Microsoft launched the Xbox One console in November that included a way to download its own version of Skype.
Today, the company announced that the first major update for the Skype
Xbox One app is now available, with a number of improvements but lacking
one long promised feature.
The Skype blog goes over the new features for the Xbox One app.
Microsoft says, "Improved chat is now synchronized and comes with push
notifications, alerting you when a new message arrives, and providing a
longer chat history – up to 1,000 messages, rather than just the past 7
days."
There's also a new tutorial feature in the Xbox One version, which
helps first time Skype users with making chat and video calls. It also
adds filters so that users can only see their contacts that happen to be
online. New chat emoticons based on the upcoming movie "Captain
America: The Winter Soldier" can now be used on the Xbox One Skype app.
Finally, a number of unnamed bugs have been fixed.
Sadly, it appears that the once promised feature for the Skype app that would have allowed it to enter Snap mode on the right hand side to take a video call
while still playing an Xbox One game in the main window has yet to be
implemented. There's no word when, or even if, it will be included in an
upcoming update.
Source: Microsoft | Image via Microsoft
Microsoft released the first major update for its Xbox One version of Skype in March,
and today the company announced that the next version of the VoIP app
will be released for the game console sometime early next week.
The official Skype blog states
that the 1.3 version of the app will add some improvements to the
camera auto zoom feature for video chats. The blog states, "We found
ways to better identify people in the picture, especially when there are
multiple people in the room. The camera can adjust and see the entire
family, even the little ones."
In addition, the app will soon allow Skype users on the Xbox One to
take a new profile picture via the included camera on the console's
Kinect. The Skype app will also support using a person's Xbox Live gamer
pic as their Skype profile picture after this update.
Unfortunately, we are still waiting for the Skype team to add the
once promised feature that would have allowed the Xbox One version to
enter Snap mode on the right hand side to take a video call while
playing games in the main window. That feature was demoed live during the Xbox One's launch event in May.
Source:
Skype blog |
Image via Microsoft
At Microsoft's Xbox One event today, they showed off the new Skype
integration that is coming to the new console that will complete
Microsoft's Skype offering by allowing access in every room of the
house.
Skype will integrate natively to the Xbox One, which is no surprise,
and you will be able to control the service with your voice, including
answering incoming calls.
For Microsoft, this will be a great way for the company to get Skype
into the living-room and on to the biggest screen in your house. With
Skype coming to the Xbox platform, Microsoft's consumer VOIP service is
now fully integrated into Microsoft's wide range of products and
services.
On November 22nd, Microsoft launched the Xbox One game console in 13 markets around the world. Last week, the company stated it has sold over 5 million units to retailers since the launch.
While some pundits have questioned how effective the release of the
console has been compared to Sony's PlayStation 4 launch, there's no
doubt that the Xbox One, at least so far, has sold more units than
Microsoft's previous Xbox 360 in the same time period.
However, six months after its release, there are quite a few features
that Microsoft has previously promised would be offered to Xbox One
owners that have not yet been added to the console. Let's go over some
of them right now.
No snapping of Skype video calls while playing Xbox One games
This is a feature that was shown off as a live demo during the first Xbox One press event in May.
Microsoft was going to let folks play a game, then receive a video call
from a friend via Skype which could be activated via Snap mode so that
the person could have a chat while still playing.
Unfortunately, just before the Xbox One's November launch, the Skype team admitted that snap video feature would not be included while playing games. The team didn't give a reason and even though the Skype Xbox One app has received a couple of feature updates since its launch, Microsoft has been completely silent about when, or even if, it will even be added.
No external hard drive support
Unlike the PS4, which allows owners to replace its included 500GB
hard drive with SSD drives or larger storage options, Microsoft's
500GB drive inside the Xbox One is not designed to be upgraded in that
way. While the company did say that the Xbox One's USB ports would
support external hard drives for more storage at first, it later
admitted that feature would not make it for the launch of the console.
Since November, Microsoft has put in a way to view how much free storage space is left on the Xbox One,
so that's something. However, the company still hasn't given a specific
date for when owners will be able to hook up a USB hard drive on the
console. Hopefully we won't have to wait much longer.
No way to turn the retail Xbox One into a game development kit
In July, Microsoft surprised many in the game industry when it announced that it would allow any Xbox One console
to be used as a game development hardware kit. This would give anyone a
chance to make and publish a game for the console. Since then,
Microsoft has announced the ID@Xbox program, which gives established independent game developers a way to self-publish their titles on the Xbox One.
However, Microsoft has yet to offer any updates on when it will offer
the tools to turn any Xbox One unit into a game development console. In
December, word got out on the Internet on a way to make this happen in a very unofficial way,
so we know it's possible. Unfortunately we will still have to wait for
Microsoft to offer its official tools before the console can be opened
up to anyone with a cool idea for making a game.
At both BUILD 2013 and BUILD 2014
earlier this month, Microsoft said that apps made for the Modern UI of
Windows 8 could be ported to work on the Xbox One. However, the company
has stopped short of offering any information on how it will allow
developers to actually publish those apps to the console, alongside
their Windows 8 and Windows Phone counterparts.
A few weeks ago, an independent developer claimed that he got permission from Microsoft to port the Plex Windows 8 app to the Xbox One
as part of the ID@Xbox program, which was originally announced as being
for games only. So far, Microsoft has not confirmed or denied that it
will be the way to let app makers publish their software on the Xbox
One. Hopefully, the company will offer some clarification on this
subject in the near future.
No Xbox One controller support for the PC
Technically, this is a promise that was made to PC gamers, but we
imagine that a lot of Xbox One owners also own desktop or notebook
computers and would love to be able to play games using their
controller. In August, Microsoft said that PC driver support for the
Xbox One would be launched sometime in 2014.
Since then, a third party has come up with a way to enable PC support for the controller with a combination of drivers, emulators and custom applications.
Needless to say, it's not the ideal solution. Later, Microsoft's
director of product management Albert Penello reiterated that the PC
controller support is still coming "this year" and when it is released
he will explain why it took so long to develop.
Conclusion ... and hope
The good thing about the Xbox One is that Microsoft seems determined
to offer a steady stream of software updates that have added a number of
promised features already, such as the previously mentioned storage management interface, along with support for older Xbox 360 headsets and USB keyboards, a way to stream live gameplay and much more.
Hopefully, new Xbox leader Phil Spencer
will continue to push the team to get these and more promised features
in Xbox One updates in the very near future. Of course, Microsoft might
also have some upcoming features they plan to put in that have yet to be
announced that should stand out as well.
The truth is that if you bought an Xbox 360 when it first launched in
2005, it is capable of a lot more now, via system updates, than it was
over eight years ago. We think that will certainly be true of the Xbox
One as well. We just hope that the company actually delivers on its
previous promises for the console ASAP.
Images via Microsoft
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