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5 Things to Do If You’re Giving a Xbox One as a Gift

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Are you giving a Xbox One as a gift this year? If so, you don’t want to just wrap it up and put it under the tree. If you spend a bit of time now, the person you give the gift to can start playing immediately instead of installing updates, dealing with setup and waiting for downloads.

Yes, this means you will need to open the Xbox One and set it up, but you can do this without pulling all the plastic off and easily re-box it before you wrap it back up. This is going to save a huge amount of time and even avoid some headaches if you take these steps. Here’s what to do so that you can be a Xbox gift giving hero this year.

Plug the Xbox One in and Update It

Install Xbox One updates and set it up before you give it as a gift.

Install Xbox One updates and set it up before you give it as a gift.

Take the Xbox One out of the box, plug it into your TV, power and connect to the Internet. This will allow you to download and install updates for the console. Just like a computer there are updates that come out with fixes and features.

This will take some time, so you may want to do this at night when the recipient is in bed. The time it takes will depend on how fast your Internet connection is and how many updates you need to install.

This guide will help you setup your Xbox One. You can also check out this guide from Microsoft.

Install Any Games You’re Giving

Install or download games now.

Install or download games now.

If you bought a Xbox One with an included game, it will need downloaded. Even if you bought the game on disc, you typically need to download and install game files and updates.

Once the Xbox is updated, put the disk in and attempt to start it. This will prompt you to install the game and any updates that need downloaded. Repeat with any other game that you have.

Read: How to Fix Stuck Xbox One Game Installs

If the game is a code, you will need to redeem it on the Xbox Store. You will need to make a Xbox Live account to do this. It can be a free account, or you can take this time to setup Xbox Live Gold. Once it starts, allow it to download the game and open it up to make sure it is ready to play.

This is an essential step that will make or break the minutes after opening the gift.

Set Up Xbox Live

If this is their first Xbox you will need to setup Xbox Live or Xbox Live Gold. Xbox Live will prompt for setup when you setup the Xbox. That will be the free version which lets you play games locally, but if you want to play online you will need Xbox Live Gold.

There is typically a free trial in the box. You may want to wait to install that if it is a new account. That way it doesn’t expire while the Xbox is in the box. You can also look for deals on Xbox Live Gold when you buy it online and enter a code on your Xbox. Here’s more on Xbox Live setup.

You can get 12 months of Xbox Live Gold for $44.99 at CDKeys.

Set Up Parental Controls

Set up Xbox One parental controls before you give it as a gift.

Set up Xbox One parental controls before you give it as a gift.

The Xbox One includes parental controls to handle online interactions, games, movies and even web page access. This can also prevent kids from making purchases on Xbox Live without your permission. It’s smart to set this up ahead of time so you don’t need to dial things back after a kid or teen starts playing.

Here’s our guide on how to set up parental controls on the Xbox One, and more from Microsoft.

Set as Home Console

Set as your home console so that they can play it offline if there are Xbox Live problems.

Set as your home console so that they can play it offline if there are Xbox Live problems.

We recommend setting the Xbox One as your home console. This basically means it can be used to play games even when offline. That’s important on Christmas Day and throughout the holiday season when Xbox Live may have issues as many people get online or if some group targets the service with an attack to take it offline and ruin people’s holidays. Doing this now can help prevent Xbox Live problems later.

  1. Go to Settings
  2. Select Personalization
  3. Select My Home Xbox
  4. Select Make This My Home Xbox

You can only change this setting five times a year. This limit is in place to limit sharing Xbox One games. This guide will walk you through how to play Xbox Games offline.

16 Best Xbox One Accessories in 2018

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Xbox Game Pass - $9.99

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Xbox Game Pass costs $9.99 a month or $59.99 a year. A 14-day free trial lets you get a feel for the service without spending any money. 

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