The new Xbox Series X offers a cheaper version without the 4K Blu-ray player disc drive – could we be seeing the loss of another Trojan horse for cinephiles?
DA Gadgets The
release
of
a
cheaper,
discless
Xbox
Series
X
model
is
another
small
blow
to
4K
Blu-ray
and
its
future
accessibility
to
a
wider
audience.
With
the
new
digital
edition
serving
as
the
cheapest
entry
into
the
lineup,
there’s
a
good
chance
it’ll
become
the
most
popular
model,
meaning
that’s
fewer
people
who
will
stumble
upon
the
discovery
that
physical
media
offers
far
higher
quality
than
streaming
and
become
converts.
The
latest
version
of
the
Xbox
Series
X
–
the
1TB
Digital
Edition
–
has
been
released
and
is
priced
at
$450/£430
–
roughly
$50/£50
cheaper
than
the
standard
model.
The
Digital
Edition
comes
without
a
disc
drive
whereas
the
‘standard’
model
–
which
may
not
be
one
of
the
best
4K
Blu-ray
players
for
pure
quality,
but
does
a
good
job
–
has
one
built-in.
With
this
new
Xbox
Series
X
Digital
Edition
being
released
at
a
cheaper
price,
and
it
will
most
likely
see
discounts
and
price
drops
over
Black
Friday,
this
could
lean
people
towards
opting
for
it
over
the
disc
model
–
and
this
would
be
bad
news
for
4K
Blu-ray.
During
its
release
announcement
in
June,
Microsoft
said
the
three
new
models
–
which
include
the
Xbox
Series
X
Digital,
Xbox
Series
S
with
1TB
storage
and
the
Xbox
Series
X
Galaxy
Edition
2TB
–
would
“join
its
current
lineup”,
suggesting
that
Xbox
Series
X
disc
model
will
remain
an
option,
but
with
a
cheaper,
discless
model
available,
will
the
disc
version
suffer?
The
PS5
already
took
the
approach
of
having
a
cheaper
discless
model,
and
then
dropped
the
built-in
disc
drive
totally
on
the
PS5
Slim
and
new
PS5
Pro.
Now
that
Microsoft
is
seemingly
moving
towards
going
discless
–
though
we’ve
no
idea
what
the
future
holds
for
the
next
console
generation
yet
–
it’s
another
avenue
where
4K
Blu-ray
has
taken
a
hit,
because
these
consoles
provide
a
chance
to
test
the
format
without
splashing
out
on
expensive
player.
It’s
worth
noting
there
are
optional
disc
drives
for
an
extra
$99/£99
for
the
PS5,
but
this
obviously
only
will
be
bought
by
more
hardcore
physical
media
believers
anyway,
so
doesn’t
help
with
the
casual
buyer.
More
4K
Blu-ray
woes
While
the
Panasonic
DP-UB820
(pictured)
is
a
better
standalone
4K
Blu-ray
player,
the
Xbox
Series
X
and
PS5
offer
4K
Blu-ray
playback
to
a
wider
audience.
(Image
credit:
Future)
Both
the
PS5
and
Xbox
Series
X
are
an
excellent
alternative
to
a
standalone
4K
Blu-ray
player
and
although
they
don’t
offer
the
same
level
of
features
as
said
regular
4K
Blu-ray
players,
such
as
the
Panasonic
DP-UB820
which
offers
Dolby
Vision
playback
on
4K
Blu-ray
discs
(the
consoles
don’t),
they
do
provide
access
to
4K
Blu-ray
playback
for
a
wider
ranging
and
more
casual
audience
than
just
the
dedicated
home
theater
fan.
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and
more.
People
buying
elite
consoles
will
often
have
a
good-quality
TV
because
they
want
the
latest
features
–
the
best
gaming
TVs
tend
to
look
great
as
well
as
supporting
4K
120Hz
–
and
a
good
sound
option
to
immerse
themselves
in
games.
One
day,
they
might
try
a
4K
Blu-ray
since
they
already
have
the
tech
built
into
their
consoles,
and
discover
the
better
picture
quality,
and
the
even
more
clearly
better
sound.
Maybe
that
leads
them
pick
up
more
4K
Blu-rays,
helping
to
keep
the
industry
in
good
health.
But
if
they
don’t
have
the
disc
drive
because
they
wanted,
very
reasonably,
to
save
a
bit
more
cash,
then
they’ll
never
make
this
discovery.
The
world
of
4K
Blu-ray
has
been
tumultuous
in
the
last
12
months,
with
signs
pointing
towards
its
death.
Disney
and
Best
Buy
made
the
move
to
stop
selling
4K
Blu-ray,
although
Sony
has
since
come
in
and
taken
over
4K
Blu-ray
distribution
on
Disney’s
behalf,
and
many
retailers
signalled
a
decrease
in
physical
media
sales,
with
customers
moving
towards
the
best
streaming
services
such
as
Netflix
instead.
But,
things
have
taken
a
turn.
The
efforts
of
companies
such
as
Arrow
Video,
Criterion
Collection
and
more
have
aimed
to
stop
4K
Blu-ray
from
dying
despite
Disney
and
Best
Buy’s
efforts
and
there’s
been
more
positive
news
in
recent
months
with
2
major
stores
in
the
US
agreeing
to
stock
more
4K
Blu-ray
and
a
major
UK
retailer
saying
4K
Blu-ray
sales
are
on
the
rise
as
the
price
of
streaming
sites
across
the
board
continue
to
rise.
After
lots
of
good
news
and
hard
work
by
4K
Blu-ray
publishers,
this
move
away
from
disc
drives
in
its
consoles
as
standard
by
Sony
Microsoft
could
not
have
come
at
a
worse
time.
Not
everyone
has
the
money,
space
or
even
a
need
for
a
dedicated
4K
Blu-ray
player,
and
games
consoles
provided
an
avenue
for
casual
4K
Blu-ray
collectors
to
own
and
play
their
favorite
movies.
Fingers
crossed
that
this
isn’t
the
death
knell
for
4K
Blu-ray
in
consoles,
because
that
really
would
be
a
blow
to
the
future
of
people
getting
into
discs.
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