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How to connect Discord voice chat with your Xbox
Chat with your Discord friends from your Xbox console
Connecting your Discord account with your Xbox console lets you talk in a Discord voice chat channel through your Xbox console. It's a great way to play the best cross-platform games without using workarounds to chat with your friends.
It's the era of tech accessories. You'll find wireless charging stands, tech backpacks, and virtually any accessory you can imagine. Gaming manufacturers have often led the charge, with platform holders pushing out everything from candy-colored faceplates to garish headsets festooned with RGB lighting.
Microsoft has made a name for itself in the console space since 2001. Over the years, the company has offered many Xbox hardware and services, including PC Game Pass, Game Pass Ultimate, Xbox Game Pass Core (previously Xbox Gold Live), and handy controllers, along with its current generation of consoles, Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. These services extend to cloud gaming, where you can play your favorite Game Pass titles on a budget Android phone or any browser-supported device.
Microsoft wants Xbox on mobile as it seeks partners for a new gaming store
Microsoft may soon attempt to break into the mobile gaming space
Microsoft has taken notice of the ongoing drama surrounding Apple's and Google's app store practices. Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite, famously brought attention to the possibility of monopolistic patterns in two different lawsuits against the tech giants. In the wake of significant investments in its gaming division, including the recent acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft has recently hinted at an Xbox mobile store that would clearly compete with Google and Apple.
Here's why the new Xbox Cloud Gaming PWA for Chromebooks is such a huge upgrade
Still in beta, but 1080p support is finally here
Over the last two years, I've had the opportunity to test most game streaming services on an assortment of awesome Chromebooks. While many of these streaming services are still growing, I've had the chance to watch as they grow with incremental improvements. This means I'm familiar with the likes of Luna, GeForce, and even Stadia, along with Xbox Cloud Gaming. But Xbox Cloud Gaming has been in beta the entire time it's been available, which never looked great on higher-res screens since it was locked to 720p.
Xbox is testing a way to share Game Pass Ultimate with friends and family
Gamers interested sharing the love can invite up to four friends to join in
Everything's a subscription these days — like Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass service, which crossed 25 million subscriptions earlier this year, and shows no signs of slowing down. The gaming offering has so far held its own against the likes of Playstation Plus and cloud service Google Stadia, thanks to its wide variety of indie games and AAA titles. With Sony revamping Playstation Plus, Microsoft is also looking to shake things up, and is starting a test that allows users to share Game Pass Ultimate benefits with their friends and family.
Verizon wants you to pay for your Xbox like you do your phone
This wireless network operator would like to sell you Xbox All Access in select stores and online
Verizon is looking to get hip with the kids by selling a payment plan for Xbox consoles, known as Xbox All Access. The plans start (keyword start) at $25 a month and go up from there, depending on which console you choose, either the Xbox Series S or Series X (the X coming in at $35 a month), and comes with two years of Game Pass Ultimate, which is precisely how long you'll be paying off the console you get by joining Xbox All Access. While Microsoft already offers plenty of partners where you can sign up for Xbox All Access (like Walmart, Target, and Best Buy), Verizon has entered the fray with an announcement that select Verizon retail stores along with its online storefront will be selling Xbox All Access starting July 28th.
The best console controller that works on Android has some hot new customization options
Plus, the new Pride controller is finally available
When you're a big-time console gamer, trying to make do on Android can be a bit of an adjustment. Sure, plenty of games are designed from the ground up with smartphones in mind, and make smart use of touch input — but there are also more than enough that will have you wishing for the reliable, precision input you're only going to find with a physical controller. Microsoft's got some great options, and its Elite Wireless Controller is easily one of the best Android gaming controllers around. Today we're checking out the company's slightly more affordable offering, as some fun new customization options come to the Xbox Design Lab.
Samsung TV owners won't need an Xbox to play games like Starfield
Microsoft will soon take its next step with Xbox Cloud Gaming by introducing a TV app
Xbox Cloud Gaming may still be in beta and only available to those who subscribe to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (the most expensive version of the three tiers of Xbox Game Pass that are available), but Microsoft has big plans for the service. The company is primed to launch a game streaming app for Samsung smart TVs (exclusive to models produced in 2022) on June 30th across 27 different countries, which means the entirety of Xbox Cloud Gaming's library will be playable on these TVs, along with a free version of Fortnite that doesn't require a subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
Xbox Cloud Gaming needs another year before it arrives on TVs
Will that be too long to wait for a dongle and an app for Samsung TVs?
Cloud-streamed gaming still has a long way to go despite being around for a while now, but it is getting better and more accessible every year. Microsoft has taken a crack at it with Xbox Cloud Gaming, allowing you to stream your favorite games to your not-so-gaming-capable devices. But while you can set it up on your laptop, tablet, and phone, you haven't been able to get it on your TV, possibly due to software limitations. But, if what we're hearing is accurate, that's set to change relatively soon.
Stadia has seen its fair share of controversy since it first launched, especially regarding its available features. In the last couple of years, abilities like voice chat and a search feature in the store have finally made appearances, helping to make the platform feel far more complete. Google has made an effort to add many of the promised features alongside some new and exciting ones to the service, but it's still a work in progress.
How to transfer your Xbox Series X/S screenshots and clips to your phone
Or your Xbox One screenshots and clips, if Series consoles are still impossible to find
In an age when practically everybody games and practically everybody is on social media, sharing screenshots and clips of gameplay has never been more popular — but it isn't always completely straightforward. The Xbox One and Series consoles may have some social network integration, but it's clunky and doesn't have many options outside of Twitter and Facebook. Thankfully, Microsoft makes it easy to download your screenshots right to your phone or tablet. Here's how.
Chrome OS has a nice new addition coming for console gamers
Just in time before official Steam support for Chromebooks hits the masses
It's no secret that Chrome OS has become way more capable over the years, maturing far beyond a simple browser-platform. It shows Google is serious about making Chromebooks an appealing choice for everyone, supporting Android apps and even powerful Linux tools to sweeten the platform's appeal. With official support for Steam around the corner, Chrome OS is even closer to becoming a viable choice for hardcore gamers — and an upcoming addition levels-up the gaming experience even further.
There might finally be a reason to buy a Surface Duo — if you’re big into Xbox cloud gaming
An update to the Xbox Game Pass app gives its lower screen dedicated touch controls
Admit it, Nintendo fans: when Microsoft revealed its first official Android-powered smartphone, all you saw was a $1400 Nintendo DS Pro. With its newfound focus on streaming games in the Xbox Game Pass, Microsoft is reevaluating how it approaches them on the Surface Duo. With the latest version of the Android app, controls on the Duo can be entirely assigned to one screen in your hand, leaving the second screen free for gameplay.
Discord ends $10 billion plus sale talks with Microsoft
The gaming-focused communication platform is still interested in a public offering sometime later
Read update
When the news broke that Discord talked to Microsoft regarding a $10 billion plus sale, people were quickly worried it might pan out like the Redmond Skype acquisition back in 2011. The communication platform gradually turned into a bloated, buggy piece of software that's next to impossible to shut down on Windows. It looks like Discord may not have to face that fate, after all. The gaming focused chat startup halted talks with Microsoft and other interested parties.
You don't need a controller to play these Xbox Game Pass titles from your phone
Microsoft's list of Xbox Game Pass games with touch controls is growing quickly
Microsoft is betting big on Game Pass as the next-gen console war heats up, and on the mobile streaming front, it's winning. Streaming games to Android via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate has proven a popular (and free!) addition to the subscription service. But having a big library of games to play on the go doesn't help if you don't have a controller handy.
Xbox Cloud Gaming will expand beyond Android next year
Microsoft says iOS and PC support is on the way
Microsoft's cloud gaming service left beta in September with 172 games, and the catalog has only continued to expand since then. Android is currently the only supported platform, but Microsoft just confirmed that iOS and PC support will arrive in Spring 2021.
Samsung's Galaxy Apps redesign is focused on Fortnite and not much else
Samsung is using Epic's battle with Google to its advantage
Samsung has operated its own app store for years, the Galaxy Store, seemingly as a backup ecosystem in case the company's relationship with Google ever soured. There aren't many reasons to use the Galaxy Store over the Play Store, but Samsung now turning Epic Games and Google's ongoing legal battles to its advantage with a new marketing push.
Stream games from your console to your phone with the latest Xbox app beta
Plus a new notification hub and profile pinning features
Microsoft formally launched its xCloud game streaming service last week, allowing users to stream console games right from their Android phones — and Android TVs, even if unofficially. Now the company is releasing a big update for the Xbox mobile app that includes brand new features, including the ability for everyone to stream console games to their phones with Xbox remote play.
These are the Xbox games you can start streaming to your Android phone tomorrow
Stadia isn't the only option for game streaming on Android
Last month we learned that xCloud, Microsoft's cloud gaming service, would be coming to Android on September 15. On the verge of public availability, we've now learned the full list of games that will be playable on Android devices starting tomorrow. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers will gain access to over 150 games, with some exciting (and surprising) titles.