Xbox One February Update Brings Game Hubs, Numerous TV Enhancements
It's hard to believe that it's been over a year since Microsoft launched its Xbox One console to retail, which is probably a good thing, as it means there haven't been any major issues (like the infamous Red Ring of Death) to distract us. Now as we kick off a new year, Microsoft is readying an update for next month, adding to the hundreds of features it already rolled out in 2014.
This time around, one of the big new additions is that of Game hubs. New in preview form this month, game hubs give players a glimpse of various interesting content surrounding the favorite games. Each game will have one, and inside the game hub, you'll see which of your friends are playing that particular title, compete with friends in game leaderboards, check out game clips and broadcasts, and follow the game's VIPs and top players.
To get there, you first need to locate your game (in your pins, recently played list, or My games and apps). Once there, press the Menu button and select View game hub. Alternately, you can search for a game in the Xbox Store and click on a game's hub tile from its store page.
The other big focus of Microsoft's February update includes tweaks to the TV experience. Microsoft has always been big on its Xbox systems being more than just game boxes, but full-fledged media boxes, so it's no surprise to see so much effort being put into the TV side of things.
Part of Microsoft's TV efforts includes expanding features to new territories. For example, there's now a OneGuide for the Netherlands, while Live TV trending has been expanded to include France, Germany, Brazil, and Mexico.
Microsoft also said it's continuing the preview of live TV streaming on Windows Phone and Android devices for Xbox One Digital TV Tuner owners in the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
Finally, there's a bling to this update. More specifically, Microsoft said it received tons of feedback about tile transparency, which it implemented in the February update to make custom backgrounds more visible.
This time around, one of the big new additions is that of Game hubs. New in preview form this month, game hubs give players a glimpse of various interesting content surrounding the favorite games. Each game will have one, and inside the game hub, you'll see which of your friends are playing that particular title, compete with friends in game leaderboards, check out game clips and broadcasts, and follow the game's VIPs and top players.
To get there, you first need to locate your game (in your pins, recently played list, or My games and apps). Once there, press the Menu button and select View game hub. Alternately, you can search for a game in the Xbox Store and click on a game's hub tile from its store page.
The other big focus of Microsoft's February update includes tweaks to the TV experience. Microsoft has always been big on its Xbox systems being more than just game boxes, but full-fledged media boxes, so it's no surprise to see so much effort being put into the TV side of things.
Part of Microsoft's TV efforts includes expanding features to new territories. For example, there's now a OneGuide for the Netherlands, while Live TV trending has been expanded to include France, Germany, Brazil, and Mexico.
Microsoft also said it's continuing the preview of live TV streaming on Windows Phone and Android devices for Xbox One Digital TV Tuner owners in the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
Finally, there's a bling to this update. More specifically, Microsoft said it received tons of feedback about tile transparency, which it implemented in the February update to make custom backgrounds more visible.
