Xbox Responds To PS5 Teardown Video With Cheeky Tweet, Then Deletes It

A PS5 official teardown video walked us through some ins and outs of the upcoming console, including how to install its expandable storage. One part addressed how to convert the stand from its horizontal to a vertical configuration, prompting a cheeky response from Microsoft.

In the video, converting the stand seems to take some mild tinkering: unscrewing the stand from the vertical position, placing a plug piece in the hole, and then clipping the stand into the new horizontal configuration. The PS5 console design itself is curved, which necessitates the flat stand part to make it stable.

Meanwhile, the Xbox Series X is, well, a box. Microsoft jumped on the opportunity to poke fun at its competition with a how-to tweet--except the process is just turning the console on its side. Because it's a box. It does still have a stand on its underside, and it can't be removed. However, this is likely for improved ventilation more than anything.

The tweet focused on the Xbox Series X, but the Series S has a similarly boxy shape.

However, as you may notice, the tweet embedded above no longer works. It appears Microsoft opted to deleted it, perhaps not wanting to stoke unnecessary fires between the two companies. With very different goals this generation, it's entirely possible the two systems can both succeed.

The social media response recalls echoes of a similar stunt Sony pulled on Microsoft. When the Xbox One reveal showed a complex process for sharing games due to its DRM, Sony responded with a video on how to share a PS4 game by just handing a disc to a friend. That helped ride a wave of pushback against Microsoft's DRM policy, though--to the point that Microsoft even scrapped its policy before the Xbox One launch--and the PS5's vertical stand situation is unlikely to engender the same level of widespread controversy.

The PS5 teardown revealed another extremely useful feature of the PS5--it has two dust trap holes, so cleaning out your system's insides is much easier than it was for previous systems.

Both next-gen consoles are coming next month, just two days apart--November 10 for Xbox Series S and Series X, and November 12 for PlayStation 5. Check out our Xbox Series X preorder guide and PS5 preorder guide to help lock one (or both) down.