Xbox Series X Digital Edition comes with a welcome under-the-hood upgrade

Unlike Sony, Xbox has no plans to launch a Pro version of the Xbox Series X. Instead, we get a new, disc-less version in a white colourway and a star-themed console with a 2 TB SSD. There is, however, an under-the-hood upgrade that Microsoft didn't advertise, a die-shrunk  6 nm SoC.

The information comes via a console teardown from Austin Evans on YouTube which clearly shows the chip in question. Performance-wise, there doesn't seem to be any difference, although the Xbox Series X in question does draw remarkably less power. This, of course, could be due to various other reasons and not just the die-shrink.

Nevertheless, the reduced power draw lets Microsoft replace the vapour chamber cooler with a more traditional design. That should help the company save some costs, and the savings are clearly passed down to the end user because it costs $449, $50 lesser than the original Xbox Series X. Of course, you give up an entire disc drive in the process, too for a marginal increase in power efficiency.