official Xbox One Owner Impressions

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

 

Hallelujah! :bounce:

[spenser.d]

 

Hallelujah! :bounce:

 

Yeesh.  You may very well have held out longer than I would've :P  Glad you're finally getting it though :)

[DrunknMunky Veteran]

Yeesh.  You may very well have held out longer than I would've :p  Glad you're finally getting it though :)

 

Yup, I am as patient as it comes when I want something badly.

 

I was looking for them tonight as a lot of websites have new standard X1 stock in. Decided to check bundles, completely expecting them to be sold out and what do you know, X1 + Forza Day One (Y) Only a few of them left according to website stock info.

 

Will now just return my original one to Amazon. Both them and Microsoft have been completely useless this past month trying to help me. They're lucky I'm still willing to buy it frankly :p

[trooper11]

Yup, I am as patient as it comes when I want something badly.

 

I was looking for them tonight as a lot of websites have new standard X1 stock in. Decided to check bundles, completely expecting them to be sold out and what do you know, X1 + Forza Day One (Y) Only a few of them left according to website stock info.

 

Will now just return my original one to Amazon. Both them and Microsoft have been completely useless this past month trying to help me. They're lucky I'm still willing to buy it frankly :p

Yes indeed they are.

Congrats on finally reaching a conclusion. Just hearing the story of your issues was enough to frustrate me.

I look forward to your impressions. Hopefully you have picked up some usage tips from the rest of us to help you get use to how it all works quicker.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

I was on an 18 day vacation last month, left on the 15th, the day the PS4 was released, so when I got home, both the PS4 and One were waiting to be hooked up, and I had set up my entertainment center prior to leaving. So some of my impressions are a comparison between the two as I hooked them up at the same exact time and started installing games.

 

Initial Setup
I did go ahead and hook up my cable TV box as well. Figured might as well use all of the features. More on that later.

 

Installing Games

WTF happened? How can installing games take so much longer than the 360? I installed 5 games on the PS4 (KZ:SF, NFS:Rivals, COD:Ghosts, BF4, NBA 2k14) before Forza 5 even finished installing. In fact, Forza 5 took about 45 minutes to install for a total of approximately 70 minutes. Seriously, what happened here MS? And this was 9 days after the console was released, so while I am sure it there was still extra traffic on Live, etc., it does not account for how long it took to download and install the patch. Again, no idea how they messed this up so damn much. It was not just Forza 5. Dead Rising 3 took about 30 minutes. Ryse took about 45 minutes. Just crazy.

Download times overall have really slowed down. Not sure how the hell this happened. Really am not.

 

OS Impressions

I actually spent way more time with the One initially than I did the PS4. It was out of necessity as it took longer to figure everything out and set everything up. Expected because of Kinect and all of that.

Some stuff just seems to take several steps to get to, when it was so much simpler on the 360.
I really feel as if MS took everything that worked perfectly on the 360, which was nearly everything the 360 did, and just threw it all out of the window.

It is honestly perplexing why they changed so many things that worked great.
I get that they want to make it a more cohesive experience with Windows overall, but I just think that was a dumb approach overall. Really do.

 

With the above said, I absolutely love the visual look of the OS itself but I am definitely not crazy about navigation whatsoever. Speaking of navigation...

 

Kinect Integration
The basics work great. Once you get into apps and start trying to do specific things, then things fall apart a decent bit. Either that, or voice navigation is actually longer to do than just manual control. I will speak about Watch TV as that is what I have the most "voice-on" time with...

Kinect: Watch TV
The One Guide is pretty dumb imho. Trying to just see what is currently playing on all channels, like what is on at a specific time, is not easy if you are trying to check out all channels. Constantly saying Page Up or Page Down because the One Guide only shows 4 or 5 channels at a time is annoying at best, especially because there is a noticeable delay when doing so. It is much faster to do it with my remote on my normal cable box guide.
Also, my wife absolutely detested it, and she really gave it a go.
Also, my dad comes over and lets my dog out quite frequently, and he usually hangs out for awhile and likes to watch TV while doing so. I gave him two tutorials, and wrote exact directions on how to Watch TV using only his voice. He never quite got the hang of it.

The way I see it is the one and only reason to use voice navigation is to make things easier. It does currently not make things easier. As such, I unplugged my cable box and went back to the traditional way of using it, meaning it is on it's own HDMI input sans the XBox One.
It just fell short at the end of the day for the several reasons I mentioned above. I probably could have gotten used to it eventually, but my wife really did hate it, and then there was also my father who never would have gotten used to it. Maybe one day they will make a vast improvement to everything. Until that day, I am not using Watch TV.

Rest of Kinect Features
It often mistakes Stop for Pause for me. Must be my NJ accent. Navigating IE with my voice is futile at best (tbh, same with a controller, ie is not friendly at all to navigate) and the rest of it all I am still learning, but I do not have a great need for. Being 39 years old, I just am not going to play a game while my Twitter feed or Skype is snapped to the one side of the screen.

 

So honestly a lot of the extra features it offers I have no real interest in or need for. Which leads me to the final point of...

 

Gaming

Forza 5, despite the insane install time, is a great racing game. No doubt about this fact. I do wish Load Times were better, but overall it is a great game. One of the games I keep playing.

Ryse is visually stunning. If people want to make the argument 1080p is not a necessity, Ryse is the game to cite as an example. It truly is. I am only on Chapter 4 of it, but I truly enjoy it as of right now. I can potentially see it getting repetitive, but for now I am quite enjoying trying to get high combos.

I have not checked out Dead Rising 3 yet, just have not had the time and also have been playing some games on the PS4. I loved the first Dead Rising games, so have no reason to believe I will not also love this one.

 

Controller

Is awesome except for the shoulder buttons. Not crazy about them at all. Everything else I really like.

 

Final Thoughts

I only purchased the XBox One to play games but no doubt gave the other aspects of it an honest to goodness chance.

My early on conclusion is I will only use the XBox One to play games and will probably hardly ever touch the other aspects of it until they flush things out and even then we will see.

[trooper11]

Final Thoughts

I only purchased the XBox One to play games but no doubt gave the other aspects of it an honest to goodness chance.

My early on conclusion is I will only use the XBox One to play games and will probably hardly ever touch the other aspects of it until they flush things out and even then we will see.

Good impressions, thanks for sharing.

About the OS navigation issues, there maybe be faster ways to do some things then are immediately obvious. So feel free to share those since we have all found little shortcuts for some of the issues.

No doubt there are unavoidable one though.

Also, did you get a chance to use the auto sign-in or voice commands for power?

[GotBored]

Hi Dirty Harry, you have both console so I was wondering if you could help me out.

I'm waiting for a PS4 pre-order but am interested in the Xbox One kinect features.

Is the kinect a vast improvement over the PS4 in regards to motion -detection?

I want the PS4 for the graphics edge for multi-plats and one or two exclusives, but am thinking about also purchasing the X1 for kinect games like Just Dance, Kinect Sports and other similar games. Do you think it's worth it or does the PS4 camera work just as well inside the games? I'm not interested in using it for UI.

[Jarrichvdv]

Hi Dirty Harry, you have both console so I was wondering if you could help me out.

I'm waiting for a PS4 pre-order but am interested in the Xbox One kinect features.

Is the kinect a vast improvement over the PS4 in regards to motion -detection?

I want the PS4 for the graphics edge for multi-plats and one or two exclusives, but am thinking about also purchasing the X1 for kinect games like Just Dance, Kinect Sports and other similar games. Do you think it's worth it or does the PS4 camera work just as well inside the games? I'm not interested in using it for UI.

I know you're not replying to me, but I have an Xbox One too and I find the Kinect 2 to be a vast improvement over the first one, in all regards. Xbox Fitness and the like work really, really well.

[BajiRav]

Also, my dad comes over and lets my dog out quite frequently, and he usually hangs out for awhile and likes to watch TV while doing so. I gave him two tutorials, and wrote exact directions on how to Watch TV using only his voice. He never quite got the hang of it.

The way I see it is the one and only reason to use voice navigation is to make things easier. It does currently not make things easier. As such, I unplugged my cable box and went back to the traditional way of using it, meaning it is on it's own HDMI input sans the XBox One.

It just fell short at the end of the day for the several reasons I mentioned above. I probably could have gotten used to it eventually, but my wife really did hate it, and then there was also my father who never would have gotten used to it. Maybe one day they will make a vast improvement to everything. Until that day, I am not using Watch TV.

How did you calibrate Kinect? Most people have recommended setting it up with volume set to as high as possible. I think the system also improves by learning from your usage and anyone else besides you will have a problem on your profile.

[GotBored]

I know you're not replying to me, but I have an Xbox One too and I find the Kinect 2 to be a vast improvement over the first one, in all regards. Xbox Fitness and the like work really, really well.

 

Have you compared it to the PS4 camera?

[BajiRav]

Have you compared it to the PS4 camera?

There is nothing to compare. PS4 camera is on a different level altogether. They are not functionally comparable.

[trooper11]

Have you compared it to the PS4 camera?

I didn't buy the camera with my ps4, but one of my friends did, so we got a chance to try both out.

The biggest problem is a lack of software on the ps4 to test with. There is the playroom app, but it seems like a limited tech demo honestly.

While on the X1 you have Fitness and Rivals preview. You can see my impressions on the Rivals preview earlier in the thread, but basically I found it to be a big improvement over what was possible with the first Kinect. My wife tried out the fitness app and didn't have any issues.

Its a bit unfair to compare the ps4 eye without more comparable software. I will mention that it does seem to have some issues that affected the first Kinect such as a fairly high sensitivity to light in the room. This also showed up while trying out the auto login based on seeing your face with each console. Kinect picked up our faces faster and more reliably over the course of several tries.

Beyond the motion gaming aspect of it, I will say that the mic built into Kinect seems to be more reliable/powerful than what is in the ps4 eye after trying various actions from different distances. There are also a couple features that you may find useful. The X1 dynamically switches profiles based on who is holding the controller, using Kinect. I can say that has worked great so far and its actually quite the time saver. Also, if Kinect sees a controller not being held, it will turn the controller off to save power. That has also worked well.

Without more ps4 motion only games, its hard to give much more info than that right now. You can look at the raw specs for Kinect and the ps4 eye if you want an idea of how they compare on a hardware level. Kinect seems to have an edge in that area.

[GotBored]

Without more ps4 motion only games, its hard to give much more info than that right now. You can look at the raw specs for Kinect and the ps4 eye if you want an idea of how they compare on a hardware level. Kinect seems to have an edge in that area.

 

Hardware wise I believe they are fairly comparable, minus the IR blaster which makes the Kinect 2 work in dark rooms also. (IR Blaster is used for depth perception, PS4 uses two cameras for depth perception instead).

 

How are the accuracy and latency differences?

[trooper11]

Hardware wise I believe they are fairly comparable, minus the IR blaster which makes the Kinect 2 work in dark rooms also. (IR Blaster is used for depth perception, PS4 uses two cameras for depth perception instead).

 

How are the accuracy and latency differences?

Exactly, that's where I think the ps4 camera is more like the first Kinect in that respect. It certainly has better specs than the first Kinect, so it comes off as falling somewhere between Kinect 1 and 2.

As to the accuracy and latency, well that's hard to say, but I had more extreme motions that required precision on the X1 than the ps4. Again, having just one game really limits a proper impression.

For instance, in Rivals, Kinect was doing a great job picking me up throughout the entire play through of the jet ski event while seated. It was properly seeing when I would curl my fists to use the accelerator (a normal motion on a jet ski), or when I would forward/back to perform tricks and lean side to side for turning. I messed around a bit just to see how accurately the avatar in game was matching my movements and just raised my arms up, which it did happily. I was able to some fairly subtle movements with my arms and hands, which were replicated on screen.

All of that is great because the old Kinect could be fairly unreliable over the course of an entire game and it certainly wasn't picking up subtle movements such as a slight fist curl. I just don't feel like I have to exaggerate my movements like before. So precision is so much better. I actually had moments thinking that it felt 1:1. I know in reality it is not, but they have improved it enough to push it near my ability to perceive the delay. Sony's move controller gave me that feeling too with the ps3.

I can't say any of the above with confidence for the ps4 camera. Play room is not an adequate test. Nothing about it felt like it required precision or accuracy. I believe the hardware is capable of some good experiences, but the software holds it back.

For me personally, it comes down to where the software is likely to come and Kinect's much better performance in low or no light that puts it ahead. I'm not sure about all the other specs, but the light issue always frustrated me with Kinect v1 and it would with the ps4 camera.

[BajiRav]

Hardware wise I believe they are fairly comparable, minus the IR blaster which makes the Kinect 2 work in dark rooms also. (IR Blaster is used for depth perception, PS4 uses two cameras for depth perception instead).

PS Eye:

- Two 1280x800 webcams

 

Kinect One:

- 1920x1080 Time of Flight camera

- 512 x424 depth stream

- 512 x424 IR stream

 

Yes, their specs are very comparable.

[George P Global Moderator]

Why does it seem like some want to try and dismiss either the Kinect 2 and or the hdmi-in?  It's pretty clear cut that the PS4 camera doesn't come close, it's too basic and the hardware isn't the same either.  So it's either "no one needs hdmi-in" or "PS4 has a camera and voice commands too!!".    

[fusi0n]

Why does it seem like some want to try and dismiss either the Kinect 2 and or the hdmi-in?  It's pretty clear cut that the PS4 camera doesn't come close, it's too basic and the hardware isn't the same either.  So it's either "no one needs hdmi-in" or "PS4 has a camera and voice commands too!!".    

Some people just really don't care about them.. I won't be using the HDMI in.. I might use the Kinect for Just Dance with my wife..

[freak180]

I am not really pleased with the kinect 2.. Which is why i turn the thing off. It was getting so annoying with the hand gestures that it thought i was making o.o ...so in the mean time I am waiting for updates to improve the software

[trooper11]

Some people just really don't care about them.. I won't be using the HDMI in.. I might use the Kinect for Just Dance with my wife..

This is very true. The reality is some features matter more to some than others.

I think the key is to not try and belittle those that like or dislike a feature, especially when their experience is different. Everyone has to accept that your opinion isn't going to be universal, so don't be shocked.

 

 

I am not really pleased with the kinect 2.. Which is why i turn the thing off. It was getting so annoying with the hand gestures that it thought i was making o.o ...so in the mean time I am waiting for updates to improve the software

Good example.

I have yet to have this issue a single time. The only time it has switched to gesture control is when I raised my hand to do it, which I only did once. Who knows why its different.

[freak180]

It occurred when I would grab something..such as the remote, or controller. and it happened countless times when i was eating o.O..so i was like NOPE...I'm done  :rofl:

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

How did you calibrate Kinect? Most people have recommended setting it up with volume set to as high as possible. I think the system also improves by learning from your usage and anyone else besides you will have a problem on your profile.

Volume was on 75 and it is usually on 55-60 as they make it clear to turn up your volume. I have also done it a few times since hooking it up. It hears me no problem, just does not always understand me and/or it understands me fine, it just has a slight lag with some of the more advanced features, especially on the OneGuide, which does make sense as it is doing a lot of stuff with the cable box feed, etc.

 

I have had some noticeable slowdown with the OS overall as well. Nothing that made me rage, but I did notice it. Quitting apps alleviated the issue though.

 

Hi Dirty Harry, you have both console so I was wondering if you could help me out.

I'm waiting for a PS4 pre-order but am interested in the Xbox One kinect features.

Is the kinect a vast improvement over the PS4 in regards to motion -detection?

I want the PS4 for the graphics edge for multi-plats and one or two exclusives, but am thinking about also purchasing the X1 for kinect games like Just Dance, Kinect Sports and other similar games. Do you think it's worth it or does the PS4 camera work just as well inside the games? I'm not interested in using it for UI.

I have not even bother to pick up a PS4 camera so cannot compare the cameras themselves, but Kinect 2 is a vastly more superior, I do not need to use the PS4 camera to know that. It does much more, even if it is not always successful, what it does do, it does it very well. It detects my dog as another person, so it is pretty damn good in regards to the motion detection stuff. If motion detection based games are what you are interested in, I do not even think it is a question, get a One.

 

EDIT - I did ask for a PS4 camera for X-Mas actually, figured if someone else wants to buy it for me I would check it out, so I may have some impressions a week or two after X-Mas once I have checked it out.

 

Good impressions, thanks for sharing.

About the OS navigation issues, there maybe be faster ways to do some things then are immediately obvious. So feel free to share those since we have all found little shortcuts for some of the issues.

No doubt there are unavoidable one though.

Also, did you get a chance to use the auto sign-in or voice commands for power?

Use them both yep. Those are what I meant when I said "the basics," as they are something all One owners should be using IMO as they make the experience that much better. As I said they are great. Definitely a fan of those types of features that make things better and easier. Perhaps I should have clarified that a bit more (what I meant by the basics), but those "standard" functions it performs great, and it is a better experience with them, no doubt. 

 

Why does it seem like some want to try and dismiss either the Kinect 2 and or the hdmi-in?  It's pretty clear cut that the PS4 camera doesn't come close, it's too basic and the hardware isn't the same either.  So it's either "no one needs hdmi-in" or "PS4 has a camera and voice commands too!!".    

For myself, I never dismissed the Kinect 2, I just said it has a long way to go with the advanced stuff. The basics like I said, are great.

As far as the HDMI In, my own experience was just not a great one. I also made it pretty clear that I personally have no real interest in snapping anything while I am playing a game, so honestly, HDMI-IN is very easy for me to dismiss as I have no need for it.

[sharpy2k4]

I got my Xbox One just over a week ago with FIFA 14 included, since then I have purchased BF4 and Ryse.

 

Initial impressions of the UI. TBH, I hate it compared to the 360 UI. It takes far more effort to do anything that it did previously in terms of settings, profile, appearance etc. However, I'll probably just need to get used to it and I'm sure more updates will improve the usability.

 

Installing Ryse took over 3 hours including the update, it kept installing then queuing then installing. Ended up just hooking up my 360 back up and finishing off AC4 on that.

 

Haven't really used the Kinect or the TV features as I'm in the UK and I cba to hook up the Kinect.

 

I really like the controller, it is much more comfier and responsive than the 360 so thats a plus.

 

Things I don't get:

 

Achievements - WHY on earth does it take you OUT of a game and have to load the entire achievement "app" rather than just a quick view like on the 360 that is an absolute ball ache when playing a game.

Party mode - On FIFA and BF4 I have found it alot harder to create a party in comparison to the 360 but I guess that will improve with updates. Also once we got party mode started the voice wasn't that clear so we resorted to using Skype....however then when on BF4 and in a "squad" it would duplicate voices which is utterly stupid.

FIFA 14 - On the 360 the back button was used to skip songs in menus....doesn't exist anymore. WHY! I don't want to edit the EA tracklist I like skipping through and they've completely forgotten to add that "feature".

Auto Sign in - with the kinect removed is there an auto sign in feature? I haven't looked/can't find it and this irritates me, no one else uses my XB1 and I dont want to have to click sign in when it used to do it automatically.

Media Streaming - The 360 had capabilities to stream from my laptop, as far as I'm aware the Xb1 can't do this, as a "media centre experience all in one thingy ma jiggy" i'm at a complete loss as to why I can't stream!

 

Even though I seem very negative these are little early doors gripes which will get updated (i hope), I love my XB1 and am happy with the purchase.

[timster]

I have been using the HDMI passthrough for my satellite receiver and it only works to a point. If I turn off either the X1 or the sat box and the decide to watch tv at some point, I have to cold boot the X1 (hold the on/off for 8 seconds, wait 30 seconds and then boot the system). I've also turned off the "Instant On" feature to save me from having to cold boot whenever I want to watch TV.

 

funny tho, I don't have to cold boot if I connect my Xbox 360 to the HDMI-in on the X1.

 

Media Streaming - The 360 had capabilities to stream from my laptop, as far as I'm aware the Xb1 can't do this, as a "media centre experience all in one thingy ma jiggy" i'm at a complete loss as to why I can't stream!

 

Xbox One can stream, but it's not nearly as user-friendly as it is with the Xbox 360.

 

[GotBored]

Why does it seem like some want to try and dismiss either the Kinect 2 and or the hdmi-in?  It's pretty clear cut that the PS4 camera doesn't come close, it's too basic and the hardware isn't the same either.  So it's either "no one needs hdmi-in" or "PS4 has a camera and voice commands too!!".    

 

Not sure who this is directed at.. But if its me, I was genuinely interested in the differences between the Kinect 2 and PS4 Eye Cameras. Hardware specs are comparable in my opinion, if you think otherwise that's great for you.

 

I was more interested in the accuracy and latency on actual gameplay, the only thing I see as an advantage the X1 has over the PS4 was the kinect and I was curious if it was worth getting one just cause of it.

But after the recent reviews and I also tried the PS4 Eye camera in store today with 'The Playroom' demo and got store staff to put 'Just Dance 2014' in to give it a shot also, I've decided the PS4 Camera actually works real well, accuracy and latency is very good its much better than the kinect 1 camera. I haven't been able to test out the kinect 2 camera, so hopefully the guys who have both consoles give it a go and write-up a review. I bought the Xbox One for a christmas present for nephew and niece so should be able to try it out after Christmas.

[neoadorable]

Yeah, hopefully your able to get access to them not far into 2014.

There should have been a couple more updates by then as well, so things should improve overall by then.

 

Thanks a lot trooper, for sure if i'm still here when they launch it, will get a system. if I head back to the states will get it there. honestly no rush, PS4 is great and am pretty sure will be getting a Wii U next few weeks, can't resist the temptation.

 

Wow, the impressions shared by DL and others about X1 are a little shocking. Why are download and install times this long? is this still a problem? on PS4 games now download much faster than on PS3. a small game used to take literally days sometimes, now Warframe downloaded in less than 30 minutes, which is a huge improvement. it sounds like MS are really going out of their way to mess things up, and this is not making me regret the lack of the system where I live. and why the hell is looking up an achievement taking you out of a game? that makes no sense at all.