Xbox Series X/S

The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S are Microsoft’s ninth generation consoles, released in November 2020. They’re part of the same family but built for different situations, and understanding the difference matters if you’re trying to figure out which one makes sense for you.

Xbox Series X vs Xbox Series S: What’s the Difference

Xbox Series X

The Series X is the flagship. It runs native 4K at up to 120fps, has a 1TB custom NVMe SSD, 16GB of RAM, and a 4K UHD Blu-ray disc drive. It’s built for people with 4K TVs who want the best possible performance and want to keep their physical game collection. It launched at $499.

Xbox Series S

The Series S is smaller, cheaper, and disc-less. It targets 1440p at up to 120fps, has a 512GB SSD, and launched at $299. If you’re gaming on a 1080p or 1440p TV and don’t have a stack of physical games, the Series S gives you the same next-gen features — Quick Resume, fast loading, Game Pass access — at a significantly lower price point. The storage fills up faster than the Series X, but external drives solve that easily enough. It’s a genuinely smart buy for the right person.

Xbox Game Pass

Game Pass is central to what Microsoft is doing with this generation. For a monthly fee you get access to a large library of games including first-party Xbox titles on day one. Forza, Halo, and every other Microsoft studio release goes straight into Game Pass at launch. Combined with the Series S price point, it’s a low barrier of entry into a lot of content. Whether that model works for you depends on how you game, but it’s hard to argue the value isn’t there.

Backwards Compatibility

Four Generations of Xbox Games

Microsoft’s backwards compatibility program is one of the best things they’ve done this generation. Original Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One games all work on Series X and Series S. You’re not starting from scratch — your existing digital library carries over, and physical discs work on the Series X.

Auto HDR and FPS Boost

What makes it more than just compatibility is Auto HDR and FPS Boost. Auto HDR adds high dynamic range to games that were never built for it. FPS Boost doubles or quadruples the frame rate on supported titles without any patches from the original developers. Older games end up running better on Series X than they ever did on their original hardware. It’s not a gimmick — firing up an Xbox 360 game and seeing it run at 60fps with HDR is genuinely impressive.

The Controller

The Xbox Series X/S controller is an evolution of the Xbox One controller rather than a redesign. The layout is the same, which is the right call — the Xbox controller has been one of the most comfortable in the industry for years. What changed is the texture on the triggers and bumpers for better grip, a new hybrid D-pad that works better for both fighting games and precision inputs, a dedicated Share button for capturing screenshots and clips, and improved Bluetooth connectivity that works with phones, tablets, and PCs without adapters. It’s a refinement, not a revolution, and that’s fine. While I still prefer my Xbox One Elite Controller, I’d much rather the Series X controller over the base Xbox One controller.

Quick Resume

Quick Resume lets you suspend multiple games simultaneously and jump back into any of them almost instantly. You can be mid-session in one game, switch to another, and return to the first exactly where you left off — no loading screens, no main menus. It even persists through a full power cycle. It’s one of those features that sounds minor until you use it regularly, at which point going back feels genuinely painful. For people who bounce between games or game in shorter sessions, it changes how you interact with your library.

Is the Xbox Series X/S Worth It?

If you’re on the fence, the Series S in particular is hard to argue against at its price point. You get Quick Resume, Game Pass, backwards compatibility, and next-gen performance for less than most standalone game bundles used to cost. The Series X is the right choice if you have a 4K TV, want the best possible performance, and care about physical media. Either way, Microsoft built a solid generation of hardware and the software ecosystem around it has only gotten stronger since launch.