Among the new features revealed by Microsoft on the new Xbox Series X is the removal of two features that many had become accustomed to on Xbox One and will not find on the new console: theS/PDIF optical audio output and the IRblaster.

TheS/PDIF optical output was present on Xbox 360 and later on Xbox One, and allows us to connect the console to audio systems that support this standard via a high-speed fiber optic cable: it is actually a standard used less and less, because now the trend is to use the HDMI cable also for the transmission of the audio signal in high definition (from the console to the sound system and from there to the television, or from the console to the TV).

However, removing this output means that if you have a hi-fi system or wireless-based headphones that receive audio over this type of connection today, Xbox Series X will no longer be able to use them. So will you need to update your audio setup? Not necessarily. There are some rather cheap HDMI to S/PDIF converters on the market, which will allow you to keep your existing audio equipment. This can be used as a "pass" between the console and the TV, as it supports the transmission of 4K 60fps video with HDR; connects to the console and TV via HDMI, and also produces optical output for your plant. But if your TV has an HDMI Out to bring audio to external devices, the best solution will be to connect the console to the TV and then the latter to a cheaper converter like this,which does not serve HDR media and high frame-rate since it will have the sole purpose of producing optical output for your system or headphones.

Another option is also to take advantage of theoptical output present on some TVs: if you have a TV that supports this feature, you just need to connect it to your sound system and you will have solved the problem.

The other feature we won't find on Xbox Series X is the IRBlaster:this is used to control devices such as TVs and audio systems, allowing the console to turn them on and even adjust their volume. Microsoft removed it because the console will finally introduce a feature that had hitherto been missing, theHDMI-CEC: it is a standard that will allow the console to control devices connected via HDMI, as long as they are compatible. For example, you can set it to turn on the TV when the console is turned on and change the channel to the correct HDMI input, as well as to turn off the TV when you turn off the console. The HDMI-CEC is a feature that PS4 and Nintendo Switch already supported, and that we can finally use on Xbox, making the IR blaster unnecessary.

With the new console we will then have to review some habits if we use these features, adapting to the new system. What do you think?