- Microsoft rolled out the October 2020 Xbox One Update this week.
- The October update features an updated Xbox user experience with new UI elements, improvements, and additions that will also be found on the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S.
- The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S launch in the US on November 10th.
It’s been a few months since Microsoft revealed the new user experience that would be coming to both the Xbox One as well as the Xbox Series X|S, but starting this week, everyone with an Xbox should finally be able to check it out for themselves. The October 2020 Xbox One Update has begun to roll out to the general public, which means that when you next power on your Xbox One, you should be able to install it if it didn’t install automatically.
If your Xbox looks the same as it always has when you turn it on, head to the home screen and push the Xbox button on your controller. Go to Settings > System > Updates & downloads. Select the first option. Once the new update’s been installed, you’ll notice that the entire UI has been redesigned from the ground up.
This isn’t the most drastic visual overhaul that the Xbox One or 360 user interface has ever received, but it is a major improvement over the old UI. Its sleek, modern look can be attributed to a variety of changes, from the new font that appears on the home screen and within menus to the tiles with rounded corners.
One of the key features of the Xbox UI is customization, as you can easily add and remove elements from the home screen. Microsoft has increased the customizability of the Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S by adding Customer Profile themes in the October update. If you head to your profile, you can pick a theme that will appear in the background of your profile. There are several already available, including a few Series X and Series S themes.
Microsoft also focused on quality of life improvements, such as the new sign-in experience. Unless you have an Xbox set up to log you in automatically, you will now be greeted by a new screen when you power on the console. So rather than going straight to the home screen, your Xbox will ask you “Who’s playing today?” and prompt you to choose any of the accounts you have logged into on the console, or create a new one.
Finally, the October update adds support for four more languages: Hungarian, Greek, Slovak, and Czech. If you want to choose one of the new languages, head to Settings > System > Location > Language and pick from the list. This is a great addition for those regions right before the Xbox Series X and Series S launch.
Speaking of which, the $499 Xbox Series X and $299 Xbox Series S launch on November 10th.
