We all remember the days of the launch of the Xbox 360. Units were consistently failing in large numbers due to overheating and poor overall design. Gamers were living in fear that their Xbox 360 would fail at any minute and they’d have to work with Microsoft to get a new console. It was a very real danger of owning a 360 and it seems just about everyone you talk to has either lived that experience or known someone who has. Now with the launch of the Xbox One, there is still that lingering fear in gamer’s minds. Sure, the Xbox One is a superior product than the Xbox 360, but piece of mind is an important thing for anyone and that is where the Antec X-1 Cooler comes in.

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The Antec X-1 Cooler is a 3rd party peripheral that sits on top of your Xbox to improve air circulation inside the unit itself. It contains a large fan and basically just redirects the air from venting out of the top of the Xbox One to venting out the rear of the unit. The unit also includes a digital thermometer on the top of the unit which allows you to see what the temperature is of the air intake and what the temperature is of the vented air. The unit requires USB power which it basically just plugs into the USB on the back of the machine. It does include a pass through USB port so you don’t loose a whole port to just the fan, which is a nice feature.

One of the good things of the X-1 Cooler is that you do see about a 10 degree change in the temperature of the air. The box claims that you can see up to 30 degrees difference, but we never got that high. Maybe in very specific conditions you can get something like that, but you should expect about 10 degrees difference. If overheating is something you’ve encountered with your unit before, or you have your Xbox One in a place that isn’t well ventilated or is confined, this is a cheap and effective peripheral that you may want to consider investing in. This also frees up space on the top of the Xbox One. As you probably figured out, you can’t really put anything on top of the Xbox One, but if you utilize the cooler, you can store things on-top of the system. While the unit does work, there were a few things that hurts the unit overall.

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To start, the unit just sits on top of the vents. There is no way to strap it down so it doesn’t move. If you move your console around, or transport it, the cooler will not stay in place. This may or may not be an issue for you, depending on how much you move things around. It is nice to not have to open your system to install a cooler, but having it just sit on top of the unit seems like it can cause issues for some people in certain situations. Another issue is that it vents right next to the rear intake of the unit. It would have been nice to vent the unit in a different direction so it gives you some options if you are using a cabinet or AV rack. These are minor issues especially in light of the fact that the unit works.

Overall, the Antec X-1 Cooler is a solid option for anyone encountering heating issues, or for those who are just concerned with keeping their Xbox One as cool as possible. Though we’ve never encountered heating issues with our Xbox One, and the general consensus of the market is that these units don’t have heating issues, it is good to know that this product is available if you want it. While we wouldn’t count on the cooler keeping your unit more than 10 to 15 degrees cooler than ambient, if that works for you, we recommend you check this one out.

About The Author

Joe Marchese is the founder / Editor in Chief of New Gamer Nation. He has been a gamer for his whole life but has been focusing on his passion to deliver the industry's new to New Gamer Nation. He is an expert of video game culture and has been featured on Fox News Online. Don't be shy to reach out and let him know what you think!