Aesthetically, I find the design a little underwhelming since it looks pretty much like an oversized DVD/Blu-Ray player more than a console. I'm not entirely sure why Microsoft lost the sleek design they had with the Xbox 360 but I suspect it's to be more in line with the general square motif they've had going on lately with Windows 8 and the redesign of their logo. On the flip side, the controller looks pretty cool but a bit bulky. Additionally, I haven't been able to get my hands on it (not that I will any time soon, unless I buy one when it's released) but it seems a little disproportionate with the body being far bigger than the grips (those little leg things, I'm not sure what they're called). The Kinect 2 seems to be following the new design principle of squares and rectangles with the general shape being a long rectangle.
In terms of technical specifications, I'm not a tech wizard guru or anything but it seems like it shares the processing power of an upper-middle range computer and seems to share a lot of similarities with the PS4. I've read a few articles online explaining that the PS4 is slightly more powerful because the processor has more cores and doesn't have to run 3 separate operating systems simultaneously. Again, I'm not too sure why it has to run 3 operating systems but apparently it has to do with the way the console works with the start/dashboard using a cut-down version of Windows 8 then it has some sort of dedicated Xbox OS and uses Windows RT for something else. Seems a mite complicated to me, also, wouldn't that technically eat up a lot of memory and processing power?
The Kinect 2 seems pretty impressive in terms of announced specs and the apparent features that Microsoft has declared but I'm not liking the fact that it is required for the Xbox One to work (NOTE: unconfirmed, some sites say that a Kinect is required for you to play, some claim that it is not required, Microsoft hasn't been forthcoming). On the subject of the Kinect 2, I'm a generally paranoid person with issues regarding my privacy and security. The Kinect 2's insane ability to track you to such an accurate extent may not seem like much of a security or privacy issue but I'm just concerned that it could be used to spy on me in my own home. Arguably, the same can be said for webcams and built-in cameras for laptops and I share concerns for that to. Also, apparently it can read your heart rate? I'm sure that's probably for sports games and the like but seriously, that's going a little far, isn't it? It's extremely sensitive and apparently can read facial expressions. The most concerning thing about the Kinect 2 is that the microphone is always on, meaning it's always listening to you. All these features are really cool but a little worrying in the sense of how powerful it is in being able to collect information on you. If someone can hack into it and use it against you, they could do quite a bit of damage.
Games-wise, I think Microsoft made a major error in featuring so few games. Fans will argue that they're saving up for E3 and that's fine but I thought mentioning more games that they had in the pipeline would've done a lot more to swing some undecided customers. Plus, personally, I'm not really interested in what they have on offer right now in terms of exclusives. There's a lot of third-party games being published for the PS4 as well and I'm content with that. The only real thing I feel I'm missing out by being a Sony gamer is Halo. And maybe Forza but the next Gran Turismo could probably outclass Forza.
The stuff about the One being an entertainment console is pretty interesting, not really my thing but I can see where they're going with it. Microsoft seems to be trying to wrestle away some customers from Nintendo in making a more family-friendly console, one that's more powerful than the Wii U and offers more services and capabilities that appeal to a hardcore gamer as well. Like the Xbox 360, Microsoft appears to be gearing towards US audiences once again, which annoys me to no end as a gamer living outside of the US. The live television stuff is really awesome but I'm pretty sure I won't have any access to it because of my geographical location. It's also annoying that Microsoft hasn't been forthright about the issue of internet connectivity. They're claiming that you don't always have to be online but the console has to be connected to the internet at some point every 24 hours which means you do need an internet connection to play, which is stupid if you just want to play single-player games or maybe watch a movie, you know, activities that don't traditionally require an internet connection.
Overall, I think the Xbox One is an interesting product particularly as an entertainment console but unless I see more, I can't really pass judgement on it. For now though, based on the information out right now, I'm not really impressed since I was expecting a games console with added entertainment features, not an entertainment console that can play games.
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