Xbox One won't include a headset. Use Kinect instead

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

?It was my impression at the presentation that it [the Xbox One] was going to come packed in with the Kinect sensor array. It didn?t looked like it was packed in with the headset which to me having the headset was included in the last generation was really a pretty crucial thing that drove chat and media and Xbox Live whilst Sony went with the piecemeal bluetooth accessory thing and in my opinion that really helped Xbox Live become a destination for multiplayer gaming. Do you feel that the new Kinect sensor replaces the headset in terms of multiplayer chat or why aren?t you including a headset??

?I think you?re going to see a lot of cool things about what we are doing with headsets. In are overall strategy we think headsets are great and we want there to be great headset experiences. I do think the new Kinect can, I wouldn?t use the word ?replacement,? I think it can be a great communication experience for gaming. And I think actually the capability frankly when in particular powering Skype and allowing it to constantly run so that I can choose between audio only, audio and voice, so that those things can run across games like we?ve been doing with third parties for so long. I think it?s really foundational to how we think about the communication experience. I do believe your going to see a lot of game communications using Kinect, I also think you will see a lot with headsets as well.?

Source: https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/05/21/interview-with-xbox-ones-chief-product-officer-marc-whitten.aspx

[jerzdawg]

ya know, I was wondering when the next thread was going to get created... got me worried.. 5 minutes had already past since your last one.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

And they'll keep coming if that is genuinely what is annoying people. You know, if it's not misdirected rage at MS getting panned off at me :rofl:, because that is funny to keep seeing over and over.

These are things gamers want to know, it was posted about Sony including a headset in the PS4, why not MS not including one after they did with the 360?

[shakey]

ya know, I was wondering when the next thread was going to get created... got me worried.. 5 minutes had already past since you last one.

There isn't any negativity in this article and is only going off of the information that was just released. Don't shoot the messenger. No one else is posting the news of what is coming out with it on here. Just because its AB, you automatically take it as something negative.

If you don't like this information, maybe the next xbox isn't for you. Because this is only about what it is going to do/ not do.

People all in a hissy fit over information. I would understand if AB was going, " HAHAH Look at this crap blahblahblah." But posting articles on what other news outlets/ media outlets are saying, is just what this site is about; and AB isn't doing it in a way that mocks or belittles anything. The only thing that may be belittling to others, is the way MS is changing the way consoles and gaming will be.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

So does Kinect have the ability to somehow not pick up the background sound and only pick up ones voice? Because if not, welcome to worse sound than what is on the PSN!!

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

So does Kinect have the ability to somehow not pick up the background sound and only pick up ones voice? Because if not, welcome to worse sound than what is on the PSN!!

How does Wii Speak work? I've never tried it before.

edit: Well I know how it works, I guess, how is it?

Also it wouldn't surprise me if MS do a 180 on this decision, Sony are simply including a mono (yuck) headset, it'll be cheap as chips built.

[jerzdawg]

There isn't any negativity in this article and is only going off of the information that was just released. Don't shoot the messenger. No one else is posting the news of what is coming out with it on here. Just because its AB, you automatically take it as something negative.

If you don't like this information, maybe the next xbox isn't for you. Because this is only about what it is going to do/ not do.

People all in a hissy fit over information. I would understand if AB was going, " HAHAH Look at this crap blahblahblah." But posting articles on what other news outlets/ media outlets are saying, is just what this site is about; and AB isn't doing it in a way that mocks or belittles anything. The only thing that may be belittling to others, is the way MS is changing the way consoles and gaming will be.

didnt say there was anything negative. just saying there has to be a better way of organizing the information, there are 10+ threads in under 24 hours with most of it being information that could be put into 1 thread

OT - if anything I consider this POSITIVE news as every kid who has an xbox will now have to rely to using their kinect to run their mouth... maybe mommy will hear them cursing now and slap the S out of them

2nd edit - and if you really believe the OP is just "posting news" then you are delusional

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

didnt say there was anything negative. just saying there has to be a better way of organizing the information, there are 10+ threads in under 24 hours with most of it being information that could be put into 1 thread

People don't read 1 thread, they read headlines and opening sentences. That is generalizing the internet, but welcome to modern day journalism and twitter headlines.

If anything splitting everything up allows for people to pick and choose what they want to discuss and what they'd rather avoid. On a day that there wasn't as much news to come at once, topics like this topic would be welcomed as simply another snippit of news.

[jerzdawg]

People don't read 1 thread, they read headlines and opening sentences. That is generalizing the internet, but welcome to modern day journalism and twitter headlines.

If anything splitting everything up allows for people to pick and choose what they want to discuss and what they'd rather avoid. On a day that there wasn't as much news to come at once, topics like this topic would be welcomed as simply another snippit of news.

Xbox One - What we know so far.....

its not difficult

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

Xbox One - What we know so far.....

its not difficult

I can't keep editing an OP, so stuff then gets posted on random pages. I think you have to be a Neowin sub to keep editing the OP.

But fine, I'll stop posting and let others do the work. I'm tired now anyway and have wasted way more time than I really should have today (should of been working). I'm probably just too used to the NeoGAF way of splitting everything up to discuss it all as everyone pleases - They say it stifles discussion if everyone crams things into one topic.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

How does Wii Speak work? I've never tried it before.

edit: Well I know how it works, I guess, how is it?

Also it wouldn't surprise me if MS do a 180 on this decision, Sony are simply including a mono (yuck) headset, it'll be cheap as chips built.

What is Wii Speak? I honestly do not know.

I only play SP games on the Wii, never been online with it once (with a game to clarify, have checked out MiiVerse, etc. obviously), so yeah, I have no clue honestly what it is, and I really did not know it was even an option. That shows you how great Nintendos marketing is.

I just know at work I am in charge of the technology for our virtual classrooms. Granted it is laptop based and has nothing to do with consoles, but I know very well the difference a headset makes as opposed to internal mics and external speakers when it comes to voice transmission. There is no comparison, especially if someone has their speakers turned up a decent amount. Unless the Kinect has the ability to only detect the voice, which it very well may that is why I was asking, it could sound really bad if that is all one relied on.

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

What is Wii Speak? I honestly do not know.

I only play SP games on the Wii, never been online with it once (with a game to clarify, have checked out MiiVerse, etc. obviously), so yeah, I have no clue honestly what it is, and I really did not know it was even an option. That shows you how great Nintendos marketing is.

It's basically a microphone - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wii_Speak

To be fair there was hardly any compatible games, I kind of forgot that.

[jakem1]

Here's what The Guardian's review of the controller has to say:

Elsewhere, the designers have updated the port where the headset used to go. Apparently, this will allow much higher fidelity of communications and will be used in unannounced peripherals, perhaps some sort of text input device, or a microphone?

It's not definitive but it sounds like headsets will still be supported.

By the way, that article includes an interesting review of the new Kinect's abilities too.

[shakey]

So does Kinect have the ability to somehow not pick up the background sound and only pick up ones voice? Because if not, welcome to worse sound than what is on the PSN!!

I used to be one of those guys until I got the Pulse Elite. Awesome theater surround sound makes using the mic so horrible for those on the other end apparently :p

And it doesn't matter what kind of noise cancellation it has. It will not work for those of us with great sound setups. There is no way for it to discern between my voice or another's coming out of my speakers. Especially when it's on a high volume. Mics are a must.

[jerzdawg]

Source: https://www.gameinfo...rc-whitten.aspx

did you do this transcript or did you just post the interview as source?

[_neutrino Veteran]

great, i already have to listen to my neighbor screaming to people when he is on his Xbox now he will yell louder thinking that because it is not a headset they cannot hear him.

[BajiRav]

I used to be one of those guys until I got the Pulse Elite. Awesome theater surround sound makes using the mic so horrible for those on the other end apparently :p

And it doesn't matter what kind of noise cancellation it has. It will not work for those of us with great sound setups. There is no way for it to discern between my voice or another's coming out of my speakers. Especially when it's on a high volume. Mics are a must.

The microphone array is now apparently capable of filtering out sound from speakers. I am skeptical but they specifically mentioned it...somewhere.

[DirtyLarry Veteran]

I used to be one of those guys until I got the Pulse Elite. Awesome theater surround sound makes using the mic so horrible for those on the other end apparently :p

I was not kidding when I said it is what makes the PSN so bad. 80% of the audio sounding like ass on the PSN more often than not is due to the fact people have their theatre surround sound up loud, and the mic is also picking up the sound from the game, and when it is multiple people doing it at once, at slightly different increments of seconds as well, it creates a god awful loop of feedback. Truth is I do not use my mic a whole lot these days regardless, but I do hope Sony does something to address this fact.

The microphone array is now apparently capable of filtering out sound from speakers. I am skeptical but they specifically mentioned it...somewhere.

Okay makes sense, they have to have some kind of noise canceling feature like that to be touting it as a viable solution. With that said at the very least, it would probably pick up the other players voices. Hopefully not.

For all new hires in my company I worked with my IT department to make sure everyone gets a headset as part of their starter kit for the very same reason. It was a cool couple hour long assignment as I got to go to Best Buy and purchase headsets ranging in price from $15 to $100 and test them all out. Turns out we went with a $20 pair as it also included the good old fashioned pink and green adapter, which some people in the field had laptops which still had those audio connections. But including the same headset brings a consistency to dealing with sound that is definitely desirable. I actually think I may have even been inspired to do so by MS doing it with the 360. I am actually very surprised they are taking this route to be quite honest if it winds up being the case. The inclusion of the headset on the 360 was an absolutely great idea and I always thought Sony should do something similar. Another big reason the PSN sounds like ass is the fact anyone can use almost any headset.

[FiB3R]

I can't keep editing an OP, so stuff then gets posted on random pages. I think you have to be a Neowin sub to keep editing the OP.

But fine, I'll stop posting and let others do the work. I'm tired now anyway and have wasted way more time than I really should have today (should of been working). I'm probably just too used to the NeoGAF way of splitting everything up to discuss it all as everyone pleases - They say it stifles discussion if everyone crams things into one topic.

Dude, what you are doing is totally fine.

It is a lot of info, and it is coming in, in dribs and drabs. People want to discus each aspect in depth, which would just become a mess were it all in one thread.

[jakem1]

Ars Technica have posted this video of Kinect with an example of the noise cancellation at the 2 minute mark.

http://bcove.me/lo4uwq66

It's really pretty impressive if it works as per the demo.

[Sylar0]

Sorry if it has been said but what if you want isolated sound? It does have audio jacks right?

[spaceelf]

So does Kinect have the ability to somehow not pick up the background sound and only pick up ones voice? Because if not, welcome to worse sound than what is on the PSN!!

I know it's been said already, but yes. It's actually an amazing mic on the first gen, I wanted to use it for everything but it was annoying to unplug it from the 360 and put it on my PC every time.

[red.]

What happens if you're using the Kinect mic during a MP game? Do all the other gamers hear you say commands like 'xbox snap...'?

[George P Global Moderator]

What happens if you're using the Kinect mic during a MP game? Do all the other gamers hear you say commands like 'xbox snap...'?

No? If it hears you say Xbox first, and it sees you actually looking at the screen and holding a controller, i.e. engaged in a game, then it knows you're giving it a command. Otherwise if you're just talking then yes, i'd say you are chatting normally.

As was mentioned the controller still has a port so you can still use some handset if you want but if not the kinect2 will work just as well. If you look at the demo to you don't have to scream, the mic array seems to be so good that will the noise filtering it can pick up voices quite well.

[Skiver Veteran]

I'm a little skeptical about this, I assume it will be command driven to mute? "Xbox, Mute"

I often will mute my headset multiple times when playing online with friends so that I can talk to the misses or even simple things like having a drink, No-one wants to hear me slurping away!!

Also, if its "clever" enough to detect Im actually giving it a command then surely that means there is a delay in speech? so when I say xbox there has to be a half second before it sends the voice or uses it as a command. I know that doesnt sound a lot and maybe there is a delay already but this just seems like it would add to anything which I would imagine could completely change how some people game.

As much as I hate to admit it, I am totally pro Xbox (i like to think i can justify this by owning all 3 last gen consoles so my opinions tend to be based on my experiences), but the one does keep just giving me reasons to wish i wasn't! Looking forward to E3 to see more on the Xbox and PS and hopefully restore my faith in the xbox.