and leave Xbox One.  Now that’s handy.  Now, will I use Xbox One as my main venue to watch TV?  No.  Without being a full functioning TV DVR, it doesn’t make sense.  I am not much of a live watcher and if I can’t skip through commercials, it’s not going to work for me long-term.

However, I love the fact that I can play a game and watch live TV at the same time, sometimes it’s just too hard to make a choice!  I can also take a quick look through the TV guide to see what’s coming on later without having to leave Xbox, that’s helpful.  I also love that I can access all of our favorite content like Netflix, YouTube, Bravo, and Vudu from right Xbox One as well.

With the Xbox 360, we had a number of Kinect games.  I loved them because we all had to do some sort of running or jumping to play the game…we snuck in some exercise.  But unfortantely, theKinect tracking was not the best, so often times our moves didn’t show on the screen.  The Xbox One Kinect camera is so much more elaborate that it tracks so much more than it’s predecessor.  It’s pretty amazing how well it tracks you…and now up to 6 can be tracked.

Microsoft continues to make a really good gaming console and there are a large number of good quality Xbox One fun games for kids.  If you’re looking for a great family gift that is sure to provide hours of entertainment, the Xbox One is a good choice.