It"s been just over a week since Microsoft announced the next monthly feature update for the Xbox One family of consoles, releasing the first preview to Alpha ring Insiders. Today, those on the Preview Beta ring are getting their first taste of version 1806 with build 17134.4016, which was first released to Alpha ring Insiders yesterday.
Today"s release is notable, because the Alpha ring is still invitation-only, so this is the first time that version 1806 is available to anyone that wants to sign up for it.
Here are the new features that you"ll find in the build:
Group Your Games and Apps
In this build we are enabling the Groups feature for all of the Preview BETA ring. You’ll need to take the new system update once available, and then perform a full power reboot of the console before Groups will be enabled for you.
With so much content available, fans have asked for more options to organize libraries of games and apps. Today, we’re introducing a powerful new enhancement to Pins, which we call “Groups.” With Groups, you can create multiple collections of content made up of anything from within My Games & Apps. You can also assign custom names to each Group, organize and order them, and add individual Groups to Home. Groups will appear across My Games & Apps, Home and Guide, so you’ll be able to access your Groups at a moment’s notice. Best of all, Groups are tied to your Xbox Live account, so they will automatically sync across multiple Xbox One consoles. We’ve started you off with a Group that should look very familiar — your Pins! To get started, open the Guide and click on the My Games & Apps button to access your Groups or start adding to them!
Improved Search Functionality
Searching for content is now even easier! Now pressing the Y button anywhere in the dashboard will bring up the search dialog. This process is found in many apps, but now you can do it anywhere within the dashboard. Not seeing enough results for your search? Hit enter or click the “more results” button to view a full page for your search results.
Additional Accessibility Options
The Narrator feature on Xbox One now supports five additional languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, Swedish, and Dutch. We’re also adding an Australian version of English language for Narrator, so Australian users will no longer have to select US or UK English in order to use Narrator.
Mixer Broadcasting
- Users can now enable their camera to display full screen while broadcasting.
Experiments
A subset of Xbox Insiders may see some experimental features in addition to what’s listed above. These are designed to gauge interest and solicit feedback from a more focused group. For example, some users will be able to share game-specific stats amongst your friends right on your home page. While others may find greater functionality within Clubs.
Here"s what got fixed:
GameDVR
- Fixed the issue in which some users did not receive pop up notifications for Game DVR captures and the guide did not update the number of new captures.
Microsoft Edge
- Fixed an issue in which switching Microsoft Edge tabs will cause PDF files to disappear from the screen.
- Stability and performance fixes for Microsoft Edge, specifically when multiple tabs are open.
System Performance
- Misc. performance fixes in the platform.
And finally, there are some known issues to be aware of:
Groups
- Enabling Groups after taking the update: Groups may not appear for you on first sign in unless you do a full console reboot after taking the system update. This is being fixed in an upcoming build and should only affect having just taken this system update.
- The Groups tab in My games & apps may not show after sign in even though you can access Groups in Guide, or you may see “This group does not exist” on Home on first sign-in for your existing Groups. Workaround: Sign in / out to refresh these pages.
- Some changes might not be reflected when editing Groups between multiple consoles after coming out of connected standby. Sign in/out to fix.
- Adding the Rewards app to Groups causes you to be unable to access your Groups. This is fixed for an upcoming build.
- Using special characters in Group names (e.g. &,”) causes issues during Group creation or using the “Add more” flow. Note: emojis are fine. This is being fixed in an upcoming build.
- You may see issues with Groups if you frequently switch between your non-Preview console and your Preview console. Workaround: Reset your Groups locally on the Preview console through “My games & apps” > Groups, then using the “Reset groups” button at the bottom of the page to resync from the service.
Profile Color
- Sometimes users may encounter an incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.
Networking
- Work continues on the stability of the Wi-Fi connectivity. If you see any issues please report the problems for investigation.
YouTube
- Some users are encountering an issue where their YouTube account is being signed out whenever they launch the app.
- Workaround: Uninstall/re-install the app and sign in with your account again.
The new build started rolling out to the Preview Beta ring last night, so if you"re signed up, you can install it right now through the Settings app.