Xbox

I'm using an S while my X is off for repair - it's struggling with some things quite a bit (really doesn't like Borderlands 3) but it's been great with older titles and things that have smart delivery like Sleeping Dogs remaster, Riders Republic, Battlefront 2.

Titles such as Overwatch and Sea of Thieves run fine but look appreciably worse than they did on the X.

It's also working perfectly fine as a media machine.

It's doing enough to keep me entertained but I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss the X.

Hope that helps!

ETA: Haven't had any problems with the hardware breaking since the 360 era (which was VERY bad) - current problem with the X was caused by a literal lightning strike so overall that is still the case.

What’s your gear? I purchased first a XSS but didn’t really like how it looked on a 4k tv, and after 2,5 years the XSX is rocking perfectly, also I got all the forza games on disc and that’s the only way to play the older ones. But if you don’t use a big 4k tv nor discs and have a strict budget the XSS is not too bad, the speed of loading should be the same and you can enjoy the games anyway

Reports on the longevity of console are subjective at best, so take it with a grain of salt.

I bought my Series S USED about 2 years ago for 200€ and it was the best use of the little money I have for gaming purposes. All in all its a great console, well paired with gamepass/3rd party key sellers (at best only use cdkeys), and plays everything the series X can.

It doesn't come without it's shortcoming tough. The ssd space is pretty limited (you choosing the 1TB option kinda negates that), and games generally run on "inferior" versions when compared to their series X counterparts. This CAN include 30fps or 1080p gameplay (which is still fine, imo), often developers try to give graphic/performance options (like, choosing 60fps and 1080p or 30fps and 1440p).

While some games crashed on me (e.g. Cyberpunk after many, many hours of play/quick resume) the console itself never crashed and still runs like a charm, and I use it heavily, almost daily.

I'd say it's ultimately a question of how you want to spend your money. If your disposable income is high enough there is almost no reason not to get the Series X, but if you're strapped for cash the S is definitely a very, VERY worthy compromise, in my opinion. :)

If you have some more questions feel free to ask :D

You will receive vastly different answers by different people to that question, since different people have different requirements (and incidentally you didn’t stated yours).

My 2cts: If you want to use the Series S as your only current gen console on a nice large 4K HDR TV and expecting to be blown away by the graphics you will be disappointed, since the Series S’ graphics looks considerably worse. People may start to fight this statement, but consider this: the Series S held their own against last gen consoles quite well (even the X/Pro refreshes), since the current development for games is completely screwed we didn’t really enter current gen the first few years of this cycle, therefore Series S looked like a great value proposition. If people don’t play current games (which are just starting to begin being current gen only), they may have had a better experience with the Series S tha past few years, than they will have as soon as current gen really is upon us. The Series S - though marketed otherwise - is not a true current gen 4K console.

If you are planning to use the Series S as a companion to a PS5 either for GamePass or dipping your toes into some Xbox exclusives, I’d personally wait for Starfield to come out and get reviews how it’s performing on Series S, all other MS exclusives don’t warrant spending any money, in my opinion.

In case the Series S should accompany a switch (which is a less talked about scenario), graphical fidelity won’t really be the issue, since Series S vastly outperforms the Switch docked.

I’m very contrived situations, where one would be using a 1080p or 1440p desktop monitor and a PC not equipped for gaming or a mac, the Series S could be a nice companion for some casual gaming, but as soon as the monitor becomes too good, the Series S will hurt even more due to the short distance between the user and the screen.

Depends a lot on what you want to do with it. If you're planning on playing big AAA titles, expect major compromises. If you just want something cheap and cheerful that'll play cool new indie games on, then it's a really bloody good system.

I decided for the last 2 - 3 days if I want a Series S 512 GB or a Steam Deck 64 GB to play Starfield. The Series S won, obviously. I just bought it today and it will arrive tomorrow. I also cope for Game Pass releases of Blizzard Games. Not being able to play on 4K, the disk space or not having 60 fps on every game is not an issue for me. I played on my Xbox One S, an older Gaming PC and a modern Mac Mini on a 4k monitor for years now.

just a heads up: the new Series S with 1TB isn't out yet. if you are looking to buy it, it will release in September. all the ones you are seeing right now are still the 500GB version. if you have the time, i would wait for it. i bought mine in February and the limited amount of space is my main criticism. i had to invest an additional 100 bucks to get a fast external SSD.

It depends.

If you have games on disc and don’t want to be limited to 1080p in most games then no it’s not worth it.

But if you don’t have a 4K TV with no plans to buy one and your entire game collection is digital then yes it’s worth it. But the new 1TB Series S is not worth it as for not a lot more cash you can just buy a Series X.