Take a look at one of the first Xbox One retail units (video)

Take a look at one of the first Xbox One retail units (video)

There are still a few months until its November launch, but the Xbox One is already ready for primetime, apparently. One of the first Xbox One retail units -- among just 20 or so in existence -- made an appearance this morning in an unboxing video hosted by Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb, director of programming for Microsoft's Xbox division. In particular, the video features a limited edition "Day One" version of the console, which is more or less sold out at every major retailer (at least Amazon, GameStop, and Best Buy). It's just below the break.

If you were one of the lucky few (thousand) to get in on Day One Edition pre-orders, you'll be getting the same stuff as standard edition pre-order folks, albeit with some extra "Day One Edition" branding flair -- the gamepad says "Day One Edition" on it and has a chrome d-pad, and there's an achievement exclusive to DOE owners. Both the standard and Day One editions cost $500, and both now include a wired Xbox One headset -- something that was previously excluded from the retail box.

Also of note, the video's subsequent blog post reveals that Xbox One gamepads recharge using microUSB rather than the proprietary cable used for charging Xbox 360 gamepads. Moreover, when the One's gamepad is plugged in, the internal wireless radio is turned off and it transmits data through the wire (which was not the case with the 360 gamepad). This has interesting implications for the One's gamepad in PC applications, which we'll assuredly explore more in the coming weeks as Gamescom returns to Cologne, Germany for another year of Euro-style game news.

Update: We've added some official press photos of the headset that comes in the box. Enjoy!

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Source: Microsoft, Larry Hryb (Twitter)

Get your hands and eyes to LA and put them on Microsoft’s Xbox One next week

Microsoft's Xbox spokesman Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb is giving fans a chance to take a very early hands-on look at the Xbox One's new gamepad next week. On Monday June 10th, just a day before the official kickoff of E3, Hryb is taking to Microsoft's Century City company store and allotting a solid 90 minutes for controller touching, as well as ogling of the new box and its always-on Kinect. Wouldn't you know it, that's right during Sony's PlayStation 4 press conference!

As the event is both free and full of loosed next-gen hardware, Hryb suggests showing up well ahead of time -- we'll be on-hand, snapping your picture and distributing high fives. He also teases, "one or two other surprises" as well, which we're hoping isn't a free Kin for every person who gets in.

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Source: Major Nelson

Microsoft rolls out stockpile of Xbox Live apps for North American and European gamers

Microsoft rolls out a stockpile of international Xbox Live apps

This afternoon, Microsoft's Larry Hryb (aka Major Nelson) announced the availability of several new Xbox Live apps for gamers across the globe. Customers in the good old US of A can add Rhapsody and Blip.TV to their menu of fine media streaming cuisine. Canadian Xbox Live subscribers now have access to both IGN and French entertainment site TOU.TV; merci beaucoup! Customers in Germany picked up Amazon's LoveFilm movie streaming service, while folks in the UK received an update for the application that makes finding content easier. Rounding out the Xbox Live world tour is the Netherlands, where subscribers can now scoop up the RTL XL app for quick access to the network's programming. Before you install that shiny new tile to your console's dashboard, it should be noted that most of these apps require paid subscriptions -- but you probably knew that already.

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Source: Major Nelson

Microsoft gifting 10-year anniversary Xbox 360s to long-term Xbox Live loyalists

Microsoft gifting 10year anniversary Xbox 360s to longterm loyalists

Microsoft's offering a hearty thank you to some of its longest running Xbox Live members with the handsome limited edition Xbox 360 seen above -- totally gratis -- celebrating this month's 10 year Xbox Live anniversary. Director of Xbox programming Larry "Major Nelson" Hryb posted an image of the box to his Twitter account this evening along with a tease that Redmond's hooking up more than just old-school XBLers. "I'll have details on how you can win one for yourself later this week," he noted. One lucky Kotaku reader already got their hands on the limited edition 360, which appears to be a Slim model -- it's unclear how much HDD space it comes equipped with. Hopefully it's more than enough to handle the 10 years of downloadable content it'll soon be holding.

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Microsoft gifting 10-year anniversary Xbox 360s to long-term Xbox Live loyalists originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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