The Xbox One has had a fine year in 2016 with the release of Xbox One S system as well as fantastic first-party games such as Forza Horizon 3 and Gears of War 4. If you are planning to purchase the Xbox One console for yourself and/or a loved one this holiday season, then there are several accessories we recommend checking out.
Below, you can find our buying and gifting guide for the best Xbox One accessories to get on Black Friday and/or the rest of the holiday shopping season.
Best Xbox One External Hard Disk Drives
One of the advantages the Xbox One has over the PlayStation 4 is the ability to use an external hard disk drive to add more free space. This is especially important when you considered how big the file sizes are in today’s games. Not to mention that you have to install retail discs onto your hard drive as well.
Fortunately, Microsoft partnered with Seagate to release the Xbox Game Drive. The 2 TB version can hold at least 50 big-sized games assuming that the averages are between 35 GB to 50 GB per title. The 4 TB version, which was released in 2016, can hold even more.
You can purchase either of the two available sizes with the following links: 2 TB version and 4 TB version.With that said, you might want to check out the Seagate Expansion Desktop External Hard Drive instead. This is because these HDDs are cheaper in addition to having more size options. You can check them out with the following pages:
If you care more about speed than storage space, then you should take a look at the Seagate Xbox One SSD Game Drive. This accessory, which also came out in 2016, provides a performance that is over three times faster than the standard Xbox Game Drive external hard drives. As a result, you will get much shorter loading times. Buy the Seagate Xbox One SSD Game Drive here.
Top Xbox One Controllers
Microsoft once again updated the standard Xbox One Wireless Controller in 2016. The third iteration of the gamepad adds native Bluetooth connection support (you previously needed to use an adapter to connect the pad wirelessly to a Bluetooth-capable PC). Not to mention that the wireless range has also been doubled. Last but not least, textured grips were also added to the handles.
You can purchase the updated Xbox One Wireless Controller with this link.
We also recommend checking out the Xbox One Elite Wireless Controller. Although expensive, this gamepad is built for customization as there are two different directional pads and six thumb sticks. Furthermore, the product also features a rubberized diamond grip, hair trigger locks (for faster inputs on the LT and RT buttons) as well as up to four back paddles that can be assigned different buttons.Buy the Xbox One Elite Wireless Controller via this page.
Best 7.1 Surround Sound Gaming Headsets for Xbox One
If you want to be fully immerse while playing the Xbox One, we highly recommend investing in a quality surround sound gaming headset.
One of our suggestions is the Turtle Beach Ear Force Elite 800X Premium Fully Wireless Gaming Headset, which comes installed with custom DTS 7.1 Surround Sound modes for games, movies and music. The other notable features include active noise cancellation, microphone monitoring as well as a nifty magnetic charging stand.
The Turtle Beach Ear Force Elite 800X Premium Fully Wireless Gaming Headset is available for purchase here. Another gaming headset we recommend is the Astro Gaming A50 Wireless Dolby Xbox One Gaming Headset, which comes equipped with Dolby 7.1 Surround Sound in addition to three different EQ modes to customize your settings for both games and movies. This product also features an uni-directional microphone as well as adjustable cushions. You can purchase the various versions of the A50 via the following links: Black, White and Halo Edition. As upgraded version of the A50 launched in 2016, which comes with a new precision boom microphone and base station, can also be purchased with this page.
Recommended Xbox One Racing Wheels
The Xbox has became the premier console when it comes to racing games due to the critically and financial successes of Forza Motorsport 5, Forza Motorsport 6, Forza Horizon 2 and Forza Horizon 3. Of course, these and other racers are best played with great racing wheels. Thrustmaster has great Xbox One wheels in the low, medium and high pricing tiers.
A great budget set worth checking out for this holiday season is the Thrustmaster TMX Force Feedback Racing Wheel. This bundle has a wheel with 900 degrees of rotation in addition to a force feedback base. It also uses a metal ball-bearing axle in addition to a mixed belt pulley and gears system. The brake pedal of the two pedal set features progressive resistance as well. Both pedals are also adjustable
Buy the Thrustmaster TMX Force Feedback Racing Wheel with this link.
If you are looking for a mid-range set, then you should take a look at Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel Ferrari 458 Italia Edition. The TX is installed with a 900 degrees 7:10 scale replica Ferrari 458 Italia wheel, which uses a force feedback base that has an industrial-class brushless motor to provide responsive and realistic rumble. It also uses the Hall Effect AccuRate Technology, which added extra durability and precision. Last but not least, the two-pedal set is customizable, made of some metal and uses progressive braking resistance. Purchase the Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel Ferrari 458 Italia Edition here.
If you don’t mind spending a little bit of cash on Black Friday and/or the rest of the 2016 holiday season, then we recommend the Thrustmaster VG TX Racing Wheel Leather Edition Premium Official Xbox One Racing Wheel. This bundle comes with a TM Leather 28 GT 11 inch detachable hand-stitched leather wheel as well as a TX Servo Base that comes with industrial-class brushless servomotor for rumble. It also uses the same aforementioned Hall Effect AccuRate Technology.
Unlike the other two, this higher end Thrustmaster wheel set uses the T3PA 3-pedal pedal, which is made of 100 percent metal internals. All three pedals are fully adjustable while the brake pedal uses a conical rubber brake mod for progressive resistance.Thrustmaster VG TX Racing Wheel Leather Edition Premium Official Xbox One Racing Wheel is available for purchase via this link.
So, if you are looking for the best Xbox One accessories to buy on Black Friday 2016 and/or the rest of this holiday shopping season, make sure you check out the items we mentioned above.