We all knew it was coming. A more-steamlined Xbox One has been rumored for a while, and the scuttlebutt was seemingly backed up by a leak late last night. So Microsoft wasted no time at their E3 2016 press conference by announcing the Xbox One S right off the bat.
The new console is much slimmer than the bulky Xbox One (around 40% smaller, to be precise), and comes in a sleek white finish that’s a lot nicer than the bland PVR look of the original Xbox One. It will also come with 4K video and Blu-ray support, and a new 2TB hard drive. A slightly tweaked Xbox One controller and greater range is also part of the package. These new controllers can be customized to come in basically any color you want.
Best of all? The more compact, powerful hardware will start at $299 for the 500GB version, while the roomier 1TB version will cost $349 and the 2TB model will cost $399. Those are very competitive prices, and definitely could make the Xbox One the current-gen console of choice for budget-conscious gamers. Of course this might depend on what Sony reveals about the PlayStation 4.5 later today.
The Xbox One S arrives to free up some shelf space in early August.