One button press becomes three. Also, I’m old and resistant to change.
More clicks to get to the main menu screen, but faster Guide access.
The great thing about modern game consoles is that they do a lot more than just play games. Besides gaming, I actually use my Xbox One much more frequently as a streaming media machine, jumping between Netflix, Amazon Video, Vudu, YouTube and all the apps for my favorite cable channels, from Syfy to Comedy Central to HBO.
A simple tap of the center home button on the Xbox One controller will take me right back to the main menu, also called the home screen, which allows for fast and easy swapping between video apps. Or at least it used to.
Pressing the center button on the Xbox One controller now brings up a Guide sidebar, rather than the traditional home screen.
I powered up my Xbox One this past week only to find a required system software update waiting for me. After downloading and installing it, the system warned that the functionality of the home button on the controller was changing before suggesting I watch a short how-to video that explained how it was going to work from now on. Experience tells me that if they have to offer a video tutorial, chances are it’s not going to be an entirely intuitive concept.
Now, instead of tapping the home button to go, you know, home, it instead brings up a new version of something Microsoft calls the Guide, a one-stop shop for all kinds of apps, features and menus.
