> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://averagetechnerds.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # The Xbox PC App Is Getting Up to 60% Faster, Starting With Insiders - URL: https://averagetechnerds.com/xbox-pc-app-speed-update/ - Published: 2026-11-05T22:40:48.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-05T22:57:17.000Z - Description: Microsoft’s reworked Xbox PC app launches up to 60% faster, Insiders first. It says nothing about the controller problems in Xbox mode. - Author: Victor - Tags: News, PC Gaming, Handheld Gaming Okay, good: the Xbox PC app is getting faster. What it really needs, though, is a redesign. It’s been a rough app to live with, especially the full screen experience. That’s supposed to work with just a controller, and in my experience, on my original ROG Ally and on a regular Windows PC, it still doesn’t: you end up reaching for a keyboard. Being Microsoft, I expect this to take time, but it’s good to see it heading somewhere. Here’s what Microsoft actually announced on November 5, who can try it, and what it does and doesn’t fix. Bottom line up front ## So what does this mean for the *Average TechNerd*? Microsoft has started testing a reworked Xbox PC app with Xbox Insiders. By its own testing, it launches up to 60% faster, its main pages load up to 50% faster and windows inside it open up to 65% faster, with a reorganised library, friends in the main menu and one search for everything. There’s no date for everyone else yet. It’s mainly a speed update. Microsoft says nothing about controllers or Xbox mode, the controller-first screen formerly called the full screen experience. At a glance What it is A reworked Xbox app for Windows PCs Who gets it Xbox Insiders, from November 5, 2026; no date for everyone else Microsoft's numbers Launches up to 60% faster, pages up to 50% faster, in-app windows up to 65% faster, from its own testing Also new A reorganised library, friends and parties in the main menu, one search for games, add-ons and people, and a refreshed look Not mentioned Xbox mode, controller navigation, download speeds Last checked November 5, 2026 ## How much faster is the new Xbox PC app? Up to 60% faster to launch, by Microsoft’s count. In its [Xbox Wire post](https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2026/11/05/a-faster-simpler-xbox-experience-is-coming-to-pc-web-and-cloud/?ref=averagetechnerds.com), Jason Beaumont, Xbox’s VP of Experiences, says pages like Home, Store and Game Pass load up to 50% faster and windows inside the app open up to 65% faster. Those are “up to” numbers from Microsoft’s own testing, and a footnote says results vary by device, connection and setup. Microsoft doesn’t say what hardware it tested on or what it measured against. ## What else changes in the update? The library and the menus. Microsoft says the library gets simpler navigation, new filters and more ways to organise your games. Friends and social features move into the main menu, so you can see what friends are playing or join a party without digging. Search now covers games, including the ones you’ve installed, add-ons and people from one box, and game cards, Home and Settings get a visual refresh. ![The new Xbox PC app's Home page, with a friends list down the left and a game card expanded to show its price, Game Pass status and which friends play it](https://storage.ghost.io/c/b3/23/b323103c-90c0-46a8-9230-7d317a5ebaf3/content/images/2026/11/xbox-pc-app-store.jpg) The new app’s Home page, with friends in the main menu. Image: Microsoft ## When can you get it? Right now only if you’re an Xbox Insider, Microsoft’s free testing programme. Microsoft hasn’t given a date for everyone else. Its post says “There’s more to do, and your feedback will continue to shape what comes next.” ## What is Xbox mode, and why does a faster app matter there? Xbox mode is the controller-first screen Windows can boot into instead of the desktop, and the Xbox app is usually its home screen. It started as the full screen experience on the [ROG Xbox Ally](https://averagetechnerds.com/rog-xbox-ally-x20-price-release-date/) in October 2025, and on April 30, 2026 Microsoft [began rolling it out](https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2026/04/30/xbox-mode-pc-windows-11/?ref=averagetechnerds.com) to Windows 11 PCs in general, in stages and in select markets. [Microsoft’s support page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/topic/windows-gaming-full-screen-experience-67fb8d12-5467-4a95-8adf-0a10789576ab?ref=averagetechnerds.com) calls it “a controller-optimized way to navigate and play on Windows.” That’s why the speed matters. On a handheld or a PC on the TV, the Xbox app isn’t something you open now and then; it’s what you look at every time you pick the thing up. Windows Central, which tried an early build of the new app in October, reported that it fixes a laggy, sticky selection on the ROG Xbox Ally, though Microsoft’s own post doesn’t mention that. ## Can you use Xbox mode with just a controller? For the basics, yes. For everything, no. Reviewers found that booting into Xbox mode, browsing your library and launching games works on the controller. The trouble starts at the edges. When the ROG Xbox Ally launched in October 2025, [ASUS’s own guide](https://rog.asus.com/articles/guides/how-to-play-games-from-xbox-steam-epic-and-other-stores-on-the-rog-xbox-ally/?ref=averagetechnerds.com) said you may need the touch screen for Battle.net’s installer, and used touch to buy and download games in Steam. [Tom’s Hardware](https://www.tomshardware.com/video-games/console-gaming/asus-rog-xbox-ally-x-review?ref=averagetechnerds.com) found the Epic and CD Projekt launchers needed touch, with no mouse control, and that Windows’ permission prompts still pop up. Can I Play That found the first-time setup is the standard Windows 11 one. Microsoft has been chipping away at it. It fixed the on-screen keyboard not appearing for controller users on PCs without a touch screen in a December 2025 Insider build, and October’s Insider builds added Exit to Desktop, power options and quick settings to Xbox mode’s menu, so fewer trips to the desktop. Most of the hands-on reports above are from late 2025, though, before those changes. ## Does it make downloads faster? Microsoft doesn’t say so. Slow downloads are a common complaint about the Xbox app, and they fill Google’s suggestions for “xbox app slow”, but the November 5 post only talks about the app launching and loading pages faster, so don’t expect it to fix your download speed. ## Is Microsoft redesigning the Xbox app? Partly, if the reports are right. Windows Central reported in October that the rebuilt app is codenamed Garrison and, citing unnamed sources, that more features were planned before it goes live. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has also said internally that Xbox needs to “fix the fundamentals on console and PC,” as The Verge reported in May from an internal town hall. Microsoft hasn’t published a roadmap for the app or for Xbox mode. ## Who is it for? Anyone who games on a Windows handheld or a PC on the TV and spends time in the Xbox app, and is happy to join the Insider programme to try it early. If you mostly launch games from Steam on the desktop, it’ll matter less. And if you were hoping for a full controller-first redesign, this isn’t it yet. Have you given up on Xbox mode, or do you still use it? Based on Microsoft’s November 5 and April 30 Xbox Wire posts, Microsoft’s Xbox mode support page and Windows Insider release notes, ASUS’s ROG Xbox Ally guide, and reporting and reviews from Engadget, Windows Central, Tom’s Hardware and The Verge, as of November 5, 2026.