I'm going to be getting the Xbox One when it released, but I will admit it's a far from perfect system. Here are the concerns that I have with it: 1. If you're paranoid, the Kinect has to be active in order to use the Xbox One, meaning the camera and microphone will always be watching and listening, even when the system is off (which is why you can turn the system on with voice commands). I don't personally have a problem with this, because I feel I have nothing to hide, but it's still a bit... disconcerting. I see why Microsoft is doing it, but I feel it is a mistake on their part to require it. 2. It looks like it lacks support for older TV's. There are no old-fashioned audio/video ports, meaning HMDI video is the only way to go. My TV is a cheap store brand model. While it's been good, I don't trust it to last forever. If something happens to it, I'd like to be able to use an older TV I have in my garage until I get a new TV, but I won't be able to do that. 3. Xbox LIVE is still a paid service. I don't really have a problem paying $60 a year for LIVE, especially given how stable it is. However, having ads appear on the dashboard, and not having access to Netflix, Hulu, or HBO GO without a gold subscription sucks (having to have a paid service to access my other paid services). LIVE [i]has[/i] proven it's stability and security, boasting what is probably one of the best service records for uptime and security breaches ever, but even still, the free PSN service looks a bit tempting. But given what I suspect will be a heavy shift towards PS+ by Sony, as well as a continual expansion of what LIVE offers for it's paid members, I'm more than willing to foot the bill. 4. The more versatile, yet more limiting operating system. With rumors that 3 gigabytes of ram (out of 8) will be dedicated completely to running the modified version of Windows 8, I see a lot of power that is still accesible in the rival PS4 system being consumed by the opportunity for more features. While it's nice to have the opportunity to multitask with snap, or to switch quickly between different sources of entertainment, what I really want when I sit down to play a game is power. I don't see a really practical way to make those features optional, since the game will still have to run for those that do enable them, outside of PC-style graphics settings, which many console-focused developers are completely unfamiliar with. Having something like that would simply provide just that extra bit of required effort that may make a game into a PS4 exclusive. More power could have also been put into the system to handle the OS, specifically, leaving the current specs to handle nothing but games, but that would have increased the price point of the console. Really, the situation leaves a lot to be desired, but no good solution seems to exist. Of course, there's always the name. While I think it's at least better than WiiU (which too many people just think is an expansion to the Wii), Xbox One is not a very good name choice for the system, and will confuse some people. Xbox Infinity was the rumored name for a bit, and that sounds much better than what they went with. Even the rumored names of just Xbox or The Xbox are better. Really, I think most people are getting up in arms about things that aren't that much of an issue. Does the system lack backwards compatibility? Yes, but it really would have been worse to include it due to a number of reasons. Are there a lot of nasty rumors floating around about the system? Yes, but Microsoft has been quick to deny that they are true, even though they have admitted that some are possibilities. Is the Xbox One very US-centric? Yes, and that is a fault of the system, albeit one that doesn't affect me. Microsoft is simply responding to the market, and the Xbox consoles have always sold best in the US, while Nintendo dominates Japan and Sony holds the market in Europe. Microsoft did a horrible job of managing the release of information surrounding the reveal, but the confirmed things seem to be positive. A lot of people don't like the current Kinect, mostly due to a combination of it's inaccuracy, the space needed to use it, and the gimmicky use of it in the Kinect titles. The Kinect 2.0 is much more accurate, can be used in a much smaller space (from 3-5 feet away, it can still see and sense your entire body), and it comes with every system. That last point is probably the best, because now the big developers have more of a reason to use the Kinect and use it well. The tech has a lot of possible uses aside from crazy arm flailing and jumping around. Some games have already done well with voice integration, and simple little things like having the view on screen change slightly based on the position of the players head would make the game more immersive. When I first saw the Kinect, I thought it was a horrible, stupid idea, and I thought that for a long time. But the more I saw of it, and the more I saw of the possibilities of the technology, rather than how it was currently used, I liked the Kinect more and more as an idea. Having every Xbox One come with a Kinect gives developers a reason to use it in new ways, and will help to improve the immersion of games going forward. I'll be getting the Xbox One because I like some of the features that they showcased at the reveal, because I like the Xbox exclusives (although I'd love to have a PS4 for some of those exclusives as well), and because I have a very cluttered entertainment center that may be greatly helped by a multifunction game console. I also have more time invested into LIVE, with my gamertag being the beginning of my internet identity. The Xbox brand is with me as the brand that brought me into active gaming, as well as active participation in internet communities. The 360 was the source of gaming nights that introduced me to some of my best friends, as well as the platform that introduced me to Halo, which is still my favorite fictional universe. My decision was obviously a very personal one, and if those factors went away, the choice of PS4 or Xbox One would be much more difficult. Both consoles have their advantages and drawbacks, but as far as information surrounding the Xbox One, I think it would be wise for everyone to wait for E3 and more information before jumping to conclusions about every rumor floating around.