Microsoft’s latest Xbox One TV advert is inadvertently turning on people’s Xbox One consoles, it’s been revealed.
In what amounts to a pretty fundamental oversight, the advert features Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul demonstrating the Kinect system’s voice recognition function by saying “Xbox on” to power on his console.
Of course, the nature of the Kinect system is that it’s always listening for your vocal commands. When someone says “Xbox on,” it’s likely to turn on, whether it originates from you sitting in front of your TV or Jesse Pinkman talking from your TV.
As the BBC notes, the ad has sparked a number of bemused complaints on Twitter and Reddit from Xbox One owners.
The issue has been observed with previous Xbox adverts that demonstrate the whole “Xbox…” command prompts. The only solution appears to be to turn off the Kinect system’s voice command facility in the Xbox One settings menu.
Of course, a more mischievous observer might suggest that Microsoft has solved the issue itself by effectively killing the Kinect system. In the last month, the company has divorced the voice and motion-tracking system from its latest console, making it a separate peripheral rather than an integral part of the Xbox One system.
The intention was to drop the price of the Xbox One console in order to better compete with Sony’s cheaper PS4. While that might well have been wise in the short term, many have speculated that this will effectively end Kinect’s long-term future, as well as killing off much of what made the Xbox One distinctive.
Read More: Xbox One vs PS4
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
