Xbox Series X serious design flaw is impossible to fix alone, tech expert warns

A popular tech YouTuber has warned Xbox Series X owners of a series design flaw that essentially makes the console impossible to attempt to repair alone.

While not quite as popular as the PlayStation 5, the Xbox Series X has had an especially strong 2023. Not only is it a great machine in terms of raw performance, but the inclusion of Xbox Game Pass and day one access to games like Starfield make it a wonderful piece of hardware.

Take a look at our Starfield review below!

Unfortunately, tech YouTuber The Coder has warned Xbox Series X owners about a pretty major flaw in the console's SSD design.

For those who might not be aware, an SSD stores integral data for the console, allowing for high performance games to run on the system. It's one of things that really sets the PS5 and Xbox Series X apart from the previous gen, and is pretty much the entire reason these consoles are able to load games in a matter of seconds.

Naturally, then, the SSD is pretty damn important - but as far as the Xbox Series X is concerned, the console's SSD

has been designed in such a way that it makes it impossible to repair by yourself if something breaks. Granted, most of us probably wouldn't even begin to attempt repairing an SSD on our own anyway, but it's good to be aware.

The first problem, the YouTuber explains, is a small hardware key containing data that can't be read through normal means. Even if it could be read, the data is encrypted. Besides that, the console will only work with its original SSD, so apparently picking up and installing a new one wouldn't work. Finally, if you messed with the SSD too much you'd completely wreck your console, since the Xbox Series X relies on it to even work in the first place.

All these problems mean self-repairs should only ever be considered as an absolute last resort, and probably not even then. Your best bet is to send any dodgy consoles off to Microsoft for repairs or replacement, which is only possible provided it's within warranty. Not ideal, but it is what it is.