Xbox One August Update starts to roll out to consoles

Ron

Xbox One August Update starts to roll out to consoles

The eagerly anticipated August Update for Xbox One is now starting to roll out to gamers around the world. Major Nelson has released a video outlining some of the highlights of the latest update, including redesigned Activities Feed in Friends. The clutter has been stripped out to give a cleaner, more streamlined look that focuses on the information your actually want to see.

The update addresses other issues too. There’s little more infuriating than having your controller’s battery die on you right at a critical point in a game. This problem should now be a thing of the past thanks to the additional of on-screen low battery notifications. But this is not the only thing that can interrupt the flow of Xbox One enjoyment — notifications can also get in the way. With this latest update notifications will no longer be displayed when videos are playing.

Other changes includes the addition of mobile purchasing options, support for 3D Blu-Ray, and details of when friends were last seen online.

Here’s that full feature list so you know what to expect:

  • Mobile purchase: One of the most requested features on Xbox Feedback. Using Xbox SmartGlass or on Xbox.com, you can remotely purchase games and Add-on content. No more waiting to begin downloading when you get home – if your console is set to automatically take updates, your console will begin downloading your purchase.
  • Activity feed updates: We’re adding new ways for you to interact with friends in the activity feed. The interface will change to a single column scrolling list that is longer and includes more content. We’ll add the ability to post text to your feed, and to “like” and comment on feed items. You can share game clips and anything else in the feed with friends either publically (to your activity feed) or privately (as an attachment to a message). You’ll also be notified when anyone likes, comments on or shares your items. Each user will get a personal feed on their profile, so you can see what specific friends have been up to. And, with SmartGlass, you can see what your friends have shared to their activity feed and “like” specific posts (additional activity feed support coming in future SmartGlass updates).
  • Low battery notification: You asked for it, now a notification will pop up when your controller battery is getting low.
  • Disable notifications during video: Adding the ability to turn off notifications based feedback we heard from you.
  • Enabling 3D Blu-ray: An update to the Blu-ray player app will enable 3D Blu-ray functionality on Xbox One.
  • Last seen time in Friends list: Direct from Xbox Feedback, the friends list will now show how long it’s been since a friend has been online. For example, “Last seen 20m ago: Forza Motorsport 5.”

As before, this update sees Microsoft responding directly to feedback from users. Have the changes you were hoping for been introduced, or are you still waiting?

Check out the video below to see what the update has in store for you: