Here's where you can preorder your Xbox Series S today - CNET
Microsoft has changed the gaming-platform calculus. Until recently, you probably assumed you'd be plunking down $500 for an Xbox Series X, but now there's a potentially more attractive option, especially if you don't have a 4K TV: The Xbox Series S will set US gamers back a much more modest $300. Xbox preorders are now underway.
Read more: Here's where you can preorder your Xbox Series X for $500
The Series S is a digital-only (no optical drive) console that packs less power under the hood (mainly because it doesn't support native 4K resolution like the Series X) and promises to be a much better deal for most gamers. Check out CNET's comparison of the two consoles for more details.
There's been a lot of news that might affect your console purchase decision. GameStop is running a deal in which you can get up to $200 in trade-in credit when you buy an Xbox Series X or Series S. Your old Xbox One X or PS4 Pro is worth $200, for example, while trading in a 500GB Xbox One can lop $100 off the price of your new Xbox. At the same time, Microsoft is inviting you to buy your next console more like a smartphone -- on an installment plan. As a part of Xbox All Access, you can get a Series S for $25 per month for 24 months, no up-front cost.
And if you're still on the fence between the Xbox and PS5, you should know that Microsoft has just announced a deal to buy ZeniMax Media, the parent of Bethesda Studios. Should the deal close as planned, it would make Microsoft the owner of Doom, Fallout, Skyrim and other A-list franchises. It's currently unclear how that will affect the future gaming landscape, but it could mean the Xbox getting future Bethesda games first -- or maybe getting them exclusively, or seeing them fast-tracked to Xbox Game Pass. There are a lot of possibilities, to be sure.
Ready to lay down some plastic and preorder? You can choose from among a half dozen retailers. We'll be keeping track of these stores and updating their status below.
Amazon's Xbox Series S order page is showing "currently unavailable." You can click the yellow Email Me button to sign up for availability updates.
Currently, you can still preorder at Best Buy.
It appears Newegg is already out of stock, but you can sign up to receive a notification when more inventory is available.
Walmart also shows the Series S as out of stock, but you can sign up for an "in-stock alert" to be notified when more units are avaiable.
GameStop's combination SeriesX/Series S landing page puts you in a queue, where you apparently have to wait an indeterminate amount of time for a shot at preordering. "Just relax and please don't refresh or start a new session," it says.
At this writing, Target is just about the only store that shows Series S availability. However, we noticed that after clicking Preorder button, nothing happened for a long while. Literally minutes. But then we were indeed able to add the console to our cart. Your experience may vary.
Microsoft's Series S page doesn't show any kind of out-of-stock indication, at least right now, but when we clicked our way through to checkout, we got a "Something went wrong message." Hopefully you'll have better luck.
By the way, you can buy the console outright for $300 or choose the Xbox All Access plan, which includes the Series S and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. It costs $25 per month for 24 months.
Watch this: PS5 vs. Xbox Series X: Full comparison
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