In TIME’s review of Microsoft’s revised Xbox One game console, we wrote “The easiest way to talk about the new slimmer Xbox One S, available August 2, is that it’s what the Xbox One should have been three years ago.”
The Xbox One S is 40% smaller with a matte finish, supports 4K video playback support and High Dynamic Range (better contrast), and an internal power supply. It includes an improved Xbox wireless gamepad with textured grip and better Bluetooth range, and the current $399 model comes with a 2TB hard drive. ($299 and $349 versions with 500GB and 1TB drives respectively will be available August 23.)
But we also learned something we didn’t know until the system arrived: That it sports a slight GPU speed up-clock that reportedly culminates in modest frame rate stabilization across older games. While you can’t see that in a picture, this gallery of iFixit teardown slides offers architectural insight into Microsoft’s reengineered game system.
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Write to Matt Peckham at matt.peckham@time.com