Starting tonight the Xbox One’s May Update will begin rolling out. While it’s the smallest of the console’s updates to this point, it includes a couple new options that Xbox fans should find appealing.
The May Update was detailed earlier in the month by Major Nelson. It includes the following:
Sound Mixer for Apps with Snap and Volume Controls When Using Kinect with Chat
We’ve received great feedback from fans asking for more control over audio levels and background sound. As a result, under Settings we’ve added two new features for controlling your audio options. With the new Sound mixer, you’ll be able to control the volume levels of two apps when you’re using Snap letting you decide which app is louder. In this same section, you’ll also be able to control the volume levels when you’re using Kinect for chat.
Opt-In to Help Improve Speech Recognition
Being able to control your Xbox One with voice commands can be a magical moment and we want to continue making this great for all Xbox One owners worldwide. The more voice samples we have to input into our algorithms, the better and more responsive Xbox One can be to our fans. If you want to help us in our efforts to make voice and speech improvements for Kinect even better, you can opt-in to a speech data collection. Under Settings, then Privacy & Online Safety, go to Customizing privacy and online safety and set Share Voice Data to Allow. This is completely optional and all voice data shared via this setting will be used for product improvement only.
Take the Next System Update When You Want
You’ll now also be able to take this next system update as soon as it’s available if you want. When this update is made available, you’ll find the option under Settings, then select System update as shown below.
Microsoft has adhered to a monthly update schedule for the Xbox One. In the past couple months it has seen major changes to the UI with new friends options, as well as the introduction of Twitch streaming.
You can install the update by enabling Power Saving mode and leaving the Xbox One in standby. After this update, you can decide to manually update your console when new updates arrive.