Great Gift Ideas Under $50 For Xbox Owners | Dramel Notes

Whether it’s Christmas, a birthday, or any other holiday, buying a gift for an Xbox gamer can be tricky. Say you’ve got a budget of $50, but you know they have more than enough games.

What do you do?

The answer, of course, is to buy accessories – and there is a massive selection to choose from. While some hardware is of sub-par quality, usually these accessories are worth the money, as long as you buy the gear from Microsoft or reputable third parties.

We’ve collated the following list of sub-$50 accessories for Xbox One and Xbox 360 owners. You might just find that perfect gift right here…

Chatpad

Including a Chatpad and Chat Headset 3.5mm jack) that connects to the Chatpad, this full QWERTY keyboard plugs into the standard Xbox One controller to aid communication with fellow gamers in online play.

The keypad is backlit for nighttime gaming, and audio controls make it easy to manage volume and mute the mic. Also included are programmable X1 and X2 buttons that can be used to access game DVR or take screenshots.

Chatpad and headset are compatible with Xbox One and (X1 and X2 buttons notwithstanding) Windows 10.

Nyko Charge Base

A flat controller makes gaming pretty tough; you’re basically not gaming, unless there is a wired alternative. Having space to charge two controllers without the fuss of removing batteries is even better, so why not consider the Nyko Charge Base (a PS4 version is also available).

Design to sit two Xbox One controllers comfortably, with two rechargeable batteries included, the base makes charging convenient, enabling you to place the controller onto the charge point and quickly remove when done.

While other charge bases are available, this is a particularly popular option.

Nyko Intercooler

Again from Nyko comes this cooler, essentially designed to prolong the life of your Xbox One.

Featuring easy clip-on installation, and with a design that matches the contours of the console (comes in black, so beware adding to custom Xbox One consoles!), the cooler is powered by USB, and can be used in both horizontal and vertical orientation.

The USB connection means that it will automatically switch on when you boot your Xbox One, and reduces ambient temperature within by directing hot air away from the console, thereby improving gaming performance. Heat can have a negative affect on any PC or games console – the first generation Xbox 360s had a particular problem with ambient temperature causing the CPU and GPU lifting from the motherboard (one of the infamous “Red Ring of Death” issues), so having a cooler is a very good idea.

Afterglow LVL 3 Wired Headset

Three versions of this headset from PDP are available, with LVL1 and LVL3 both under $50. Officially licensed by Microsoft, the device uses finely tuned 40mm drivers, designed for a full stereo, superior audio experience.

Essentially, while this is a chat headset, and comes with a mounted, noise-cancelling microphone, it’s also a gaming headset – PDP want you to enjoy the best of gaming audio with this hardware.

Due to having a 3.5mm jack, this device is compatible with the second generation Xbox One controller. For first gen controllers, you’ll need to add a headset adaptor.

Xbox One Media Remote

Recipients of this dedicated remote control from Microsoft can take control of their media with an easy-to-use, compact IR device with a 30-foot range that controls video playback on Blu-ray or videos streamed to an Xbox One.

Also capable of switching on your TV and adjusting the volume, backlit buttons make it easy to use in the dark, and the intuitive controls make it easy for anyone to use, adult or child (although that might not be ideal!).

Requires 2 AAA batteries.

Hard Drive Enclosure

Now this accessory is more or less invisible. It’s a hard disk drive enclosure that slots onto the side/top of an Xbox One, ready to host a second HDD while offering three USB 3.0 ports.

A minimum 256 GB HDD of 2.5 inches in length is required to slot into the enclosure, no wider than 12mm, and once connected, the owner of the Xbox One will no longer be concerned about running out of hard disk space! This is particularly important if they like to record and upload gameplay for Twitch or YouTube – assuming they’re playing the right games!

The clever design of the enclosure means that it will be difficult to spot, thereby not ruining the sleek aesthetics of your Xbox One.

Thumb Sticks

Modding an Xbox One controller can make it more comfortable to use, potentially giving an edge in challenging games and online/competitive gaming scenarios. These E-MODS GAMING thumb sticks are just one example of the many thumb sticks that can be added to an XB1 controller, with a grippable, rubberized surface.

Comes with four thumb sticks, enough to replace the default thumb sticks on two controllers, but note that the controller must be open for the thumb sticks to be fitted.

These thumb sticks are also compatible with PlayStation 4 Dual Shock 4 controllers.

Xbox 360 Wireless Controller

The Xbox 360 remains a popular console. So if the target of your gift buying is still using their last-gen gaming machine – and let’s face it, there’s no reason not to as long as A-list games continue to be released – perhaps you’d like to treat them to a gold chrome wireless controller?

Shiny in a way that makes it look far more valuable than it really is, this controller is wireless, and therefore requires recharging regularly. Also, note that the controller is not compatible with the Xbox One, although you should be able to connect it to your PC with the correct receiver.

Xbox 360 Headset & Mic

From INSTEN, this headset connects to an Xbox 360 controller to deliver voice communication to discuss strategy with gaming team mates and trash talk opponents.

With a noise cancelling microphone and stereo phones, the device also includes a volume control and mute switch, and is adjustable to fit most head sizes. As with many Xbox 360 accessories, this device is not compatible with other hardware, including Windows PCs and Xbox One.

Xbox 360 Speed Wheel

Xbox 360 gamers with an addiction to driving games might just find this gem of a controller useful. With rumble feedback to feel the bumps on the road, this wireless wheel controller from Microsoft is equipped with motion sensors and buttons for gaming functions.

Trigger buttons are also included for gas and brake controls, making this an ideal controller for digital speed kings. However, there are a couple of things to note. For instance, this controller cannot be easily used with the Grand Theft Auto series of games, as walking and shooting are a little difficult with a steering wheel.

And as with other Xbox 360 hardware, you won’t be able to use with the Xbox One, although it should be compatible with Windows 10.

Got Some Xbox Gift Ideas? Share Them!

That’s our list of 10 Xbox gift ideas for under $50. We’re pretty impressed with what is available in this price bracket, but you may know better. If so, tell us all about it in the comments.

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Gifting a Gaming Console for Christmas? Update It First! | Dramel Notes

If the price drops on current-gen consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One caused you to buy one as a Christmas gift, you’re going to make someone very happy this holiday season!

What you might not know, however, is that hours of potential boredom might occur on Christmas day if you don’t take care of some logistics first.

Modern video game consoles are updated over the Internet, mostly to fix bugs and add new features. Because of this, your child won’t be able to just plug in their new Xbox One and start playing — it will first need to update, and this could take quite a while on Christmas when thousands of other families are doing the same thing.

Aside from console updates, games need to be updated too, and these can be a few gigabytes or more. It would be a shame to wait hours before seeing what’s new in Black Ops III because of a mountain of updates.

The age of your kids determines what you should do here. If your child is an older “gamer” and feels that the experience of setting up a new console is part of the charm, leave it be and let them deal with the updates.

Younger kids, however, won’t want to wait, so it’s a good idea to take the system out of the box, plug it in, and get it online so that you can apply the latest updates before you give it to them. Make sure to put in the discs for any new games so they update too!

Looking to do more preparation for your gifts? See how you can easily upgrade the PS4’s hard drive to get more space.

Will you update your gifted consoles early, or do your kids like doing it? Let us know your plans below!

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How to Make Your PlayStation 4 or Xbox One Faster (By Adding an SSD) | Dramel Notes

Sony and Microsoft chose not to ship the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles with solid-state drives. They went with slower mechanical drives to keep costs down, but you can speed up load times for your console games by adding a solid-state drive to your PS4 or Xbox One.

Modern console games are generally installed to and loaded from the hard drive, not just from discs. Using a faster solid-state drive will decrease load times in games. This is the one upgrade you can perform on a game console.

You could also use this trick to add a larger mechanical hard drive and get more storage than the 500 GB drive that came with your console, if you prefer.

PlayStation 4

PlayStation 4 consoles don’t support external hard drives, so you can’t just plug an external SSD into your console. However, the PlayStation 4 allows you to access to a drive bay, where you can remove the internal drive and then replace it. You could take out the mechanical hard drive that came with your PS4, and install a faster solid-state drive — or an even larger mechanical hard drive, if you prefer.

Sony provides official instructions for replacing your PS4’s hard drive. Your new drive must be a 2.5-inch internal drive, 9.5mm or slimmer in size, and use the SATA specification. As long as you choose a drive that matches those specifications, it should work just fine in your PS4. Do some research and buy a solid internal SSD — it’d be the same kind of SSD you’d purchase if you were upgrading a computer with an SSD.

You can only have one hard drive installed at a time in your PS4, so you might want to purchase a fairly large SSD.

Sony’s guide will walk you through backing up the data currently on your console to a removable drive, accessing the PlayStation 4’s hard drive bay, installing the drive, and then reinstalling the PS4 system software on your new drive and restoring the backup.

Xbox One

Microsoft’s Xbox One doesn’t allow you to open it and replace its internal drive. However, the Xbox One does support external hard drives you can connect over USB. Buy a speedy external SSD that uses the USB 3.0 specification, plug it into your Xbox One, and you can install games on that drive. Games will load faster from a sufficiently fast external drive than they would from the internal mechanical drive.

You’ll need a drive that supports USB 3.0 and is at least 256 GB in size, or the Xbox One won’t allow you to install games to it. You should also seek out a solid-state drive that uses USB 3.0 for the fastest performance — you might want to look up benchmarks of external drives before you buy them. Cheap USB 3.0 external drives might actually be quite slow, despite being labelled with “USB 3.0”. The Xbox One offers three USB 3.0 ports, so you could have up to three external drives connected.

Plug an external drive into your Xbox One and you’ll be prompted to format it and use it for games and apps. You can also access this option from Settings > All settings > System > Storage > Format for games & apps.

You can move games between drives without reinstalling them. Highlight a game in My games & apps, press the Menu button, and select Manage game. You can then move it between your connected storage devices – for example, between an internal drive and an external drive. Microsoft’s website provides information on using an external drive with your Xbox One.

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Games on Nintendo’s Wii U typically aren’t installed to the internal storage, unless you download them digitally and don’t play them from discs. However, you can also connect external drives to your Wii U to increase the storage capacity and potentially speed up load times if the game is loading data from the drive. Nintendo’s website explains what you need to know about adding external drives to your Wii U.

Image Credit: BagoGames on Flickr, Jon Fingas on Flickr, Marco Verch on Wikimedia Commons

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The Ultimate List of Game Install Sizes for PS4 & Xbox One | Dramel Notes

Both the Xbox One (XBO) and PlayStation 4 (PS4) have been out for over two years, and each shipped with 500 GB hard drives. Since both systems require you to install every game on the hard drive, you might find your system running out of space.

We’ve shown you how to replace a PS4 hard drive and everything you need to know about Xbox One external drives, but if you’re holding out on a storage expansion, here’s some help.

Finder.com has compiled lists of install sizes for PS4 and XBO games. With over 350 titles for the XBO and 460 titles on PS4, you’re sure to find whatever game you’re considering. The tables contain each game’s release date, size, and whether it’s an AAA or independent game. PS4 games are reaching close to 50 GB for installs:

XBO games are similarly huge:

Using this list, you can figure out if a new game will fit onto your system or not. Note that these numbers are for the base installation only; most games, especially multiplayer-focused ones, will have several patches that could be gigabytes more. The numbers in the table also don’t include any DLC.

Eventually you’ll have to add more storage to avoid juggling games (especially with all those free PS Plus or Xbox Live Gold games), but at least you can be informed just how big new games are.

What games are you considering buying, and how big are they? Will you be upgrading your storage soon? Let us know with a comment!

Image Credit: Barone Firenze via Shutterstock.com

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How to Remap Your Xbox One Controller Buttons | Dramel Notes

Unlike with past consoles, now Xbox One users can remap the buttons on their controller, allowing them to create the gaming experience that works for them.

However, changing the buttons on the controller isn’t as easy as going to the Settings app. Nope, Microsoft decided to make things a little more difficult. Don’t worry, though, because the process isn’t too painful.

First, you’ll need to download an app called Xbox Accessories. The easiest way to do it is to just search for “Xbox Accessories” using the console’s built-in search function. You can also browse the apps on the Store and get it that way.

Once you have the app installed, you may need to connect your controller to the console using a micro-USB cable to update it before you can make any changes.

From there, you can click Configure, and then make all kinds of changes. For example, you can swap triggers so the left trigger will be on the right and vice versa. You can also invert the sticks, which means that you inverted players won’t need to do it in the settings for every game.

Of course, there’s also the option to remap each button. So if you wanted the A button to be Left Bumper, you could do that.

This app is not just for the new Elite controller, though there are additional options for it, since it comes with the additional triggers on the back. Regardless of which controller you have, you can tweak it to your needs with the Xbox Accessories app.

What changes are you going to make to your Xbox One controller, if any? Share your thoughts in the comments!

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