HIGHLIGHTS
- Xbox Wireless will let you use the same peripherals on PC and Xbox One
- PCs will have Xbox Wireless support
- Microsoft is in talks with motherboard manufacturers for integration
In what seems to be another attempt at merging the PC and Xbox One platforms, Microsoft has announced Xbox Wireless. It’s a new ecosystem of compatible hardware and peripherals.
Existing Xbox One consoles and accessories are Xbox Wireless ready. The upcoming Lenovo IdeaCentre Y710 Cube will be the first Xbox Wireless PC. It’s launching in October. More partners and devices are on the way.
“While this is the first partner device to have built-in Xbox Wireless support, it won’t be the last. We are currently working with other partners such as Astro, PDP, Turtle Beach, and many more,” posted Will Tuttle, Xbox Wire Editor in Chief on the official Xbox website. “Going forward, you should expect to see both new PCs and new accessories that support Xbox Wireless as we create new ways for our fans to play seamlessly across devices.”
With Xbox Wireless, you can use a single set of peripherals between the Xbox One and PC such as PDP’s Band Wireless Fender Jaguar Guitar Controller which won’t need extra dongles or adapters – working seamlessly across supported devices.
And if you don’t have a PC that has built-in Xbox Wireless support, there will be an adapter available for you to use Xbox One peripherals with ease. It seems that in conjunction with the Xbox Play Anywhere program, Microsoft wants to unify PC gamers under a single banner, bringing both hardware and software under a single brand – Xbox. What’s more is that the company plans to court PC component makers directly.
“In the IdeaCentre Y710, for example, we are using the Xbox Wireless Adapter and integrating it inside the physical chassis – the first time this has ever been done officially,” Tuttle claims. “In the future, we plan to enable direct integration of Xbox Wireless into PC motherboards with our hardware partners.”
All of this falls in line with what Windows insider Brad Sams revealed in March.
“What if Xbox just becomes software?” he asked rhetorically on his podcast. “If your system [PC] meets the specs, your PC can be an Xbox. Don’t get me wrong Microsoft will still build a dedicated box. But eventually it becomes software.”
While these are welcome additions, it means nothing if the gaming experience on Windows 10 isn’t what it should be. With ReCore out later next month we should have a good idea of how Microsoft’s vision of gaming across PC and Xbox One works out.
Source: gadgets.ndtv.com
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