Xbox One Live Gold needed for DVR, Skype, NFL, OneGuide and Smartmatch

Microsoft’s DVR feature for Xbox One which allows users to record up to five minutes of in-game footage, is restricted to Xbox Live members only, which costs US$60 (R600) yearly. DVR, alongside a host of other cloud-based features will not work without an Xbox Live membership confirms Microsoft. “I can confirm that Game DVR features will be available to Xbox Live Gold members only.” said a Microsoft representative to Onehitpixel. This chart below outlines the differences between the online features of Xbox One and 360.

Besides DVR, features like NFL, OneGuide, Skype and Smartmatch will also be disabled unless users cough up the yearly (US$60) or monthly fee (US$5).

The PlayStation 4 on the other hand, allows up to fifteen minutes of recorded gameplay, plus it’s free for all PlayStation users, not only the ones who pay for the US$50 annually PSN Plus.

Users with an Xbox Live Silver account have been left out of the online party since the launch of the Xbox 360. Without an Xbox Gold account, gamers will not be able to play online, download certain demos, use Xbox apps like Facebook and Twitter, or chat to their friends. Without Gold, they’re locked out of the best online features of the Xbox. It’s a strange decision to bundle DVR into part of the paid package, especially since Sony offers its DVR function for gratis.

Adding to this, Microsoft’s history with the Xbox One and its community has been spotty at best. First it reversed the decision to lock out pre-owned Xbox games from running on the Xbox One. Then, after pressure from the indie games community, Xbox decided to allow self-publishing of independently produced games. Is there a chance that Microsoft will allow free DVR’s once the community (predictably) begins to bitch and moan about the latest “Xbone” mistake? We’re betting on an even “yes”.