A teardown of the Xbox One confirms that Microsoft built its next-generation console to be cool in more ways than one thanks to a larger-than-normal cooling fan.
The heatsink and fan combo is 112 millimeters in diameter, according to the teardown specialists at iFixit.
To put that into perspective, Sony equipped its more compact PS4 system with a fan that's just 85 millimeters.
Xbox One's monster fan is also easily separable from the heatsink just in case the fan sputters one day and stops working.
These measures make it appear as if Microsoft isn't taking any chances when it comes to the Xbox One overheating after Xbox 360's Red Ring of Death debacle.
Standard hard drive, not a standard replacement
The Xbox One fan is special, but the console's internal storage is anything but.
It's a standard 2.5-inch SATA II 500GB hard drive that spins at 5400RPM, has a 8MB cache and travels at 3.0Gb/s.
In fact, it's so off-the-shelf, iFixit found the Samsung-made drive on Newegg under the model number Spinpoint M8 ST500LM012.
Just because you can order a duplicate doesn't mean it's easily replaceable or that you can upgrade the internal storage beyond 500GB without thinking twice.
"Replacing the hard drive requires voiding the warranty," iFixit discovered.
What's more: "We're not sure if the Xbox One will recognize unformatted SATA hard drives."
Xbox One's three-layer operating system is likely stored on this otherwise standard drive.
Xbox One repair score
Our hand on PS4 review and Xbox One review found that both systems are worthy entries for anyone looking to jump into the next generation of video games right away.
Likewise, this Xbox One teardown received at 8 out of 10 repairability score - on par with the repair score PS4 received a week ago.
Microsoft's system can be taken apart rather easily with only a few tools; the company didn't opt for adhesive-like glue. Glue makes for a sticky situation, both literally and figuratively.
The one downside appears to involve access to the aforementioned hard drive that voids your warranty and is standard, but not in a #justkiddingnotkidding kind of way.
That makes Xbox One's delayed external hard drive support all the more important.
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