The Xbox Series S's storage size has been criticized, with many saying the console's more affordable 512GB NVMe SSD is too small. And while I wish Microsoft had added a few more gigabytes to its little white box, it's honestly not that bad. Although Microsoft was forced to reveal its hand earlier than it would have liked, the reception for the Xbox Series S has been overwhelmingly positive since its reveal. The "Smallest Xbox Ever" promises to deliver all the next-gen features gamers will enjoy on Xbox Series X, like ray tracing, super-fast load times, and all for a great price. , Much lower. At just £299 / £249 / AU$499, it's one of the cheapest consoles in quite some time. However, reductions have been made to achieve this attractive price level. The console will target 1440p resolution instead of 4K, and it's significantly less powerful than its boxy big brother. It's also digital only, which means there's no record player on this model.
Storage wars
![Xbox Series S en el interior]()
There's a lot of power in this little frame. (Image credit: Microsoft) So the main point of contention with Microsoft's entry-level device seems to revolve around the size of the SSD. To be fair, this is not a surprise. Most games tend to require at least 40GB or more of hard drive space these days, while some are determined to take up every available gig. I'm looking at you Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. But if we dig a little deeper, it might not be as bad as it seems. With the move to 4K gaming, file sizes have increased exponentially. Xbox One X patches are significantly larger than Xbox One S patches, simply because there's more data to download for things like 4K textures. So it's safe to assume that games for the Xbox Series S, which are targeting 1440p, won't use 4K textures and are expected to be considerably smaller. The Xbox Series S will also allow owners to expand the console's storage in a number of ways. Microsoft has partnered with Seagate to create expansion cards that fit into the back of the console and match the capacities of its internal SSD. These 1TB expansion cards will offer a significant storage increase for the Xbox Series S model, although the price will determine its feasibility. Larger variants are likely to arrive further down the line as well, for those who want even more space.
Connect baby
![Qué nostálgico.]()
How nostalgic. (Image credit: Seagate) "When you decide you want to jump into a certain game, just transfer it to the main drive and you're good to go." But what about all the Xbox One, Xbox 360, and OG Xbox games you already own? Well, if you have an external hard drive, these games can be conveniently stored away from the console's main SSD. With cheap 2TB external hard drives these days, it doesn't cost much to store hundreds of Xbox One games without sacrificing space on the super-fast SSD. You can also store games specially designed to take advantage of the Xbox Series S or Xbox Series X SSD on an external hard drive. When you decide you want to jump into a certain game, just transfer it to the main unit and you're good to go. Fortunately, it's becoming increasingly clear that most developers and console manufacturers are aware that file sizes have gotten out of hand. Several games have recently shrunk as developers improve file size compression or reduce the fatness of certain bits of code. Warframe is going to reduce its install size by 15GB, for example, and Sea of Thieves has managed to tweak its thumbprint recently as well.
Be smart
![Xbox Series X y Xbox Series S]()
Small and big. (Image credit: Microsoft) Initiatives like “intelligent delivery” are also likely to become more common in this generation. This is when some parts of the game can be downloaded or skipped, such as a multiplayer component or various language packs that will never be used. By downloading only what you need, game file sizes will invariably decrease. Xbox Series S owners will also have access to almost the entire hard drive of the console. Unlike most 500GB models, which were the norm for most of this generation, the extra 12GB of storage included in the Xbox Series S will act as a nice buffer to keep the system's operating system from taking a big hit. part of space Depending on the success of the Xbox Series S, Microsoft will inevitably produce a new iteration with a larger hard drive. The price will go up, though, which I think lessens the appeal of the super-affordable system designed by the Redmond-based company. Either way, unlimited storage is a rarity and will always cost more. With smart delivery, the addition of a cheap or existing external drive, and the ability to forgo 4K resolution textures, the Xbox Series S should have enough space for most users. Let's be thankful that this is more than the 32GB that came with the Nintendo Switch... Get the best Xbox Series X deals before anyone else! We'll send you pre-order details and the best Xbox Series X deals as they become available. Please send me details of other relevant Techradar products and future brands. Please send me details of other relevant third party products. No spam, I promise. You can unsubscribe at any time and we will never share your data without your permission.