Microsoft Xbox Cloud Gaming gets better on iPhone and iPad

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Microsoft rolled out its Xbox Cloud Gaming service for iOS devices back in June last year. However, both iPhone and iPad owners had complained that the experience was not up to the mark and lagged behind in performance compared to the service on other eligible platforms. Addressing this, Microsoft has announced that it has implemented a series of enhancements that will improve the performance on all iPhone and iPad devices. Also Read — Google Stadia dead? For you it is

The service is currently accessible on the iPhone and the iPad via the Safari web browser. Microsoft to date has been unable to launch a standalone Xbox Cloud Gaming app on the App Store, due to restrictions implemented by Apple. Also Read — WhatsApp new voice note feature being rolled out to a few users

The improvements made to the platform include optimized video output on iOS devices and optimized network data transmission to speed up the responsiveness of Xbox Cloud Gaming. “With these updates, you should have a smoother and more responsive gameplay experience,” said Nicole Hilbert, product manager at Xbox. Also Read — Steam finally makes its way onto Chromebooks, but there's a catch

The company also claims that it has also reduced the overall input latency, which will reduce the delay between the user tapping buttons or moving the thumbstick and the input appearing on-screen.

Most of these issues plaguing the service on iOS and iPadOS are caused due to Microsoft being forced to offer the service via the Safari web browser instead of a dedicated app, due to Apple’s policies on game streaming apps. While web browser APIs have improved over the years, they still do not match the experience a dedicated native app can provide.

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