Dropbox has long mulled about making its cloud storage platform accessible to all devices people use - be it laptops, desktops, tablets, smartphones, or even certain apps. But in a surprising turn, Dropbox will now also support the Xbox One, with the release of its official app for the system rolling out Dec. 12.
Dropbox For Xbox One
The new Xbox One app supplements OneDrive, Microsoft's proprietary cloud storage solution. The app brings Dropbox to the biggest screen in the users' house, in Dropbox's own words. The developers are also billing it as the first universal Windows app for cloud storage found on the gaming console, letting users access their content right from their TV sets.
"We've made it easy to access all of your files from your computers, phones, and tablets. Today, we're bringing Dropbox to the biggest screen in your house with our new app for Xbox One," wrote Rudy Huyn, a staff engineer at Dropbox.
However, Dropbox doesn't suppose users will actually use their TVs as a platform to edit their documents in. Instead, the company loaded the app with features it thinks will fit the platform.
"We wanted to solve an issue that we all have: making it easy to access and share your content from the biggest screen in your house," Huyn told Engadget in an email, adding that access means letting users view their files on a large screen without needing to fumble with HDMI cords or connect to their devices.
Features
The app features a new interface designed specifically for larger TV sets, and users may navigate to their files inside Dropbox via a media remote or the Xbox One controller. Users may even stream their Dropbox video files using the app, eliminating the need to download them onto the Xbox One. Some of Dropbox's staple features are also here, including uploads, file commenting, and file sharing with other users.
Once logged in, users can also upload screenshots taken with Kinect directly to their Dropbox folders. When a USB drive is connected to the console, users may also upload files straight from the drive to Dropbox.
The app was born out of Dropbox's annual hack week, where the company engages in a five-day marathon of building and showing diverse Dropbox projects. One of Dropbox's engineers created the prototype and showed a demo to the rest of the Dropbox team. From the demo, Dropbox went to work, convinced that it could build the app around Xbox's user interface and optimize it for TV usage.
Dropbox for Xbox One is now available to download from the Xbox Store.
