Xbox Series X specs in full and how it really compares to Xbox One X
Microsoft has lifted the lid on the internal architecture and sheer power of the Xbox Series X, its new Xbox console due for launch later this year.
In a detailed breakdown with the tech blacksmiths at Digital Foundry, we get a full look at the Xbox Series X specs and are able to directly compare them to the Xbox One X and Xbox One S.
We've split this out into system, video, audio, interfaces and ports for easy reading. Without further ado, here they are, nerds:
Xbox Series X system specs
| SPEC | XBOX SERIES X | XBOX ONE X | XBOX ONE S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 15.1cm x 15.1cm x 30.1cm | 30cm x 24cm x 6cm | 29.5cm x 23cm x 6.5cm |
| CPU | 8x Cores @ 3.8GHz Custom Zen 2 CPU* | 8x Cores @ 2.3 GHz Custom Jaguar CPU | 8x Cores @ 1.75 GHz Custom Jaguar CPU |
| GPU | 12 TFLOPS 52 CUs @ 1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU | 6 TFLOPS 40 CUs @ 1.172 GHz Custom GCN GPU + Polaris | 1.4 TFLOPS 12 CUs @ 914 MHz Custom GCN GPU |
| SOC Die Size | 360.45 mm** | 366.94 mm** | 227.1 mm** |
| Memory | 16 GB GDDR6 | 12 GB GDDR5 | 8 GB DDR3 |
| Memory Bandwidth | 10GB @ 560 GB/s 6GB @ 336 GB/s | 326 GB/s | 68 GB/s 32 MB ESRAM @ 218 GB/s |
| Internal Storage | 1TB Custom NVME SSD | 1TB HDD | 500GB, 1TB, 2TB HDD |
| I/O Throughput | 2.4 GB/s (Raw) 4.8 GB/s (Compressed) | 120 MB/s** | 120 MB/s |
| Expandable Storage | 1 TB Expansion Card*** | N/A | N/A |
| External Storage | USB 3.2 External HDD | USB 3.2 External HDD | USB 3.2 External HDD |
| Optical Disc Drive | 4K UHD Blu-ray | 4K UHD Blu-ray | 4K UHD Blu-ray |
| Performance Target | 4K @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS | 4K @ 30 FPS, Up to 60 FPS | 1080P @ 30 FPS, Up to 60 FPS |
* 3.6 GHz w/ SMT Enabled
** Raw throughput, discounts seek overhead and system usage
*** Expandable Storage matches internal storage performance
Xbox Series X video
| SPEC | XBOX SERIES X | XBOX ONE X | XBOX ONE S |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDMI Resolution & Framerate | 2160p (4K) @ 120Hz 4320p (8K) @ 60Hz HDMI VRR & AMD FreeSync | 2160p @ 60Hz HDMI VRR & AMD FreeSync | 2160p @ 60Hz HDMI VRR & AMD FreeSync |
| HDR | HDR10 Dolby Vision Low Latency | HDR10 Dolby Vision Low Latency | HDR10 Dolby Vision Low Latency |
| HDMI 2.1 Features | Auto Low Latency Mode Variable Refresh Rate Fixed Rate Link | Auto Low Latency Mode Variable Refresh Rate | Auto Low Latency Mode Variable Refresh Rate |
| Content Protection | HDCP 2.2 | HDCP 2.2 | HDCP 2.2 |
| Video CODECs | VP9, H.265 HEVC/MSP, H.264 AVC/MVC/SVC, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 Part 2, VC1/WMV9 | VP9, H.265 HEVC, H.264 AVC, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 Part 2, VC1/WMV9 | H.265 HEVC, H.264 AVC, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 Part 2, VC1/WMV9 |
Xbox Series X audio
| SPECS | XBOX SERIES X | XBOX ONE X | XBOX ONE S |
|---|---|---|---|
| HDMI Audio, Encoded | Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, PCM 2.0, 5.1, & 7.1; Dolby TrueHD w/Atmos (from games) | Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, PCM 2.0, 5.1, & 7.1; Dolby TrueHD w/Atmos (from games) | Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS 5.1, PCM 2.0, 5.1, & 7.1; Dolby TrueHD w/Atmos (from games) |
| HDMI Audio, Pass-through | Dolby TrueHD (opt. Atmos), DD+ (opt. Atmos), DTSHR/MA (opt. DTS:X) | Dolby TrueHD (opt. Atmos), DD+ (opt. Atmos), DTSHR/MA (opt. DTS:X) | Dolby TrueHD (opt. Atmos), DD+ (opt. Atmos), DTS-HR/MA (opt. DTS:X) |
| CODECs Decoded | AAC, MP3, MPEG1, WMV | AAC, MP3, MPEG1, WMV | AAC, MP3, MPEG1, WMV |
Xbox Series X interfaces & ports
| SPECS | XBOX SERIES X | XBOX ONE X | XBOX ONE S |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wireless | IEEE 802.11ac dual band (5GHz & 2.4GHz), 2x2 wireless Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi Direct for home networks | IEEE 802.11ac dual band (5GHz & 2.4GHz), 2x2 wireless Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi Direct for home networks | IEEE 802.11ac dual band (5GHz & 2.4GHz), 2x2 wireless Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi Direct for home networks |
| Ethernet | IEEE 802.3 10/100/1000 | IEEE 802.3 10/100/1000 | IEEE 802.3 10/100/1000 |
| Accessories Radio | Dedicated dual band Xbox Wireless radio | Dedicated dual band Xbox Wireless radio | Dedicated dual band Xbox Wireless radio |
| USB Port | 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) | 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) | 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) |
| HDMI Out | 2.1 | 2.0b | 2.0a |
| HDMI In | N/A | 1.4b | 1.4b |
| S/PDIF | N/A | Yes | Yes |
| IR | Receiver Only | Receiver + Blaster | Receiver + Blaster |
| CEC | Yes | No | No |
| Kinect Port | No | External USB Adapter | External USB Adapter |
All this talk of hardware specs for the Xbox Series X comes just a week after E3 2020 was cancelled, spoiling Microsoft's chance to show off its new console to fans in Los Angeles. It has since decided that it will host an online event to discuss Series X and Project xCloud this week.
While we haven't had confirmation of a lot of titles for the Xbox Series X, the Digital Foundry report highlights Forza 7, Gears 5 and Minecraft running on the new Xbox, as part of its extensive commitment to backwards compatibility. Players who buy certain titles on the Xbox One X this year will also be able to upgrade to the Xbox Series X for free, with CD Projekt confirming recently that the highly-anticipated Cyberpunk 2077 will take advantage of the feature.
Microsoft's online events this week are also expected to talk about the Series X's "audio ray-tracing" that director of Xbox program management Jason Ronald discussed in a recent podcast.
While we're crunching numbers and stats, here's Microsoft's bullet-point list of the features it claims highlight the innovation of the Xbox Series X:
- HDMI 2.1 Support
- 120Hz Support
- Variable Refresh Rate (VRR)
- Dynamic Latency Input (DLI)
- DirectStorage
- NVMe SSD Rate Decompression
- Opus and Vorbis Audio Decode
- Convolution / FFT Hardware Offload
- Sampler Feedback Streaming (SFS)
- Hardware Accelerated DirectX Raytracing (DXR)
- Variable Rate Shading (VRS)
- Mesh Shaders
- GPU Work Creation
- 8K Capable
- Machine Learning Acceleration
Xbox Series X specs vs PS5
Sony hasn't yet revealed the PS5 specs in as much detail as Microsoft and the Xbox Series X, but lead architect Mark Cerny has spoken about the next PlayStation confirming it will use a third-generation Ryzen CPU with eight cores, based on the 7nm Zen 2 architecture. The SSD inside the console is fast enough that according to a report by Wired it took around 0.8 seconds to fast travel in Spider-Man compared to 15 seconds on PlayStation 4 Pro.
| PS5 Specs | |
|---|---|
| CPU: | AMD chip based on Ryzen. 8x cores of 7nm Zen 2. |
| GPU: | 9.2 teraflop GPU codename "Oberon". It'll use 36 compute units and runs at 2.0 GHz. |
| Audio: | 3D audio. |
| Storage: | SSD using PCle 4.0 connection. Possible GDDR86 at 448GB or 512GB per second. |
| Resolution: | Up to 8k support, full 4k; capable of ray tracing. |
| 4k Blu-ray: | Will read 100GB optical discs. |
You can find a whole lot more about the PS5 right here, including the PS5 controller and leaked photos of the devkit.