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Xbox One X? Is that the best name Microsoft could think of?

Commentary: Microsoft's new console doesn't sound very new. And doesn't it also sound like Xbox One S?

Chris Matyszczyk
2 min read

 Technically Incorrect offers a slightly twisted take on the tech that's taken over our lives.


Microsoft xBox E3 Event

A little confusing? 

Christian Petersen / Getty Images

Play a game with me.

Say the name of Microsoft's new console, Xbox One X, five times quickly. 

Now say the name of Microsoft's old console, Xbox One S, five times quickly.

I worry, you see, that there might be some confusion. If you're launching the most powerful console ever, wouldn't it be uplifting to give it a name that reflects, say, the most powerful console ever? 

Yet Xbox One X sounds like work, as well as like Xbox One S. 

Some naturally thought "Xbox Scorpio" had, well, a powerful sting to it. Scorpio was the code name given to the device as it was being developed. 

Instead, this name sounds very much like a minuscule upgrade. And can you imagine kids at Christmas telling their parents they want an "Xbox One X," the parents hearing "Xbox One S" and then the parents hearing it from the kids for the next six months? 

Microsoft didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. However, head of Xbox Phil Spencer told IGN that the company considered "Elite" as a moniker. Sadly, it has used it before. 

"I know a lot of people wanted us to call it 'Scorpio -- Xbox One Scorpio," he told IGN. "That's a hard one to get the trademark for."

He also said the company needed to keep the "One" because that's the console family name. But can't families branch out a little bit? Can't at least one child -- the most powerful child -- have a more exciting name? Merely adding an "X" is suggesting to customers, especially those who have avoided Xbox in the last, that this new thing really isn't all that new.

Naturally, there's already an "Xbox One X is a really stupid f***ing name" thread on Reddit

Other forums, too, are debating the merits and generally finding them lacking. Some suggest the name should have been "Xbox One Pro" There are even jokes about the new console now being "XOX." 

Naming is hard. Apple gets very dull by merely putting an "S" after the product name in its in-between years. 

If this new Xbox console is so impressively powerful, perhaps aficionados will simply talk about playing on their "X."

Then again, people are rarely satisfied. Look back in time and you'll see this Gamespot thread from years ago: "Which one is the worse name? Wii U or Xbox One?"

Technically Incorrect: Bringing you a fresh and irreverent take on tech. https://www.cnet.com/special-reports/vr101/

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