Microsoft has revealed specific details on what Xbox One owners can expect with the October dashboard update and it's a significant one.
We saw some of the new features during a briefing at Gamescom a couple of weeks ago, but Major Nelson has gone into much more depth on what each new element will bring to the platform on his blog site.
While Media Player was launched in Preview mode with the last update, the new version will add DLNA streaming to USB media playback that is currently available. Pocket-lint is on the Preview program, so has already been able to check it out and we're excited to reveal that as well as play a handful of video types (including MKV) it is also fully Plex compatible, so if you have a Plex server running on a compatible NAS drive, PC or Mac you'll be able to access your categorised video and music files, with the cover art and images intact.
The Snap Centre has been improved, to give quick access to things important to fans while they are playing games, including Game DVR and Messages.
The Achievements app has been updated to allow you to share achievements with friends. And the friends section itself has been added to the general dashboard so you can see important information about those online, etc, without having to enter the Friends app. You can also see a list of your friends' most popular games on SmartGlass.
SmartGlass also gets live TV streaming. If you have one of the new Xbox One Digital TV Tuners, launching 21 October, you will be able to watch free-to-air programming on a tablet or smartphone through SmartGlass. Sadly, this won't work with Virgin Media or Sky set-top-boxes connected to the console for rights reasons.
READ: Xbox One October update and beyond: We look at DLNA streaming and other new features
Live TV trending will be added to OneGuide, so you'll be able to see which local programming is most popular. And there will be a new MiniGuide added so you won't have to take up the entire screen with the OneGuide to quickly see what's on.
And apps with live TV channels will be able to include their TV listings in the OneGuide too.
The final major change is that SmartGlass will also be able to be used as a universal remote control. It will control any kit connected to the Xbox One, such as a TV set-top-box, television or amplifier.
Xbox One Preview Program members will get the features from today, the main firmware update will be pushed to everybody else in October.
READ: Xbox One Digital TV Tuner hands-on: It's smaller than you think