14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has just unveiled some official details about the upcoming Xbox One system software update that's scheduled to appear in May, confirming that it's available to Xbox Live preview participants and that it brings improvements to the snap and voice commands, as well as a few other things.
The Xbox One received some major announcements this week, starting with a newer and cheaper bundle without the Kinect, to the confirmation of Halo 5: Guardians.
Now, Microsoft has confirmed on the blog of its Xbox Live Community Manager, Larry Hryb, that it's rolling out a new firmware update for the Xbox One, albeit only to preview participants who opted in to try out new software for their console and find any bugs.
Hryb detailed some of the most important features in this early build of the new system software, starting with a sound mixer option for applications that have been snapped to the edge of the screen, as well as controls for the volume when using Kinect to chat with others.
"We’ve received great feedback from fans asking for more control over audio levels and background sound. As a result, under Settings we’ve added two new features for controlling your audio options," Hryb said.
"With the new Sound mixer, you’ll be able to control the volume levels of two apps when you’re using Snap letting you decide which app is louder. In this same section, you’ll also be able to control the volume levels when you’re using Kinect for chat."
What's more, those who want to help improve Kinect speech recognition can opt in to share their voice samples with Microsoft, so that the company can have a wide base of research when tweaking the detection patterns of the sensor.
"If you want to help us in our efforts to make voice and speech improvements for Kinect even better, you can opt-in to a speech data collection. Under Settings, then Privacy & Online Safety, go to Customizing privacy and online safety and set Share Voice Data to Allow. This is completely optional and all voice data shared via this setting will be used for product improvement only."
Last but not least, the new Xbox One system software allows owners of the console to select the next system update whenever they want or as soon as it's available.
The new firmware should be rolling out tonight for beta participants. All Xbox One owners should expect to receive the final version towards the end of May.