Xbox beta app for Windows 10 gets significant performance improvements with 2004 update

Last week, Windows Insiders received a new version of the Xbox beta app for Windows 10 that introduced some welcome under the hood changes. Indeed, the app ditched the Electron framework in favour of Facebook’s React Native, bringing some significant performance improvements along the way.

This new React Native revamp of the Xbox beta app is now available for non-Insiders with version 2004.2000.36.0. After installing this update, you’ll notice that the app now uses much less memory and CPU, making it just as efficient as an app like Steam. Previously, the Xbox beta app could use close to 50% of your CPU during game downloads, meaning it was often better to just close it when playing games.

We’ve also noticed some minor design changes with this update, including a slightly slimmer top navigation bar. The taskbar icon also changed from a white Xbox logo to the same logo above a green square. The Xbox beta app could still do a better job at displaying content by wasting less space, but this is a solid update overall.

It’s now been almost a year since this new Xbox app has been beta. Microsoft launched it along with Xbox Game Pass for PC back in June 2019, and the subscription service remains great value for PC gamers. In case you missed it, Football Manager 2020, Stranger Things 3: The Game and more are joining the catalog this month.