Well, I suppose technically you could say “Xbox On” to your Xbox One right now. Nothing will happen, but you could try. But after the next update Australians will finally be able to say “Xbox On” and have their Xbox One actually turn on.
It’s one of those small things that seems insignificant, but you just want it for some reason. You want to live the the future and you want to be able to do cool things.
Xbox On functionality will appear after the next update.
Australians who have been lucky enough to get access to the preview of the update actually already have the “Xbox On” functionality, so if you’re one of those lucky few, give it a bash. I’d try it, but Kinect doesn’t understand a single goddamn word I say anyway. It is the one drawback of being Scottish.
In addition the voice functionality, this update will also herald the new Media player and enable MKV playback on the Xbox One. I’ve been waiting a long time for this one. Surprised that the Xbox One is first off the boat. Pleasantly surprised.
Thanks Stevivor
Comments
63 responses to “Australians Will Finally Be Able To Say ‘Xbox On’ To Their Xbox One”
really, you’ve been able to since day 1 (and turn it on/off) if you set your console location to US. the only thing it seems to have issues with in terms of accent is “xbox on”, but if you can stomach putting on an american accent, it works just fine.
I just find it ridiculous that they couldn’t have enabled it for our region since Day 1. Even if there was a warning that it was a bit wonky, they could have given us the option
I dunno, I’ve used the original Kinect and putting a warning on the front that says it was a bit wonky wouldn’t have stopped me from bashing it for being crap. If a simple, every day command like XBOX On wasn’t working I think I wouldn’t have even given the new Kinect enough of a chance to try the other features (which would be a shame since I now use it for media controls and it’s surprisingly good).
If I had my way it’d work properly right out of the box but at least they were honest about it. Normally they’d just release it, advertise it as a feature on the box, happily take our money knowing it doesn’t work for us, then ignore all questions about why it doesn’t work for anyone outside of a specific part of America.
I’d rather nail my dick to a burning building than be forced by Microsoft to speak with an American accent!
(note, this isn’t true at all actually. I just wanted to pretend to get angry about it for a sec)
You can also avoid having to do the fake accent thing if you change the language back to UK english after doing the region change.
You can use Xbox On in AU if you change the spoken language to UK or US right now. Using those languages gives you the option to tick in AU region.
Ever since they enabled expat language selection I’d been using English UK anyway. Much better than English US.
Even Americans have trouble with their Xbox On, apparently the big solution is to clap before saying it, works every time.
Since I got Aus Xbox On in the preview, it has worked probably 49/50 times. I can even get it to turn on from other rooms in the house by yelling it out.
Is it too late to enrol in the preview program? I wouldn’t mind joining.
What’s your gamertag? It’s invite only.
hook me up GT: Black Dahlia NZ
Done. Might take 7-10 days to come through, then you’ll get a message with a code to redeem. Mind you it’s not all fun and games, we are beta testers, so it does make things less stable occasionally, especially in week one of each beta.
Thanks so much my GT is: hex me33
Done 🙂
all good cheers dude
If its not too much trouble, Zetrox2k
Thanks again. Really appreciate it :).
warning: the preview program is mostly nice, but can sometimes do weird thing. i actually had to get out of it, because it caused this weird sign-in bug where i WAS signed in but every service kept prompting me to sign in, then wouldn’t accept it because I was already signed in.
Thanks for the info. Good to know. Might still give a whirl and see what happens
Oh look, we’re not being fucked over by having updates randomly held from us. Let us celebrate and talk about how amazing Microsoft is for no longer gimping our consoles a little bit. Fuck youEdit: This was me being a dick about stuff. I shouldn’t have overreacted this way
Why are you so angry? No-one said we were celebrating anything. Tone down the language, absolutely no need for it.
Yeah, my bad. I clearly over reacted. This has less to do with the Xbox One, and was probably just an outlet for my frustrations over Google holding back updates when it comes to voice recognition/phone-as-credit-cards. To be honest, this was actually a good move for Microsoft, and if it works, well done for them.
I apologise for my unwarranted remak
We’re actually the third region to get it, so not doing too badly. Also the third region to get Cortana Beta/Alpha on phone. Microsoft are starting to recognise that if you’re supporting US and UK, AU isn’t too hard.
Duuuude no problem! What a classy bro! 🙂
Aye, laddie
Grab my controller, press the xbox button. Xbox One turned on. Sit in front of of TV, auto logs in by kinect face recognition. Isn’t that easier? Or else I would have to add the extra step of saying Xbox On before my steps above.
Too true… voice commands are painful in a living environment. It’s really solving a problem that isn’t there.
My Samsung TV came with gesture recognition, and while it works as expected it is so painful to use I just turned it off. Much quicker with a remote, same as your example with the controller.
Press the button in the middle of the controller, x1 turns on, auto-log in logs me in even though the kinect faces the tv (it wont recognize my face as it faces the center speaker of my surround unit). New auto log in feature. Don’t know if it came in the new update or is part of the beta os/services program I’m in.
The auto log in came in about June for everyone.
Sweet. I should have been paying more attention. Only saw the option last week!
When I’m gaming that’s true but when I’m watching media I’m finding I don’t even touch the controller anymore (right now I just turn it on via the console panel as I’m walking past). XBOX On, XBOX goto YouTube, pull up YouTube on the PC, setup a playlist and then wander over to the couch or keep doing whatever I’m doing on the PC (or more often than not playing the Wii U on the gamepad). The Windows Play To media streaming is also pretty handy for this.
I’ve never been a huge fan of voice controls, in games it’s just stupid having to say a long command when it takes like a quarter of a second to do it via the controller already in your hand, but for media controls the XBOX One’s Kinect has really won me over.
Right now I just wish I could give the Kinect voice commands to control my TV.
Nope, I say Xbox On, turns on my TV and surround sound. Have auto login enabled for my profile so it’s already logged in, and the last app is running before the dash appears, so if that was Xbox Music, music is already playing. I can then navigate everything by voice, and only pick up my controller when I actually launch a game. It also turns on in half the time with Xbox On enabled rather than regular connected standby.
Yesterday I wanted some tunes from the shitter. So I yelled out Xbox On, it turned on, and started playing music. Winner.
shitter, what a word.
*doh* To be honest I thought this feature was already active in Australia and I thought the feature was just broken…
The option was showing up under the preview program in AU for a couple of months, but didn’t actually work until they added language selection for expats.
Cool. Now what do you have to say to get it to turn into a good console? 😛
*Jokes, jokes*
Plug another console into the HDMI in and say ‘xbox go to TV’
Very excited about both the voice commands and the media player.
I guess the question for Mark is: is there anything voice-activated that you CAN use with your Scottish accent, m8?
I’m just hoping the “Xbox Digital TV Tuner” isnt as delayed as the “Xbox on” command was. Come on Microsoft Australia strike a deal with Freeview, get the One Guide here!
I got the preview update this morning. It works, but I don’t really see myself using it a whole lot. It’s easier to use a controller to turn it on, since you’ll be needing a controller in hand at some point!
The MKV support on the other hand… VERY welcome.
So. Now that we know it can listen to us while it’s sleeping, finally, let’s all freak out about spying again. 🙂
How about the TV guide stuff? I saw it appear on the dash this month I think and I’ve got to reconfigure my home theatre setup to have the HDMI-in with Foxtel HD etc. Does anyone use the new Xbox On feature in beta with this Foxtel IN scenario? Like the yanks I want to be able to have it power up my TV, AMP, X1 with auto Kinect login and just be up and running all from one voice command. My son already tries to say Xbox On since I told him about it too.
You can get around the region restrictions for turning on your foxtel or PVR, by setting it to US, setting it up, and then setting it back to AU. It will turn your foxtel on and off, but it wont be able to control channels unless you leave it on US.
CAN I PLAY A GODDAM CUSTOM SOUNDTRACK ONCE THE MEDIA PLAYER IS UPDATED?!?
I think this is my 200th post on Kotaku about this issue.
Nobody has confirmed (as far as I can tell) that the new media player comes with an option to have it entirely minimised so I can play a custom soundtrack while I’m playing games.
You know….they way I could at launch on both by 360 and the original Xbox.
I’m going to be so pissed if they update the whole thing and don’t add that feature. It’s ridiculous that it’s missing. I mean it ALMOST works now.
Nope, everything is still Snap right now.
F*cking mother f*cking f*ckers!
WHHHYYYYYYYY?!?!?!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!
Just fix it you morons! Is swear to god if I have to listen to that “Welcome to the Future!” song one more time I’m going to stab somebody!
They are taking snap away, I just don’t know when. I rang Microsoft to complain and while they didn’t say officially that it was being done, the lady I spoke to said this has been a very common complaint and they will be looking at it. On the other hand, this media player is a VERY good step in the right direction. It’s also coming with DNA support which is a massive deal for me
I agree fully.
It seems like it will be a great media player.
It’s just completely ridiculous that you can’t ‘unsnap’ the music player.
MS lead the way on custom soundtrack support as a big feature some 15 years ago!
Surely they’re aware that people want it.
After 10 months on the market it’s BS that they haven’t fixed the issue yet.
Haha it is actually really funny to even think of how they came with the snap idea being the only way to listen to music while you play. Why would I ever want a smaller playing screen???????????????
It was semi-excusable at launch in light of all the other problems they had with the Xbone OS and the online/ offline changes that needed to be made in the months leading to launch.
You could look at it then and ok “well, that’s idiotic but surely they’ll fix it as soon as they get a chance”.
The fact that it’s still like that long after most of the really minor issues have been ironed out is mind boggling.
So for Serrels its like “Ecks-books, oohn”? =P
I just updated and my Kinect ate it. Had to recalibrate and it doesn’t pick up sound or pictures anymore. I called Xbox Support and we’ve run through everything but I have to get a replacement Kinect, just a heads up to anyone else
@markserrels have you tried setting spoken language to English UK? Might do better with your Scottish accent than English AU. I repeat, might :p
I tihnk someone sort-of answered this above in the affirmative, but does this include the IR blaster? (ie- say “Xbox On” and your TV turns on as well)
Returned my Kinect and got a new one, still doesn’t work. Not sure if I’m the only one or if this will happen to anyone else, just be wary of this update playing funny buggers with the Kinect
To do this, your Xbox is recording and processing everything you say in front of it, even when it is turned ‘off’. Perhaps I’m just a cynic, but an internet connected device recording everything said in my living room makes me uncomfortable.
I don’t think recording is the right word…. it’s waiting to HEAR the word xbox. If it was recording there would be some big issues
When I say “xbox record that” it works 99%…..unless i did something really awesome, like killed 98 grunts in one match of titanfall and the damn xbox wouldn’t record the game summary 😐
I hear ya, when ever I do something awesome like that I say ‘xbox skype ben’ apparently.
I guess its the excitement in our voices 😐 it did manage to record it 🙂 but it wasnt 98 but only 89 🙁
http://xboxclips.com/video.php?uid=2533274794659845&gamertag=Nemalive&vid=3b4a3921-79b2-4689-8043-45c84788ab91
I got 8 human kills in BF4 in about 40seconds once, I said xbox record that about 4 times cos I didnt want to have to snap game DVR and do it that way to get whole minute i was gonna link the clips later, prob best streak I ever had RPG kills, grenade kills, knife kill, rifle kills and pistol kills and yea I got maybe half of them recorded, by the time i got to watch them the 5min had passed so it was lost forever, wish could do 15min like ps4.
Put together a montage of some of my best 30sec clips.
Not that you would want to but BF is one of those games that you actually could have had time to go to DVR, lol ive actually got up and made toast and coffee and not got shot 🙂
But yeah agree it sucks when voice commands dont work, I never hardly use the 5 min DVR option…take too long to load etc when in a fast pace match.
By the way awesome spree, I usually only get about 8 kills a match 😐
mkv support is all I’ve ever wanted from a console