Under the hood, the Xbox One is packing an eight-core x86 processor with an amped up 853 MHz GPU, 500GB of local storage, 8GB RAM with 32MB of eS RAM embedded memory. The front-facing side has a disc slot – that will play Blu-ray discs, once the app is downloaded – a power stud, eject tab and a sync-tab for hooking up the one wireless controller the Xbox One comes packaged with. Kinect slots into the back of the Xbox One, next to a series of ports including HDMI-in, HDMI-out, three super-speed USB ports, an Ethernet connector, S/PDIF for optical audio out and an added IR port.

Plonk it on its side and Microsoft won't be held responsible for your discs getting scratched. Incidentally, this is a console designed to sit flat underneath your television set, with its Kinect sensor staring grimly out at the contents of your living room. Cast in 'Liquid Black', its top is split in half with a reflective surface on one side and a massive vent on the other. It's a 263 x 80 x 305 mm slab weighing about 3.2kg.

In fact, it's a big, hulking brute of a machine that bears more than a passing resemblance to a Betamax video recorder circa 1984. The Xbox One certainly doesn't look as sleek as Sony's PS4.

Ps4 s xbox one specs