Microsoft are pitching Series S as a low resolution version of X. But obviously with the X's GPU having about 3x more performance, there should be more differences than that. And I don't think MS are communicating all the differences very well, maybe intentionally.

For instance, my TV is a bit rubbish considering it's only last year's model. HDMI 1.4 means that with the Series X, if I force 4k (+ downsampling) I'm limited to 30fps - not an option. So I'd rather settle for 1080p + 60fps.

However... it's not just frame rate or resolution that will be affected. Polygon count, texture detail, amount of raytracing, amount of effects should all be more complex and higher processed on the X vs the S. In other words, if you have a 1080p - whether capable of supersampling or not - you're still better off with the X because of the extra GPU grunt doing so much more than just resolution/frame rate improvements. Unless I'm missing something?

So.
Xbox has this streaming game service that supposedly works great on mobile (gonna try it out this weekend).
With this, I might only buy one Xbox this gen. My question:

You guys thing the XSS will be able to stream XSX versions of games later on?

I absolutely agree.
But Microsoft probably doesn't want to invest the time, money and resources to create a "Series S" build for all the BC titles on the Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.

I doubt the Ram reduction is going to make up for the 20% physical Ram deficit... Plus Emulation has a *ton* of overhead, granted Microsoft isn't doing just pure emulation, it's still doing *some* emulation, obviously no one can assert one way or another as we cannot do any memory use profiling on the Xbox One to see how much DRAM games actually need.

Older backwards compatible titles aren't built with an SSD in mind.

You are absolutely on the money.

The Xbox One X has 12 GB RAM, the Xbox Series S only 10 GB RAM.

Maybe that is the main problem to use X enhanced settings on the new entry console without further patches.

Point is you could easily say a bunch of things are anti consumer. You could also say they're offering a pretty good deal regardless.

It's probably likely that it could be done, but MS doesn't see the point, at least for now. Maybe the XB team is short for resources because they are focusing on other things they deem more important first. They didn't see the point for BC with XB1 right away either. That took like 2 or 3 years after launch before it became a thing.

Whether or not Series S games will run poorly is uncertain, but there is certainly more potential for Series X games run better.

But like the OP said, if you just want access to the games and the highest fidelity isn't important, then a Series S should be fine. For $200, that's something people will consider.

I have considered this, I think streaming will utilize the Series S.

Why? It will be much cheaper for MS to make servers using Series S hardware. 4K streaming might be too demanding for many users, especially those on mobile devices. Therefore games running 4K native isn't crucial.

Honestly, I don't think you'll be content with xCloud unless you are away from home. I would rather have a Series S device at home than rely on xCloud. However, if you're somebody low on money or don't want to invest in Xbox hardware, having a streaming option can be great in that case.

You're right it's uncertain but with how poorly late gen games can run on consoles it makes me feel pessimistic about it. Control is a great example. It also depends on someone's standards since if by 2025-2027 the Series S is running games at 720p 30fps I'd consider that really poor performance but other people might not. It won't be $200 right away but it should get there by 2023-2024 and at that price it will be very attractive. Either way people should look at stuff like digital foundry videos before deciding if the Series S would be fine for them.

The 8th gen has arguably had arguably more stable frame rate than previous gens. Maybe because developers can make great looking games without sacrificing too much performance.

Control is an exception and was a poorly optimized. From my understanding it has improved greatly post launch, but I can't confirm how much better. Also, the game ran best on X1X I believe, partly because it has a considerably more capable CPU. Series S is avoiding that by having virtually the same capabilities there.

I will entertain the idea that Series S may get 720p content. You need to consider 720p in the 7th gen, 8th gen and 9th gen aren't equal. Post processing effects has changed over the years. 720p often didn't look as jagged on Xbox One, but could look blurry depending on the method implemented for performance sake. 9th gen consoles will likely utilize image reconstruction techniques, something Digital Foundry has touched on many times. For example, they showed Control at 540p could resemble 1080p with DLSS. So things are different now, a low native resolution may look surprisingly sharp with new tech.

I look forward to Digital Foundry examining Series S games. Thus far it appears Series S titles are gonna look and run great. Even Gears 5 maintained 120 fps seemingly with ease. Down the road I suspect Series S will hold up well even if compromises are apparent.

I assume Series S will do well given many consumers will simply notice it plays the latest games at a low price. But when it hits that sweet spot of $199, I imagine its gonna have some great holiday sales. The soonest that may happen is holiday 2022.

The image reconstruction part is a good point I didn't fully consider though DLSS will be more advanced I imagine. My concern is I doubt the PS5 and Series X will be running games at 4k for the entire generation and suspect that an increasing percentage of games will use lower resolutions as the generation goes on and those two systems will have far more ability to decrease resolution if needed down the line. Also certain developers expressing concern about the Series S makes me worried though I will be happy if that worry and concern doesn't come into fruition. I think the Series X is better value for what the hardware offers but if someone can't afford it or wants a secondary console for their kid or something like that then the Series S when it gets down to $199 could be a good option for sure.