calimike Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 (edited) That?s right video game fans, as of this week, we now finally have a full crop of next (or should that be ?current??) generation games consoles to play with, bringing with them a whole new era of video game magic! Nintendo?s Wii U has been with us for a while now, PlayStation 4 showed its sleek little face over 10 days ago, and we now finally have an Xbox One to tinker with! The media centre approach Microsoft has taken with its newest home console may not appeal to all gamers, but even if you?d rather play focus on games than flick between live shows and Dead Rising, there?s no denying that Xbox One has one big advantage over its competitors ? its ability to receive, rather than simply output, a signal from another device. Microsoft ideally wants us to use this feature to hook up our cable boxes and make the console our living room hub, but being the gaming nerds that we are and already owning every other console, we decided to do something a little different: play PlayStation 4 and Wii U games on our Xbox One. And it works like a charm. When our Xbox One arrived at RocketNews Towers, one of our more tech-savvy writers casually mentioned that we could theoretically run our existing and much-loved consoles through it, switching between the machines we wanted to use at will, provided they were all switched on. Despite the chorus of ?bullsh*t? that the statement was met with, others agreed that this was indeed possible, and quickly whipped out their smartphones to locate evidence for such a feat online. Wanting to prove that it could be done, we fired up our giant TV screen and set the Xbox One to purr while we gathered up our Wii U console and cables. For those of you who are still unsure how this technical wizardry could possibly come to pass, the answer is simple: using the regular old HDMI cables that the Wii U and PlayStation 4 ship with, it?s possible to connect them to the back of the Xbox One, which is in turn plugged into the monitor (or in this case mammoth TV), piping their signals through the box. Using the Xbox One?s picture-in-picture magic, you can actually have the Wii U running in one window while all kinds of other stuff is going on in others. A bit of fiddling and cursing at metres of cables later and, lo and behold, we had New Super Mario Bros. Wii U running in a window on our new Xbox One, the usual menus surrounding it and running smoothly. More story at... http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/11/27/using-our-brand-new-xbox-one-console-to-play-new-super-mario-bros-wii-u/ Edited November 27, 2013 by Andrew G. Formatting vcfan and SecretAgentMan 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper11 Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 That is pretty darn cool. I definitely plan to try this out when I have the opportunity. Its amazing that you can play the other consoles without any noticeable lag. SecretAgentMan and Thief000 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xendrome Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Technically the title is totally misleading, no one is using the XBox One to play SMB from Wii U. It's just video pass through, not sure why this seems so magical to some people? Tha Bloo Monkee, GotBored, LaP and 1 other 4 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ironman273 Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Technically the title is totally misleading, no one is using the XBox One to play SMB from Wii U. It's just video pass through, not sure why this seems so magical to some people? Exactly. No different than watching TV, watching a Roku, watching Apple TV, anything that has an HDMI out. GotBored 1 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcfan Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 its cool that you can use Xbox features with virtually any hdmi compliant device. instant switching,snap,Kinect. Thief000 and SecretAgentMan 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trooper11 Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Technically the title is totally misleading, no one is using the XBox One to play SMB from Wii U. It's just video pass through, not sure why this seems so magical to some people? Its not magical, but some were saying that it wouldn't be possible due to lag. Well now we are seeing people say it does work with little or no visible lag. There could be value in using a device plugged into an X1 for its overlay features, voice commands via Kinect, etc. Just take a look at the thread here about connecting an htpc to access WMC. The X1 actually has built in support to add it as a device, which allows commands to pass through via voice or a remote control. Stuff like that is pretty useful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unrealistic Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 I took this concept one step further. All of my consoles/devices are hooked up to my receiver, which is then being sent to the xbox's HDMI in. This allows me "app" access to PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Apple TV, WDTV, Uverse and my Wii (never bought the WiiU). It's pretty awesome. The only thing I wish and hope eventually happens is the ability to control more devices using the IR blaster. I currently have to use my Harmony remote to change device signals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NateB1 Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 ^I thought about that, but didn't because I didn't want to deal with the audio situation at the time. How do you deal with the Xbox One's audio stream? Hook it up optically with your receiver, and use that input for your sound? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0nyX Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 I really don't see the point of having 2 consoles powered on in order to play one game. Also I believe modern Tv's have more than one hdmi so you can hook more than one device in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jarrichvdv Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 I really don't see the point of having 2 consoles powered on in order to play one game. Also I believe modern Tv's have more than one hdmi so you can hook more than one device in it Yes, but you would have to change inputs. The Xbox One takes that step away. SecretAgentMan and Thief000 2 Share Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0nyX Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Yes, but you would have to change inputs. The Xbox One takes that step away. I would prefer pressing a button on my remote than having 2 consoles powered on, any time, but that's just me I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thief000 Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Great functionality. Now we just need emulators on there in the future app store and the Xbox One will do almost everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red. Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 That is pretty darn cool. I definitely plan to try this out when I have the opportunity. Its amazing that you can play the other consoles without any noticeable lag. Is there not lag at all? I'm just asking because i saw a video on eurogamer with a PS4 being passed through the Xbox One and they said that you wouldn't be able to use it for gaming due to the lag. Has anyone here tried it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(Account no longer active) Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 <snipped> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vcfan Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 Is there not lag at all? I'm just asking because i saw a video on eurogamer with a PS4 being passed through the Xbox One and they said that you wouldn't be able to use it for gaming due to the lag. Has anyone here tried it? but its eurogamer. a game dropping 1 frame per second makes them freak out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonnyLH Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 I really don't see the point of having 2 consoles powered on in order to play one game. Also I believe modern Tv's have more than one hdmi so you can hook more than one device in it. Still receive party invites, quick game/app switching. I played around using a PC into my X1 and I have to say, it is quite cool in motion just being able to say "Xbox go to Battlefield 4" and "Xbox watch TV" and it goes back and forth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unrealistic Posted November 27, 2013 Share Posted November 27, 2013 ^I thought about that, but didn't because I didn't want to deal with the audio situation at the time. How do you deal with the Xbox One's audio stream? Hook it up optically with your receiver, and use that input for your sound? For now yes, but I'm still trying to figure out the best way to manage it. It's definitely the biggest issue with the setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunknMunky Veteran Posted November 27, 2013 Veteran Share Posted November 27, 2013 Great functionality. Now we just need emulators on there in the future app store and the Xbox One will do almost everything. Won't happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thief000 Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 Won't happen. That's what you're hoping, because you know the effect it will have on the competition. The Windows 8 Store proves you wrong already though with emulators like SNES8x. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunknMunky Veteran Posted November 28, 2013 Veteran Share Posted November 28, 2013 That's what you're hoping, because you know the effect it will have on the competition. The Windows 8 Store proves you wrong already though with emulators like SNES8x. That's not the reason at all :laugh: Do you really think Microsoft would get away with a SNES emulator on the X1? You honestly don't see the legal repercussions from Nintendo? As far as the apps themselves, I don't believe they are illegal so simply having them on a store means absolutely nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeChipshop Member Posted November 28, 2013 Member Share Posted November 28, 2013 Won't happen. Stranger things have happened, although, in this case, i kinda agree with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thief000 Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 That's not the reason at all :laugh: Do you really think Microsoft would get away with a SNES emulator on the X1? You honestly don't see the legal repercussions from Nintendo? As far as the apps themselves, I don't believe they are illegal so simply having them on a store means absolutely nothing. There is nothing illegal about emulation as long as there is no proprietary code nor the ROMs included. Sony and Nintendo couldn't do anything about it if this was the case and the code for many emulators on Windows platforms is open source, making it very much possible for someone to do it. On the Xbox 360 this was impossible because you had to bake in ROMs with your executable (no access to external devices that could store them). My friend working at MS says that an app store is very much on the table. Whether it happens, we'll just have to wait and see, but if it does, then this will make a very big impact. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrunknMunky Veteran Posted November 28, 2013 Veteran Share Posted November 28, 2013 There is nothing illegal about emulation as long as there is no proprietary code nor the ROMs included. Sony and Nintendo couldn't do anything about it if this was the case and the code for many emulators on Windows platforms is open source, making it very much possible for someone to do it. On the Xbox 360 this was impossible because you had to bake in ROMs with your executable (no access to external devices that could store them). My friend working at MS says that an app store is very much on the table. Whether it happens, we'll just have to wait and see, but if it does, then this will make a very big impact. That's what I said? The emulators aren't illegal, otherwise they wouldn't be allowed on app stores or be allowed to distribute freely online. The ROMS are protected though and if Microsoft are seen doing nothing to prevent their use, Nintendo will take action. Just because something is possible doesn't mean it's legal. As for the 360, it was very possible to play ROMS via homebrew. Microsoft were active in preventing it though. Same goes for PS3, Wii, and even the original Xbox. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaP Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 Technically the title is totally misleading, no one is using the XBox One to play SMB from Wii U. It's just video pass through, not sure why this seems so magical to some people? Yep i have to agree. It would be like saying it's awesome than a PC can play an HD movie and yet still allow multitasking at the same time. Actually i can play wow in a window on my PC and still multitask perfectly fine. The Wii U is handling all the processing for the game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 wow HDMI passthrough amazing ... who would have thought Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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