We don’t have long to wait until the release of the Xbox Series X and PS5, when the general public will be able to experience what both consoles have to offer. But some key information is already out there, thanks to journalists who’ve spent time with them.
Earlier this week Japanese press posted the first hands-on impressions of the PS5, noting how quiet and cool-running the console was. Unfortunately that doesn’t appear to be a feature that’s translating over to the Xbox Series X.
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In a video that now seems to have been deleted, Jeux Video’s Ken Bogard praised how the silent running of the Xbox Series X’s cooling system, but still noted the console still emitted a lot of heat.
“The Series X is hot, like really hot! It doesn’t make any noise, but damn it’s hot! The console is emitting heat like crazy. It’s almost like a fireplace shaft," he said (translated by VGC). "You can heat up your apartment with it.”
Interestingly Bogard said he doesn’t have access to any Xbox Series X games, so the heat was produced as he played backwards compatible titles and browsed the navigation menus.
Giant Bomb co-Host Jeff Bakalar also confirmed the heat, even when in standby mode, and commented on how the console’s storage expansion card was “on fire” and asking why it was so hot.
“Here’s what’s crazy… this was just plugged in in standby mode behind me and you guys, the entire thing is a little toasty," said Bakalr. “It seems like in the way like a lot of the other consoles were doing stuff while you were not using them, it seems like this thing might be doing something while you’re not using it, to the point where it needs to exhaust heat.”
Bakalar and his co-host both emphasised that this is pre-release hardware, so things might change by release day. That said they noted the Xbox One X can still pump out a noticeable amount of heat when it’s in standby mode.
The Verge's Tom Warren, who also had hands-on time with the Xbox Series X tweeted that he very much doubts Microsoft would have sent out a console with a cooling problem. But he said that due to embargos, he couldn't really go into further detail with his experience with the console and its heat dissipation.
lots of people keep asking me about Xbox Series X heat. I’m under embargo. Just consider this, Microsoft wouldn’t send these consoles to 100s of journalists, streamers, and youtubers if they had heat issues. They just wouldn’t let people touch the console at all ¯\_(ツ)_/¯October 6, 2020
Of course things may change once people are able to use next-gen games with the Series X. While the consensus seems to be that the fans are incredibly quiet when playing older games, things may not stay that way once the console’s hardware is being pushed even more.
Obviously what we’ve heard so far suggests that the PS5 doesn’t have this problem; it appears to have some serious venting all around its chassis. While things will no doubt change as more people get to playing PS5 games on the console, for now heat could be one thing it has the Xbox beaten on.
