It’s no secret that Microsoft wants to bring a little bit of Windows 10 to the Xbox One. Microsoft is referring to this update as “the new Xbox One Experience” and this update is set to roll out for those of you who are enrolled in the preview program. Here’s how the company plans to roll out the update.
Those who are enrolled in the preview program and have historically submitted the most feedback will be given access to the update. Microsoft wants to get feedback from an initial group of testers, then roll out the update to larger groups for additional feedback over time.
Keep in mind that not everyone will get to preview this update at the same time and new features will be added as the update comes closer to launch. Microsoft will roll out the new experience to all preview members in waves following the initial release to the first few groups.
Microsoft is sending invites to the update to preview members via an Xbox Live message. Once an invite is received, you can launch the Xbox Preview Dashboard and select the registration option. From there, you can opt-in by selecting “Preview – New Xbox One Experience.”
Aside from this new experience, Microsoft will continue to roll out new builds for those who have opted in. In other words, you can still receive regular updates even if you decide not to snag the new Xbox One experience update.
The update? I use it every day. (sorry for glare, it’s sunny!) https://t.co/DQPKVkFkZk pic.twitter.com/ZCzuJRqpbY
— Mike Ybarra (@XboxQwik) September 11, 2015
- Backwards compatibility with Xbox 360 games, a hotly demanded feature. Over 100 games will be initially supported, with others rolling out over several months.
- Windows 10 style UI changes.
- A new, easily accessible Guide layout that allows easy access to notifications, party and friend management, messages, and settings.
- A revamped, more intuitive Home page
- A new Community section to help keep track of the latest trends and developments in the Xbox Live community. This includes a redesigned Activity Feed to better help keep track of your friends, and a Trending section to see the latest of what’s happening.
- A revamped OneGuide to better manage all your movies and TV shows. This includes an added picture-in-picture mode to allow simultaneous browsing and watching. It also includes tools to keep track of popular, live shows and up-to-date information on their viewership and community activity. A new App Channel shows the latest TV shows, movies, and videos highlighted by your apps.
- Store optimizations to help you better locate the content you want.
