GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links.

New Xbox Series X Details: Specs, Controller, Quick Resume, And Everything We Just Learned

Microsoft has revealed a ton of new information about its upcoming next-gen Xbox console.

10 Comments

Microsoft's next-generation Xbox Series X arrives later this year (though rumors of a Thanksgiving release date were quickly stamped out), and the company has been gradually revealing new details about it in the lead up to its release. We've now learned a wealth of new information about the upcoming system in an Xbox Wire post and Digital Foundry report, including its official specifications and how its Quick Resume function will work. To help catch you up on all the details, we've rounded up everything new we've learned about Xbox Series X below.

Xbox Series X Full Specs Revealed

We've previously known some broad details about Xbox Series X's hardware, but Microsoft has now revealed the console's full specs. The system offers 12 teraflops of performance and boasts 16 GB of GDDR6 memory across a variable memory bus. It will also support two types of external memory, allowing you to expand SSD storage with a proprietary drive from Seagate or store games on an external HDD (much as you can with Xbox One).

Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.
This video has an invalid file format.
00:00:00
Sorry, but you can't access this content!
Please enter your date of birth to view this video

By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's
Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Now Playing: Xbox Series X: Everything You Need To Know So Far, In Under 4 Minutes

  • CPU: 8x Zen 2 Cores at 3.8GHz (3.6GHz with SMT)
  • GPU: 12 TFLOPs, 52 CUs at 1.825GHz, Custom RDNA 2
  • Die Size: 360.45mm2
  • Process: TSMC 7nm Enhanced
  • Memory: 16GB GDDR6
  • Memory Bandwidth: 10GB at 560GB/s, 6GB at 336GB/s
  • Internal Storage: 1TB Custom NVMe SSD
  • IO Throughput: 2.4GB/s (Raw), 4.8GB/s (Compressed)
  • Expandable Storage: 1TB Expansion Card
  • External Storage: USB 3.2 HDD Support
  • Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-ray Drive
  • Performance Target: 4K at 60fps - up to 120fps

Quick Resume And Faster Loading

On top of revealing the system's specs, Microsoft has given us our first look at Xbox Series X's Quick Resume and faster loading times in action. The former allows you to suspend up to three Series X titles at once and seamlessly jump between them. To demonstrate the latter, Microsoft showed off how long State of Decay 2 takes to load on its current and next-gen systems. On Xbox One, the zombie game takes nearly a minute to first load you into the world, but this initial load takes only about 10 seconds on the Series X.

Gears 5 Is Coming To Xbox Series X With Improvements

Xbox Series X is backwards compatible with every previous Xbox console, and older games will get a performance boost on the next-gen system. Gears 5 is among the Xbox One titles you'll be able to play on the Series X, and Microsoft has shown off some of the improvements that game is getting on the new system. On the Series X, Gears 5 will have better textures and volumetric fog, higher particle count, and run at 60 frames per second during cutscenes for a smoother transition to gameplay. If you already own Gears 5 on Xbox One, you'll get it on the Series X for free via the Smart Delivery system.

Gears 5 won't be the only older game to get an upgrade on the Series X. The console will use a machine-learning algorithm to upgrade older titles with high-dynamic range (HDR) color.

Improved Controller

No Caption Provided

Xbox Series X will also launch with a redesigned Xbox controller. While the design sticks close to the existing Xbox One gamepad, it boasts a few new features like a Share button and revised D-pad. According to senior designer Ryan Whitaker, the goal of these controller tweaks was to fit the hands of an average 8-year-old, with rounded bumpers and parts of the triggers, without impacting those with bigger hands.

Storage Expansion

Unlike the Xbox One, Xbox Series X features a SSD, and you'll be able to expand it with a proprietary external SSD. The system will also still support standard HDDs--such as the one you might currently be using for your Xbox One--but Microsoft states that for Xbox Series X titles you will be required to transfer the game to the internal SSD to play it.

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com

Join the conversation
There are 10 comments about this story