Xbox One with Kinect: Assassin's Creed Unity Bundle, 500GB Hard Drive

A real step in the right direction with the next-generation of video gaming. The Xbox One certainly fell flat on it's face after announcement and launch, but damn is it back up and running like Usain Bolt in the Olympics now! There aren't any major problems I have with anything about the console, software, hardware, or otherwise. Yes, I have complaints, but they are minor and pale in comparison to the positive features that the console has. I'm also not sure why anyone would be buying the Xbox One w/ Kinect bundle that has no games. Even if you don't like AC, why not at least get a console that comes with games, even if you aren't going to use them. In fact, at the time of purchasing this one, the Xbox One w/ Kinect bundle and no games, was actually more expensive than this rendition of the console bundle. Also, I understand if you don't have the money to afford the luxury that is the Kinect, but I really feel like the Xbox One just isn't itself without the counterpart. Some may find it as a novelty item and that it cannot be useful in gaming and that the voice commands are just fluff and whatnot. And then there's the tin-foil hat society, reeking their havoc all over the internet, convincing people that the Kinect is always watching and listening in on you and that Microsoft is recording that data and could be recording constant video and selling your information to private parties and whatnot. First of all, if you're buying a Xbox One and plan to connect it to the internet in any way shape or form, your information is bound to be farmed, that is the unwritten privacy agreement of using the internet in the first place, is that of course putting your information in a virtual world that is accessible to the world is going end up having people see it. After that rant, let's begin:To prevent TL;DR issues, here's a quick summary:PROS:Kinect features (voice commands, recognition software, no motor)Xbox One's low temperature from large powerful fansXbox One's completely silent operationXbox One's slot-loading (compared to disk tray loading)Xbox One's Blu-Ray capabilitiesController (everything about it)CONS:Xbox One's whirring power supplyXbox One's small storage spaceXbox One's inability to sit verticallyXbox One's sizeNo indicator as to how many controllers are in use and which controller is which playerNo more green indicator lights on the Xbox or controller, they are now whiteMust be connected to the internet to initially set upIf you want any detail regarding anything mentioned in the summary above, read on...Kinect:The Kinect is amazing. The voice-commands make multi-tasking while using the console an absolute breeze. You can start up the console, open up Netflix, search for a movie, select a movie, play a movie, then pause, rewind and fast-forward that movie, all without touching anything except the TV/TV remote. For those concerned, you CAN make it so that the Kinect and console both SHUT DOWN when turning the console "off." And if you're really paranoid, they sell Kinect privacy covers here on Amazon and in stores. The Kinect has many abilities. The microphone has been revamped massively, even so that in a Skype call, the other player cannot hear your game through the television, but can hear you when you speak. It can recognize your heart-beat, every limb (including fingers and the direction of the limb facing the camera). Instead of having a motorized base like the older Kinect, when in a Skype video call, the camera itself will follow you around the screen (it's software powered, not hardware, nothing moves) and will zoom in on you as you get further away from the screen. Some games also chose to incorporate motion features, such as Battlefield 4. They allow you to look around when in a vehicle using your head, as well as lean around corners in game, not to mention the voice-commands they included. The Kinect also has the ability to sense who is in front of it, and will log all people with an Xbox account that are in front of it, in.Console:The console is obviously the meat and potatoes here. The console itself is a large-sized VCR essentially in dimensions and even look, to some extent. It is massive, but light. This is due to Microsoft's due diligence regarding the past issues with overheating and cooling malfunctions on the Xbox 360 that led to the infamous Red Ring of Death error. There are huge fans installed in this bad boy, and let me tell you, you wouldn't even know they were there. When using the console it is whisper quiet, and if I mute the TV, I can't hear anything at all while it's running. The satellite/cable feature is nice, but I don't use it since I don't have satellite/cable. The only hardware complaint I have, is that the power brick for the Xbox One makes a whirring noise when on, and it happens to be the only thing I can hear when I mute the TV, as mentioned earlier. The Xbox dashboard has been completely overhauled, some ways good, some ways bad. They did make it much harder to get to where you want to go most of the time and some things are ridiculously hard to find on the console, but you'll get it all sorted out soon enough, like I did, I'm sure. The only other console complaint I have, is that the 500GB hard drive space GOES FAST. VERY FAST. You will run out of space before you hit 15 games for sure. I have 5 I think, and I'm at 41% hard drive space usage. Fortunately Microsoft is allowing users to attach external hard drives to the console and use them for storage, and I know at least a few 1TB drives that will work, so the problem is really moot, considering you can fix it fairly easily. It also is required to sit horizontally now, however, it was NEVER a good idea to operate a console in a vertical position, even when it was a option. There's also no more indicator on the controller/Xbox as to how many controllers are connected and as to which controllers are which players, and the green indication lights on the Console and the Guide button on the controller have been changed to white now. You must also connect it to internet to use it. Period. There's no getting around it, but once you set it up, you can take it off the internet and leave it off, if you like.Controller:The $2 billion that Microsoft poured into improving and modifying the Xbox 360 controller design and style and functionality, paid off well. The new controller is a home run for sure. The new triggers are heaven on your fingers, as you can now wrap them around the trigger and controller smoothly. The triggers also have very nice quality rumble motors in them individually, as well as a dampened/muted contact point when pulled all the way against the controller. An issue I am having with the triggers is that my right trigger squeaks occasionally when pulled toward to the controller, but that may be an isolated case and shouldn't be present on every one of them, so I wouldn't worry about that. The new buttons look great. They are every so slightly closer to each other on the controller layout, and seem slightly smaller in circumference, and have a more "buttony" feel when pressing them down, as they seem to have a slightly noticeable actuation point.The bumper buttons are a decent improvement over the old controllers, however I do have a complaint in that they make much, much more noise than the old ones did. Be warned, they are very "clicky." The new battery pack housing is the second best improvement, as it now sits flush with the back of the controller and doesn't protrude as the old one did, which makes holding the controller much nicer. The start button and back button were replaced by the "menu" and "view" buttons, but they essentially function the same way as before when in most games. The Xbox "guide" button got flattened and moved up the controller on its own little section and now illuminates white instead of green, and does not show which controller number it is, nor is there an indication on the Xbox One itself either, which is a slight disappointment.The analog sticks stayed the same distance from the controller I believe, however the actual part your thumbs go on got smaller, but the improved textured rubberized edging on them makes up for that because it allows for great grip on the sticks. However, I can imagine someone with bigger fingers having a problem using this controller's analog sticks. If you have this issue or are concerned about it, I would look into Kontrol Freek's analog extensions, as they may help. They seem to move and click pretty much the same as before, but I am noticing a slight wear in the left analog stick towards to front of the shaft from holding it upward/forward in games like Call of Duty and Assassin's Creed. So far it is not impeding on anything, but a forewarning, in case it becomes further worn and becomes inoperable or impaired after a long period of extended daily usage.The D-Pad has been improved as well, getting it's own little crater to reside in so that it is not so obtrusive from the face of the controller, and now makes a very distinct "click" when pressed, which is something I love dearly about the new controller, as I hated the completely muffled D-Pad buttons from previous controllers. Some may find it too loud or maybe slightly annoying, but I can't foresee anyone having a major issue with it.All in all, the new controller definitely shines, and the $2 billion in research funding and tinkering definitely went to good use and will not go unnoticed. This controller should go down in history as the best ergonomic game pad created thus far, I feel.

I pulled the trigger on this purchase Friday (11-7-14) for a Saturday delivery. Setup was quick and easy... hardware wise. Looking at all the bundles Amazon was offering I thought this had the best value (Getting 3 games). I may never play the Kinect Dance game that was included but my kids will. That said, its a great system and a great upgrade from 360. (Which we still have on HDMI3)I have my DirecTV Genie HR44-500 connected to the HDMI pass through. The TV control through the system and Kinect is simply FANTASTIC and really... REALLY fast controlling the Genie. It is faster for me to Say "Xbox watch ESPN" than it is to use the remote. I helped my buddy connect his to a Comcast HD box. The DTV Genie is a drastic difference in performance. I would believe this is due to the fact the Genie is newer and has the new HDMI spec for two-way communication between devices. I think his XB1 was blasting the commands via Kinect IR?Which reminds me, those connecting your TV/Sat/Cable box to the XB1 I cannot stress how important it is to use the included HDMI cable that comes with the XB1 as the HDMI cable between your console and provider box.I still have some ongoing issues with XBOX LIVE. Lots of problems today with service availability. Not sure if the limited issues of content purchases of the live service or my account causing the problems.Upon power up, I was prompted to download the .910 GB update. It took me about 10 minutes to DL (Comcast Blast 100Mb) and it was about 20-25 minutes from first power up /download/install to get to the actual setup for Language/time/account.Im still playing around with it to get the little intricacies but very please thus far. The reason for the 4 stars instead of 5, my box was definitely opened. The original seals (Circle stickers) covering the flaps were ripped and new ones applied. I figure Amazon, or the factory perhaps did it to "update" or add the bundle options. The hardware itself was still sealed and in untouched plastic.... it appeared to me to be so anyway... and the game code cards with some other instructions booklets seemed thrown into the top. After all, this AC unity bundle was just a sleeve over the standard green box.Bottom line, if you are thinking or considering this for your holiday shopping you wont regret it. And as for the Kinect, It totally completes the XB1 experience and works much better than the 360 version.