Xbox One S Ships In August Starting At $299 With IR Blaster And Bluetooth-Enabled Controller

There’s also support for 4K Ultra High Definition (UHD) content, which means that you can take advantage of 4K UHD Blu-rays that are starting to trickle into the market. This will also open the door for 4K gaming in the future on the Xbox One S

Although its absence likely won’t be missed by many, the dedicated port for the Kinect sensor has been jettisoned on the Xbox One S. Gamers will still be able to use the Xbox Kinect Adapter via USB, and for those that already own a Kinect for Xbox One (and decide to upgrade to an Xbox One S) Microsoft will give you a free adapter. The console has gained an IR blaster, which is a nice addition, and there is now a USB port mounted up front (two remain at the rear) along with a pairing button for the wireless controllers.

Not be left out, the wireless controller has seen some subtle changes to the texturing on the back of the controller for “enhanced comfort”. Microsoft has also finally added Bluetooth support to the controller, which should make it easier to sync with your Windows 10 PC (you need the Windows Anniversary Update installed to enable this functionality).

The new Xbox One S is priced from $299 with a 500GB hard drive. There will also be 1TB and 2TB storage options priced at $349 and $399 respectively. The 2TB model will begin shipping in August, while the two other storage SKUs will ship some time afterwards.