Xbox Unleashes Massive Storage Upgrade

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Summary

  • The Xbox Series X/S could soon support external drives over 16TB, increasing game storage options.
  • Users in the Xbox Insider Alpha Skip-Ahead ring will receive an update allowing support for larger external USB drives.
  • Increased storage options could benefit gamers with larger games and more titles.

It’s possible that the Xbox Series X/S may offer larger storage options in the near future. Given the increasing space requirements of many new games, the current 16 terabyte limit for external hard drives on Xbox Series X and S can quickly become full. As the Xbox Series S comes with only 512 gigabytes of internal storage, many gamers may find it necessary to use external options to fully utilize their systems.

As a gamer, I’ve noticed that my options for expanding the storage on my Xbox Series X/S are somewhat restricted at the moment, with only Storage Expansion Cards available up to 2TB. Yet, there are multiple ways to beef up the storage by using SSDs and hard drives. Unfortunately, even with a wide range of commercial solutions for these types of storage, the Xbox hardware still caps users at the 16TB limit. It’s intriguing to see that Microsoft might be planning to lift this restriction through an upcoming update.

Members of the Alpha Skip-Ahead group on Xbox Insider will soon get a sneak peek at an upcoming Xbox Update Preview. As per the update details, larger USB drives (beyond 16TB) are now compatible. However, it’s important to note that these drives must be reformatted first to take advantage of this change. After reformat, the drive will show multiple partitions instead of a single device. Given the size of many Xbox One games, users won’t face storage limitations when saving their games to the external drive. However, they will need to buy an HDD with extra space initially.

This development appears to be a positive move towards assisting Xbox users. As technology progresses, games might become increasingly larger. Offering additional storage solutions may encourage gamers to explore and play more games, as well as download more digital software. Given the high cost of Xbox Storage Expansion Cards, providing an alternative way to store downloaded titles could make it easier for gamers to consider purchasing digital games or opting for the Xbox Series S as their preferred console.

Despite the recent updates, Microsoft has acknowledged a problem with drives exceeding 16TB. Some external hard drives may not accurately display the available space, and for now, users are advised against formatting drives larger than 16TB. This issue is reasonable, given that participants in the Alpha group serve as testers. As the Xbox Insider program continues to introduce new features, it’s expected that some issues will persist until they are resolved before a wider release to all Xbox users in the future.

Xbox Update Preview Release Notes

  • Expand Your Xbox Storage with Support for Larger Drives

We now support USB drives exceeding 16 Terabytes, ensuring your preferred games are instantly accessible anytime! Newly-formatted drives beyond 16TB will be partitioned into several sections to maximize space for games and applications. These partitions will show up as separate devices in the storage device list.

  • Spot Great Deals from the Comfort of Home

In today’s update, we’ve simplified the process of locating deals as never before. A group of our users may encounter a fresh tag appearing on discounted games they haven’t yet acquired, displaying the exact discount percentage right on your main screen.

  • Accessibility

Improvements for the Narrator’s Readout in Settings, with a focus on Power Options and Remote Play activation.

  • Entertainment Apps

Fixed an issue where some media apps could become laggy or sluggish after extended playback.

  • System

Various updates to properly reflect local languages across the console.

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2025-01-23 07:15