I don't necessarily think that either, but I and quite a few others didn't think XB1SAD was a great idea, yet MS launched it. If the device needed to take some of the brunt of the workload, a cheaper smaller console, made using the most up to date hardware, would make sense. That doesn't mean old XB1 hardware definitely can't make use of xCloud.

I understand the TF performance between archs. I understand that Lockhart as rumored would take the place of XB1X. In which case keeping XB1X on the market makes no sense. In order for it to remain on the market and make sense though, Lockhart would have to be different than what the leaks suggest. I was just making the case as to how it could potentially remain, based on posts about what may happen to it. I don't necessarily think that's going to be the case, as I mentioned earlier.

It's possible all XB1 hardware or newer will be capable of xCloud streaming, but it's also possible that the XB Series hardware will offer you a more reasonable experience and for cheaper. Streaming only on old hardware vs hardware assisted streaming with new hardware would likely be a worthy selling point. I thought you said XB hardware earlier but you said X1 hardware, which wouldn't include XBSX. My mistake.

The X1SAD made sense if it was simply $149, most seemed unhappy with the launch price. A device dedicated to xCloud in comparison might cost $99 bundled with a controller. At that rate, a X1SAD is a better choice.

I'm not sure how hardware assisted streaming works better. I mean having used PS Now, it seems to work great as long as your internet connection is up for the task and wired in to reduce latency. I think hardware assisted streaming is more beneficial when streaming your gameplay out, like for people to watch or maybe to another device. I believe Wii U had unique hardware to seamlessly stream video to the tablet controller.

This may come as a shock to you, but most gamers don’t go online to talk about video games. Most don’t care about having the absolute most power. Most casually play games like COD/FIFA/fortnight/Apex legends/GTA5 etc. Gaming isn’t a big part of their lives nor is it part of their identity. It’s just something they do when they got a few hours to kill. 

Core gamers number the least millions of a console consumer base. We are the “whales” of the industry but are far from the majority. We just have our voices heard the loudest because we actively participate in discussion and outreach to the devs. 

If these people just want to play next gen games without the bells and whistles that say the Series X provides, then more power to them. So long as core gamers like me get the Series X I could care less. 

The X1SAD made sense if it was simply $149, most seemed unhappy with the launch price. A device dedicated to xCloud in comparison might cost $99 bundled with a controller. At that rate, a X1SAD is a better choice.

I'm not sure how hardware assisted streaming works better. I mean having used PS Now, it seems to work great as long as your internet connection is up for the task and wired in to reduce latency. I think hardware assisted streaming is more beneficial when streaming your gameplay out, like for people to watch or maybe to another device. I believe Wii U had unique hardware to seamlessly stream video to the tablet controller.

We could debate on what a "core" gamer is, but to me it's anyone who plays the latest AAA games like GTA, COD etc. Maybe not everyone cares or understands anything about the technical specs, but even my 90-year-old granny understands the concept of you get what you pay for. People will automatically assume there's a reason why it's cheaper and that they'll get a compromised version of GTA6 compared to their buddy's on ps5. Truth is we live in a world where teenagers carry $1000 phones with them and nobody knows or cares what kind of hardware is in them. So is $99 really going to make that much of a difference? We also know that the masses are fine with paying at least $399 for a console, so why make it $299?

The only thing that can come from this is that Series X will be an even harder sell. For the first 2 years MS exclusives on Series X will be hold back by going cross-gen with the Xone. And the remainder of the console generation it will be hold back by Series S's gpu that's 3 times weaker. I just don't see how developers could really make good use of something like Ray Tracing if they constantly have to think "Will this work on 4Tflops too?" 

I get why people might think the Series X will be native 4k and Series S will be 1080p. But ask anyone who knows anything about game design and they'll tell you that resolution will have the least priority with a next gen console. Just look at how many games are 720p on Xone. If the only difference between Series X and S will be that it runs the same games at 4 times the resolution (which most people will barely notice), it just means the developers did a crappy job because it could have been 4 times the overall visual fidelity.  

Fact remains the Series S is a upgrade from the base last gen consoles and can undercut the PS5 by at least $200. That’s attractive no matter how you spin it. And if you think it’s too weak for your taste...here’s the Series X. The powerful console made for core gamers. 

You can change the narrative to preserve your own, I guess “one holding back the other” will be an enduring narrative to keep Xbox down in online discussion...every gen has a new line, but this is funny in how reaching it is.

You’d be silly to think that Series X will never have its potential tapped. 

If Series X's potential will be tapped totally depends on the developers and which console they'll use as the base platform. If that would be Series S, we will just get native 4k and/or more fps on Series X. However, if Series X was the lead, developers would be able to completely optimize their games for 12Tflops while aiming for 1440p and 30fps. The games would simply look a ton better. 

IT's weird man. On one hand I'm totally excited that MS is launching a 12Tflops console, but they keep dampening my excitement with every announcement they've made afterwards. It's almost as if they don't want people to buy the Series X lol. I mean having a $599 beast of a console that plays the same games as the $299 Lockhard or a $100 Xone, just better, isn't going to get many people excited over Series X and next gen gaming in general. 

Yup, that’s a beautiful narrative that will last until Sony makes a PS5 Pro. Even when Xbox One support stops you all ready have a backup narrative for Xbox being held back in that you will solely blame Lockhart. 

Guess we have to have gameplay comparisons to prove you wrong. This speculation is far too easy to feed off of.