Microsoft announced new “carbon-aware” energy mode is rolling out an Xbox Insider beta and will be available to all Xbox owners soon.
Mode that optimizes updates and downloads to run at a time when the local grid is least dependent on fossil fuels and the dashboard can use the most renewable energy to perform tasks this. Windows 11 updates were carbon-aware last year.
As long as the dashboard is connected to the internet and can access the regional carbon intensity data it needs, it will be carbon aware by default. But the optimizations will only work if it’s in Shutdown mode, instead of Sleep.
It’s a worthwhile new optimization, but by far the biggest impact is Xbox owners choosing to use Shutdown over Sleep in the first place, as Shutdown saves up to 20 times more power. So it’s even more important that with the carbon-aware update, all Xbox Series X and S consoles will be switched to use Shutdown by default when shutting down. The user will then need to manually switch back to Sleep Mode if they wish. Shutdown means a longer boot time than Sleep, and remote wake-up isn’t available, but otherwise the control panel functions as is and can still receive overnight updates.
The Xbox One console will also get new power modes, including the same power-saving Shutdown mode, with downloads and updates enabled, that the Series X uses.
Microsoft indicates that every two consoles that switch to Shutdown from Sleep save the same amount of carbon as 1 tree is planted and grown in a decade. But if you want to use Sleep, you’ll be able to use the new Active Hours setting that will allow remote wake-ups and a quick start of Sleep during certain hours, then turn it off completely at the end of the day. .
