Microsoft released software updates for the Xbox Series S and X and the Xbox app for iOS and Android that bring a number of quality-of-life improvements and minor tweaks that you’ll notice the next time you play a game.
If your console outputs audio over HDMI, you may now be able to control the volume of your speakers from the Xbox itself, using new options in the Audio & Music section of the Xbox menu. If you don’t see the volume down, up, and mute buttons, it’s probably because your audio setting isn’t quite CEC – my Xbox outputs audio to the TV, but because it’s shuffled to a pair of speakers over an optical cable , I can’t control the volume from my Xbox.
Another notable audio feature is the ability to turn off the sound that plays when you turn on the console. The feature has been available to Xbox Insider program members for about a month now, but it’s good to see it finally coming to everyone’s consoles. As my colleague Jay Peters pointed out, turning on your Xbox in the middle of the night and blasting out its song can help avoid a frantic dash for the volume controls. You can find the option by going to Settings > General > Volume & Audio Out > Additional Options. The “Mute startup sounds” option is located under Power and Startup.
There are a few other tweaks coming with the October Xbox update: the power mode names have been changed, as well as the names for Xbox passwords and guest keys, which are now called Xbox Pins. Microsoft also says it will be easier to set up your home Xbox when setting up a new console, and a controller firmware update will fix some bugs when using USB flight sticks with the Xbox adaptive controller.
Outside of the console, you can now trim and edit clips in the Xbox mobile app before sharing. You can see what the interface looks like in the tweet below, which shows the process of deleting a specific segment and saving it. Hopefully, at some point, this kind of experience will come to the actual console instead of just existing in the app. Microsoft says the app’s editing feature is “rolling out today and will be available to everyone soon.”