My problem with an Microsoft built device is that consumer expectation will look at it like an Xbox and not a PC, which means they expect a higher level compatibility, ease of use, and performance. That places additional burden on developers to support that hardware specifically as opposed to just here is a PC version.
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Develope xbox skin for PC gamepass App. And call it a day. Maybe charge it in gamepass ultimate. Easy Peasy.
The hardware is tricky. I have an ultimate solution. Will share it soon.
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I donât get why thatâs so hard, I use equipment every day that launches a full screen application after boot up and hides windows until you go look for it. Simply launch the Xbox App on start up of the device and youâre done lol.
I think thatâs just step one, I also seem to be remember an article about it that was written recently.
Yeah, they also have to make the Xbox App more friendly for a small device and touch/controller based inputs. And probably make it better generally, lol.
The app isnât as bad as it used to be, so theyâre clearly working on it. Quick launch for other stores(which I think theyâre planning, from what I remember of the article) and an easier navigation for controllers to not need to use a mouse, should also be part of the features sets the app would need.
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Maybe add an area for games installed via third party stores etc to make it a seemless experience.
Ditto Xbox skin will be much better and attractive. Will pay gamepass ultimate for it.
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Steam Deck and PC handhelds altogether through all of history sold single digit millions.
If MS release a handheld theyâll want to outdo all the PC handhelds including Steam Deck combined.
Thatâs not happening with another PC handheld.
Itâs only happening with a dedicated, custom built Xbox HW with near perfect BC with Xbox One or Series S.
First iteration should target somewhere between 5-10 million units LTD.
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Another food for thought. M2 vs Zen 2.
M2: Apple M2 - Geekbench 5 CPU Search - Geekbench
Zen2: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X Benchmarks - Geekbench
As of today, customized ARM CPU cores should be fast enough to run Xbox Series games in BC mode.
Does geekbench run under rosetta or native on the M2?
No idea. But Iâm guessing the workloads should be standardized across all architectures.
I will be shocked if Microsoft actually releases an Xbox handheld when Steam Deck, ROG Ally, Logitech all exist along with laptops, tablets and cell phones. In my mind, creating an Xbox handheld seems like a massive waste of money, time and resources. Also, if it doesnât have internal storage, then itâs basically a streaming only device which already puts it behind other better options.
My thinking is that there current hot swapple xbox ssd could likely be configured for internal storage with a slot on the top to add another card.
So it comes with 500gb of storage like the Series S with the external SSD boosting that up to 2.5TB.
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Xbox handheld would be a console, one that you can put in your hands. Handheld PCs are PCs you can put in your hand. If there is a market for Xbox consoles next to PC, there is a market for Xbox handheld next to handheld PCs.
If you own a steam deck, Rog Ally you would know that such a device is not a substitute for a dedicated Xbox consoles for the average gamer. The price point, UX, library compatibility, and battery life of a handheld PC will never have parity with Xbox handheld.
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Do you game on handhelds? How is your handheld experience makes xbox handheld waste of money?
while i would like a dedicated device I feel like xbox making a xbox themed rog alley for example would be the route they would go along with supporting gamepass on each device and im ok with that. im glad this market is taking off. nintendo owned it with crappy hardware for to long
Hmm, if Microsoft were to make a handheld do they launch it at the same time as their next gne hardware or do they launch it years after? I feel the latter would be wiser due to parts coming down in price because I feel price would be key to see if Microsoft can move units. Microsoft does have a pretty good reach if they attempt it because Steam for example canât reach many markets and the OEM windows handhelds might have the same issues
I guess. But Series S is $300. I canât imagine a portable being cheaper than that especially if it has internal SSD storage. And at $300, I just donât see it selling to casuals at all while only the true hardcore will buy it.
What do you mean by the Xbox handheld being a console? Iâm confused on this. The handheld PC will be superior because the specifications and what you can do would be higher. An Xbox handheld would be made to sell at a certain price point (my guess is $200 or $300 maximum) which means the specifications arenât exactly going to blow you away.
Also, since you can access your Xbox library and Steam library as well as Game Pass on those handhelds I mentioned earlier, why would anyone who already owns any of them buy an Xbox dedicated handheld which wouldnât include Steam and whatnot. So if a handheld now gives to access to everything but yet, the Xbox handheld wouldnât, I just donât see the point.
Not only that but in all honesty, I donât think the handheld market is worth anything because unlike handhelds that did great, it was before mobile gaming which now dominating in this aspect. I just donât see an Xbox handheld doing anything to where itâs actually worth doing.
Nope. The only handhelds that I have ever played on were the original GameBoy for a few years in the early 90âs, had a 3DS for Super Mario 3D Land and Resident Evil Revelations in 2011/2012 but dropped it quickly and sold it at a loss on ebay. Most recently, bought a Switch OLED a year ago and had it for two weeks and only played it as a handheld because docked on the LG CX OLED, the picture was horrible so that didnât last long either.
Itâs not about MY experience. I just see it as a total and complete waste of money, time and resources that could be better spent. With all the handhelds available that allows access to everything, why would anyone sacrifice and of them for a handheld that would be Xbox only? I donât get it.
Not only that but while I see the PlayStation Portal as a flop that will be lucky to hit 10m life time sales, it will still do better than an Xbox handheld simply because the PlayStation brand is far bigger than Xbox, mobile gaming is the true handheld way of gaming nowadays and more than perhaps anything, if Nintendo was willing to give up a market that they always dominated in because they knew it wasnât going to stay that way, why anyone would even want to see Microsoft do this when Nintendo is basically telling everyone everything they need to know is beyond me.
Bottom line is that I just donât see the point or purpose in an Xbox handheld in 2024 when thereâs a bunch of other and better alternatives. But again, this is just my own personal opinion.
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Also, since you can access your Xbox library and Steam library as well as Game Pass on those handhelds I mentioned earlier, why would anyone who already owns any of them buy an Xbox dedicated handheld which wouldnât include Steam and whatnot. So if a handheld now gives to access to everything but yet, the Xbox handheld wouldnât, I just donât see the point.
You donât see the point because like you said you donât own a PC handheld such as the Steam Deck, Rog Ally, etc.
You say that a PC handheld gives me access to everything but that is untrue.
PC handheld does not give me access to all my digital games on Xbox.
PC handheld does not give me access to all the games in the Xbox library.
PC handheld does not give me access to majority of the games in Gamepass.
PC handheld does not give me 2+ hours of play time when playing AAA titles.
PC handheld does not give me an accessible UI and UX. Itâs awful on all the Windows devices, and it will always be worse than the Xbox UI.
PC handhelds do not give me the ergonomics of a the Xbox controller. They all fucking suck in terms of ergonomics compared to the Xbox controller.
PC handhelds will not give me the price / perf ratio of a Xbox handheld.
PC handhelds will not allow me to play games out of the box without tweaking multiple graphical settings.
PC handhelds will not give me a guarantee that a game that I buy for PC will be playable.
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Okay. Noted. Fair enough.
But hereâs a question for you - would it be better for Microsoft to update/upgrade/fix those issues where/when possible on those other handhelds as opposed to creating their own handheld?