A closer look at why Xbox doesn't use Bluetooth

Microsoft'due south Xbox platform has been at the forefront of wireless gaming accessories alongside PlayStation for quite a while. The Xbox controller itself is among the most popular in history. Since then, Microsoft has spawned a range of licensed products from all sorts of manufacturers that leverage the "Xbox Wireless" radio signal.

Since we're putting a spotlight on Bluetooth this calendar week, I thought I'd answer a question I get every so often on social media about Xbox consoles and their credible lack of interest in supporting Bluetooth.

So then, why exactly doesn't the Xbox One panel back up Bluetooth, fifty-fifty though the controllers themselves practise? The answer is pretty simple: interference.

Bluetooth is ofttimes also flimsy

The requirements for wireless connectivity on Xbox makes Bluetooth simply unsuitable in several ways. First and foremost is bandwidth. Speaking to Xbox Senior Hardware Plan Managing director Gabi Mitchel at a previous event, she described how the Xbox One wireless signal can support up to viii controllers and headsets while maintaining sub 8ms latency. Bluetooth, conversely, can manage effectually 2.

Additionally, Bluetooth is highly susceptible to interference from other devices, due to the way it continually scans for new connections. If you're someone who wears a Bluetooth-enabled watch or uses a Bluetooth-enabled phone, simply being in range of your Xbox would impact the bitrate, and thus responsiveness, of your controls.

If Microsoft leveraged Bluetooth, they would likewise be forced to conform to specific standards set by the Bluetooth Special Interest Grouping, which Microsoft can't directly control. The Xbox Wireless point gives Microsoft far more flexibility, which is why we can at present get laptops and headsets with Xbox Wireless broiled directly within.

Where Xbox Bluetooth can be useful

Microsoft's upcoming game streaming platform, tentatively dubbed Project xCloud, uses Bluetooth on Android simply because it has no other choice. To bake the Xbox Wireless signal into a phone would crave a specific chip, which would touch on the design language of the device. Manufacturers are already trying to squeeze out everything they can in the pursuit of ever-increasing thinness, ditching the 3.5mm headphone jack. It's simply more than practical to become with what every phone already has: Bluetooth.

For a single controller connected to your device, it volition probable be okay in most scenarios. Bluetooth applied science is always improving, too, then a lot of these problems may be a thing of the by in a decade or and then.

Bluetooth futurity?

It seems unlikely that the next Xbox will back up Bluetooth either, owing to the superior signal bandwidth and quality of Xbox Wireless. But who knows what could happen a couple of decades down the line? Breakthroughs in Bluetooth tech may eventually make proprietary wireless signals redundant. We can only wait and speculate, though.

Exercise you use an Xbox controller with Bluetooth on mobile or PC? How does information technology handle for you lot? Hit the comments, permit us know.

Xbox Aristocracy with Bluetooth!

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An internet connection will soon be required when setting up Windows 11 Pro

UH OH

An internet connectedness will shortly be required when setting upwards Windows 11 Pro

Microsoft has announced that later this year, users will be required to connect to the internet and sign-in with a Microsoft Account during the out of box setup feel on Windows eleven Pro. Microsoft has already been enforcing this requirement on Windows 11 Habitation since launch terminal October, and Windows xi Pro is now expected to follow arrange shortly.