Xbox Series X users reporting spontaneous system shutdowns

A concerning number of new console owners are reporting the problem.

November 12, 2020

Microsoft’s next-gen console the Xbox Series X officially went on sale two days ago and less than 24 hours later it became the fastest selling console at launch in Xbox history. Walmart, Best Buy, GameStop, Target, and every other retailer are completely sold out of the console, as well as the smaller less expensive version that doesn’t contain a disc drive, the Xbox Series S. Demand is so strong that a number of scalpers are selling the console, which retails at $499, on Ebay for upwards of $1500, three times the original price.

Unfortunately not everyone that’s been lucky enough to get their hands on one of the coveted consoles is having a good first experience. According to a thread on the official Microsoft support forums, the new console is spontaneously shutting down on players shortly after they start up a game. Players in the thread are trying anything and everything you can think of to solve the problem, from surge protectors and WiFi only connections, to full system restores. At the time of this article being published there are over one hundred thirty-two responses to the 2-day old thread and it doesn’t appear that anyone has figured out a sure fix.

There also appears to be a growing number of users that are reporting problems with their new Xbox Series X’s disc drive. Some folks are reporting that the console’s disc drive makes an odd loud whirring and clicking sounds after accepting a disc, while others report that their console refuses to accept any compatible disc they attempt to insert. You can see an example below:

https://twitter.com/Travless_/status/1326263226162679821

Hopefully everyone with a bad disc drive receives a replacement soon, and the weird shutdown issue is resolved through a simple software update.

Sony, one of Microsoft’s biggest competitors, launches their next-gen console the PS5, today, November 12.