Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S: Major differences between the consoles

The next-gen consoles are almost upon us, with both Sony and Microsoft gearing up for a Holidays 2020 launch. Microsoft has been making a lot of headway with Xbox and as a response to the widespread rumours, the company announced the Xbox Series S and its Estimated Retail Price.

The Xbox Series S will be the smallest console by the company, yet will have all the next-gen capabilities. There are a lot of differences between the Series X and Series S and here, we take a look at what separates the two consoles.

Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S: What's the difference?

1) Design and Form Factor

One thing that stands out the most when looking at the next-gen consoles is obviously the difference in size. While the basic design principles of the next-gen Xbox consoles remains quite similar, there is a significant difference in footprint and size.

The Xbox One S is considerably small; much smaller, in fact. Although the Xbox Series X looks like a console that is best suited for vertical use, the Series S looks like it will work just fine horizontally.

This could be a huge deciding factor for users who simply do not have the space to accommodate a vertical console in their current setup.

2) Price

This is the clear separator between the two, with the Series S at $299 being a considerably more affordable option. The trade-off doesn't only come from the lack of a disc drive but in terms of hardware as well.

The Xbox Series X will be the superior console in terms of hardware performance as well as specs and is priced as such. The Series X is a supremely high-powered console and its pricing is expected to be, according to the leaks, around the $499 mark.

However, Microsoft are looking to push the Xbox All Access subscription service that allows players to essentially acquire the console through a monthly payment.

All Access certainly bridges the price gap factor and brings it down to simply a choice between hardware specifications for potential buyers.

3) Hardware Specs

According to substantial leaks, the Xbox Series S will support up to 1440p / 120 FPS, raytracing and will include a 512 GB custom SSD. This is quite clearly a next-gen console but the difference comes from the absence of the disc drive.

For many players, purchasing digital versions of the game is the way to go, and the lack of a disc drive doesn't seem to be a glaring issue. However, the Series X will also have decidedly more powerful specs.

Hardware Specs for Xbox Series X:

• CPU: 8x Cores @ 3.8 GHz (3.6 GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
• GPU: 12 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @ 1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
• Die Size: 360.45 mm2
• Process: 7nm Enhanced
• Memory: 16 GB GDDR6 w/ 320b bus
• Memory Bandwidth: 10 GB @ 560 GB/s, 6GB @ 336 GB/s
• Internal Storage: 1 TB Custom NVME SSD
• I/O Throughput: 2.4 GB/s (Raw), 4.8 GB/s (Compressed, with custom hardware decompression block)
• Expandable Storage: 1 TB Expansion Card (matches internal storage exactly)
• External Storage: USB 3.2 External HDD Support
• Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-Ray Drive
• Performance Target: 4K @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS