Xbox dashboard update winter 2011

[Funkmasterr]

Got this tonight. Xbox live has been all messed up, but I was finally able to get online.

Not sure I'm a fan of the new layout, I guess I'll see of it grows on me. Other than cosmetic changes, it seems like all that changed was enhanced voice stuff for kinect and cloud saves.

[miir]

Anything would be an improvement over the old dashboard.
What an eyesore that was.

[Funkmasterr]

I actually thought it was fine, I really don't like the new one.

[Animalor]

I'm a fan of the new dashboard. The searching of content is great and will get a lot better once queries contain content from apps (like netflix).

I love the fact that there is no longer a Kinect-specific dash but it's just a single environment. The other major win for me is that you can have your profile active on multiple consoles. No more recovering or carting around a USB stick. Same your games in the cloud and you're all set. The downside to that is that if for some reason the cloud service is down, you can't sync your content to that specific xbox. You can always, however, move it to storage media from the cache on Xbox 1 and play it on xbox 2.

Beacons are a nice touch however I haven't really made use of them yet. I might throw one up for Gears 3 or Assassin's Creed Revelations MP to see if anyone is making use of them. I did see some friends with active Gears 3 beacons last night.

I'm also waiting for the Windows Phone app so I can use my phone as a remote. Was supposed to be out yesterday too but it hasn't happened yet. I realize that I'm in the minority on this living almost exclusively in the Microsoft ecosystem.

My only real gripe is that I wish I had control on which apps/games I could pin to the dashboard. I find I have to dig down frequently for stuff I use regularly like Media Center or arcade games. Giving me a tab where I could pin stuff that I use would be great.

[Leonaerd]

The X and Y buttons swapped functionality, so now you can accidentally eject your disc even more often!

[Animalor]

Oh so I may have been wrong.. Is appears that Netflix content IS surfaced by Bing searches and can be launched right there.

I just got to try the Xbox Companion app for Windows Phone and I'm able to do content searches from my phone and launch the content on the console. Bing search there will show me where the content is available and play it. I searched for Stargate SG1 and it offered me the option to buy it on Zune or stream it through Netflix. I tapped Netflix and it launched the specific episode I chose automatically. It's incredibly slick. Oh and if I'm watching a show, I swipe over once to see the cast and crew and I can tap any name and see their work available on any service available in your area. (In my case Netflix and Zune)

There's a quick launch screen with a list of the 8 or 10 most recent played games(that will launch the arcade games and give you full details of disk-based games).

Searching for a game give you the option to set a beacon for a game, look at your friends that have played said game as well as view your acheivements.

Overall it's a pretty solid app. Hopefully Microsoft doesn't let it stagnate.

[Fairweather Pure]

Cloud saves is a lifesaver for anyone that owns more than 1 Xbox. I like the new dash a lot, especially when paired with the iPhone/iPad app. I like the way Netflix presents it's content in this update. I just wish the Youtube app was live. I guess it will be along shortly though.

[Funkmasterr]

I wonder how much access to Xbox live people need. I downloaded the app for the iPhone and were I to guess, I'll use it maybe twice. I won't use cloud saves, and I don't like the new dash at all. I'm liking it less every time I turn on my Xbox. Apparently I'm alone here, although I'm not sure how.

[miir]

Cloud saves are definitely good for people with multiple consoles. PSN has had it for a while now.
The new dash is much better than the previous one... which isn't really saying much, it was fucking terrible.

I just wish the Youtube app was live.

Years ago, I used to watch youtube videos all the time on my PS3, but now I don't even bother.
I suppose it's big news that after 6 years, people can watch youtube on their xbox.

[Fairweather Pure]

Years ago, I used to watch youtube videos all the time on my PS3, but now I don't even bother.
I suppose it's big news that after 6 years, people can watch youtube on their xbox.

The browser on PS3 is so bad I can't believe anyone bothered to do anything with it at all. I guess maybe it would've been cool 6 years ago, but even then the browser was pure garbage. Sony hasn't done a single thing to try and improve the experience in all those years. It is 100% worthless. It might as well not be on the console it is so bad.

[miir]

It's a fuck of a lot better than the xbox browser.

[kyoukan]

I love paying microsoft to get to watch Youtube.