Microsoft has announced that it will be speeding up the boot time of its Xbox consoles.
In the latest Xbox Insider test builds of the console’s dashboard, users will notice that the cold boot startup time has been reduced by about 5 seconds for Xbox Series X / S consoles.
So how has the Windows giant been able to shave seconds off something that has been so carved in stone (and endured for years)? Simple they made the boot sequence quicker by creating a shorter boot-up animation.
It didn’t take Xbox testers long to notice the faster boot-up time and Microsoft also confirmed the changes as well.
Every second counts
Director of Xbox integrated marketing, Josh Munsee stated that Microsoft created “a shorter boot-up animation (~4s) from the original boot-up animation (~9s), helping to reduce the overall startup time.”
However, the boot-up changes aren’t limited to Xbox Series X / S consoles only. Jake Rosenberg, senior product manager lead at Xbox said, “Xbox One generation consoles are booting noticeably faster with these changes.”
Xbox owners should note that they can only benefit from the speedier boot times if they have their consoles set to Energy Saver mode rather than Standby mode. With Energy Saver mode, the console powers off completely instead of entering standby mode.
That means you won’t be able to turn on the console and instantly start playing, which makes Energy Saver kinder to electricity bills and the planet.
The company’s changes will allow users to boot up quicker in Energy Saver mode, taking the Xbox Series X / S boot duration from about 20 seconds down to 15 seconds.
This makes the Energy Saver mode more appealing, especially after Microsoft made it the default option for new Xbox consoles earlier this year.
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.
