The Best Xbox One Hack You’re Probably Not Doing

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First off, calling this a hack may be a bit of an over statement. But there is a **ahem** trick that will allow you to share your digital library with one other friend. This functionality is really meant to allow an Xbox Live user to share his games and ability to play online with other family members in the household, even when said person is not logged in the console. This is accomplished by making a particular Xbox One your “Home Console”.

As mentioned before, making a particular console your “Home Console” will allow any other user on that console to play your full digital library. The great part about this is, that by signing into an additional console, you are also allowed to access your full digital library. You probably can see where I’m going here.

To perform this “hack”, simply sign into a trusted friends Xbox One console and make it your home console in the settings. Also, have said friend sign into your console and make it their home console. That’s pretty much it. You will now have access to all your friends digital library, as well as your own. And visa-versa.

I don’t know how long Microsoft will allow this to go on, but there stands a chance they will eliminate this functionality at some point. Although I don’t really see how they could because of the way the functionality is designed at its core.

One huge caveat, you are only allowed to make a console your home console three times in a calendar year. So you better be sure when your doing this, because you won’t get that many tries. One more good reason to own an Xbox One?

Should there be a Kinect-less Xbox One SKU?

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Why not kill Kinect? Recently the question was posed to me, “Do you think Microsoft would ever sell the Xbox One without the Kinect?” At the time I was firmly adamant that Microsoft would never do such a thing, stating that they have gone all-in on Kinect on the Xbox One. In that same discussion, we talked about the Nintendo Wii-U and the added expense that Nintendo ensues on the Gamepad, which we decided hadn’t been taken advantage of nearly enough. I then raised the idea of Nintendo selling the Wii-U sans Gamepad. I was quickly put in-check as to why I thought Nintendo could sell the Wii-U without the Gamepad, and Microsoft could not sell the Xbox One without the Kinect. Obviously, this got me thinking.

Of course the Microsoft Kinect and Nintendo GamePad are both integral experiences to their respective systems, so much so that both companies have stated on the record, that they won’t be selling their consoles without said devices. Be that as it may, stances change.

Admittedly, the Xbox One is fairly early on in its life-cycle, and there is little data to go on. There has only been a few major titles thus far that have been positioned to be totally dependent on the Kinect—Kinect Sports Rivals, Just Dance 2014, and Zumba Fitness World Party.

In addition to the games outlined above—along with all the other games that may only marginally use Kinect’s functions—Kinect will automatically sign a user in, allow for video calling in the Skype app, can be used for working out with the Xbox Fitness app, and can even be used with the Twitch app for game streaming. All the aforementioned things are certainly nice to have, and could not exist without Kinect. Microsoft has not only packed in the Kinect for the developer guarantee, but to also take advantage of the hardware within integral functions of the Xbox itself.

In my own personal use, I do use my Kinect, and use it often. Ninety-five percent of my interaction with the device is done in the form of voice control. The other five percent is when it signs me in automatically or the occasional Skype call, which is nice, but not necessary. Also the Kinect IR blasting capabilities are pretty helpful, and is something I would miss a lot if it were gone. I don’t think I’ve manually turned on my television since setting up the console.

So again, could the Xbox One exist without the Kinect?

At this point, Kinect has been woven into the very fabric of what the Xbox One is. Without it, you are automatically cut off from certain games, apps, and integral console functions.  It stands to reason that voice control could conceivably be built directly into future consoles. But even so, certain other things will be instantly lost from what makes this console unique. A Kinect-less Xbox One would alienate you from games and apps, taking away an important developer guarantee that every use will at least have the hardware.

The main reason that killing the Kinect would be a good idea would be the price of the console, but beyond that, the reasons are few. With sales trailing behind that of the PlayStation 4, there is a need to reach price-parity as soon as possible. Also the argument could be made that there hasn’t been a title that truly compels a gamer to latch onto the use of the device. That may be true, but we are only six months into this consoles life, and  it’s much too early to tell whether that title will come or not.

Finally, a Kinect-less SKU would ultimately have a negative effect on the Xbox One, and I don’t see any chance of Microsoft selling the console without it. At first glance, it seems do-able, but a closer look reveals how deeply integrated the Kinect has been channeled into every aspect of this console. I’m not saying it won’t happen, but I would certainly be shocked if it does. Now about that Wii-U Gamepad…  

Bing It On: Taking The Bing Search Challenge

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Many Google patrons have attempted to brave the waters of the Bing search engine, and many said adventures have ended in peril. For the avid Google user, even the notion of switching to what many see as the inferior search engine is met with much angst. But to really try Bing—I mean giving a truly honest try—may not end as badly as one might think. Tempting fate without the right amount of providence may be a foolish endeavor for some, but I guess you can call me the fool.

Hands down the most popular opinion around the inter-webs is that Google has the best search engine. By best, meaning that in more cases than not, you will find the information you want very easily, with little to no additional effort. Most of the time your sought after answer is presented on the first page of results. This makes for a happy camper, hence the popularity. And with additional services of high to moderate popularity like Google Mail, Google Analytic’s, Google Ad-Sense, and Google Plus, the ability for Google to bolster their beloved search engine by leveraging these additional services has only strengthened over time.

But what about Bing? First off, I’d like to say that the results just aren’t as good. At least for the type of content I search for in particular. Obviously your results may vary, depending on the type of queries that peak your interest. That being said, I do feel the search results are good enough. Most people won’t be searching on the various nuances of programming languages as I do. Most people will just need basic results for basic things. And in that aspect, Bing is okay. Not great, but good enough.

And I guess it’s worth pointing out that Microsoft has attempted to foster its own Google Plus-like integration by providing integration with Facebook. And it kinda works, but is not all together as seamless as what their counter-part provides. Reason being, Facebook is another service that requires another log-in. Which gets me to my next point. Because Google can levee Gmail, Plus, and most notably Ad-Sense, further enhancing their ability to give highly personalized results is only a matter of pooling the resources. Which is why—more often than not—Google search just feels like it knows what your looking for, because, well, it does.

Do these services provide a huge advantage for Google? Yes. But the story isn’t over yet. Microsoft posses many advantages as well. Though they are vastly different from the service-oriented nature of the advantages Google uses to make their service great, Microsoft’s leg-up consists mostly from the intrinsic value of being everywhere. Microsoft still dominates the desktop market, and will do so for the foreseeable future. And while tablets and mobile devices have started to chip away at their over-all personal computer dominance, it may be a while before—or if—the tide turns.

So, to further elaborate on the last point. Microsoft Windows comes with Internet Explorer installed, and Internet Explorer’s search is set to Bing by default. Microsoft still holds an enormous percentage of the PC market share, and the PC market share versus tablet/mobile market share still holds in their favor.

I guess one could think of Microsoft’s biggest task as keeping the users it already has by default. And again, with Google dominance, this is no small order. Which has led Microsoft to do its best to sully the Google name by launching its “Scroogled” advertisement campaign, which aims to inform users of Google parsing of email to present ads in Gmail. Screwed by Google, get it? And while this campaign is not really going to make anyone who if faithful to Google hop back on the Microsoft bandwagon, it may just in fact keep a good number of users on Bing. The ad-campaign is obviously geared toward promoting fear, no question.

All in all, only you can decide which search engine is right for you. If you’re into the whole Google ecosystem, it’s probably worth-while for you to stick with Google to receive more focused/tailored results. The same can be said of Bing, but to a much lesser extent. Again, Google search is superior to Bing in almost every way, but having faithfully used Bing for almost everything over that last few months, it’s good enough. And maybe that’s all it hopes to be.

Tweaking The Xbox One Game Plan

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With the new generation of gaming upon us, the race for console dominance has just begun—again. Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4 are all geared up to duke it out in what should be a very interesting battle of the boxes.

There is no question that Sony has garnered the hearts and minds of gamers thus far in the console war, capitalizing on each and every blunder Microsoft made early on. And while the gap between the two still feels apparent, all is not lost. There are a few things Microsoft could do to ensure control of their destiny.

Remove Entertainment Apps From Under The Xbox Live Umbrella. One of the top complaints against Xbox is that entertainment apps are under a paid umbrella, in effect making Xbox users pay twice for most entertainment services. This is by far the most egregious of things about the Xbox as a console. Developers have to pay a lot of money to get their apps approved on the console, and then Microsoft is making users pay to use them. Microsoft, stop it.

Include Xbox Music in Xbox Live. Okay, I know Microsoft has already announced free streaming from the console with an Xbox Live subscription, but what it they increased the value of Xbox Live by also offering a full-fledged Xbox Music Pass with your live account. It would not only bolster Xbox Music, but give Windows Phone users extra value on their devices.

Fully Integrate Xbox One and Windows 8 Games. While we wait for the indie-scene to fully come to fruition on Xbox One, Microsoft could really have a true Trojan horse if it implemented Windows 8 Games. I have to admit that thus far the Windows 8 game offerings haven’t been as strong as their phone counterparts, but they are there—and growing fast.

Find A Way To Close The Price Gap. When asked about the motivating factor for purchasing a PlayStation 4 over an Xbox One, the number one excuse is almost certainly the fact that the PlayStation 4 is one-hundred dollars cheaper. And even the most avid Xbox fan has to agree. So in the long run, Microsoft has to find a way to bridge the price gap. And although there is clear argument that you are getting a greater value with the greater price, it doesn’t refute the fact that almost everyone will consider the price gap when choosing a console—especially mothers. And as much as I hate to say it, un-bundling the Kinect may be the only option. Or re-introduce their subsidy pricing program.

In conclusion, looking back at the amount of change the Xbox 360 made over its lifespan, brings a promising outlook on how much the Xbox One and even the PlayStation 4 could evolve over the course of their lifetimes. Of course the most obvious answer that I left out from above was to have great games. Since the hardware is set in stone, software will make the difference, weather is be in the form of games, apps, or services. This will certainly be a great generation, and I for one can’t wait to see how it all shakes out.