Xbox One Prepares For Backward Compatibility And Windows 10 Streaming With New Firmware This Week

Xbox One users will be required to download a firmware update this week, which is reported to prepare Xbox One consoles for the upcoming Windows 10 streaming and backward compatibility feature this July.

Polygon reports that the new firmware for Xbox One that will be available for download this week will not feature any significant User Interface changes. The firmware will be purely to prepare Xbox One consoles for the cooler features coming to Xbox One, which are the Windows 10 streaming and Xbox 360 backward compatibility.

The Xbox One backward compatibility already soft-launched at E3 2015, with around 20 Xbox 360 games already playable in the Xbox One console. However, the feature is still in testing as of the moment, and it will be widely available to Xbox One users later this year. The new firmware will be preparing the Xbox One consoles for the bigger wave of Xbox 360 games to come.

The Windows 10 streaming in Xbox One is another huge feature that Xbox users are waiting for. Windows 10 will release commercially on July 29, and the Xbox One streaming will be launched alongside the operating system’s release. This is another revolutionary move for Microsoft, since the launch of Windows 10 will pave the way for cross-platform play, the possibility of cross-purchase of games, and game streaming between PC and Xbox One.

Microsoft writes what the new Windows 10 and Xbox One compatibility would mean for gamers.

“Communicate with your friends on Windows 10 PCs and Xbox One — while playing any PC game. You can capture, edit and share your greatest gaming moments with Game DVR, and play new games with friends across devices. You can play games on your PC, streamed directly from your Xbox One console to your Windows 10 tablets or PCs, within your home. Games developed for DirectX 12 in Windows 10 will see improvements in speed, efficiency and graphics capability.”

While this week’s firmware will not feature significant UI changes, Xbox One users should look forward to the Xbox One backward compatibility and Windows 10 streaming as much as with the upcoming UI overhaul this coming fall.

VG247 reports that the massive UI overhaul for Xbox One will feature brand new elements that will come to the Xbox One and some of the highlights of the redesign are as follows.

“A redesigned Home: We’ve redesigned Home to surface your most-used Xbox content; A new guide: Gaming must-haves like friends, party invites, and messages can be accessed directly from Home or while in a game; Community section: We’ve expanded upon the current Friends section so gamers can more quickly and easily access all their social activities which includes the Xbox One Activity Feed; Xbox Avatars: We are modernizing the look of avatars with better image quality, keeping all the familiar customizations fans loved on Xbox 360; Cortana comes to Xbox One: On Xbox One, Cortana becomes your personal gaming assistant. Cortana helps you elevate your game, gets smarter over time, and works across all your Windows 10 PCs, tablets and phones through voice commands.”

Stay tuned for more news regarding Xbox One firmwares and updates.