The Xbox Series X is packed with lots of hardware. Especially since the console has yet to be released.

It turns out that everyone who has early versions of the Series X and Series S has completely missed the fact that both consoles have secret IR blasters.

This information comes from Larry "Major Nelson" Herb, director of Xbox Live programming. He confirmed on Twitter that both new Xbox consoles have IR blasters hidden inside the bind button that syncs the console to the controller.

You may have noticed that the buttons have a glossy black appearance. This is the same IR blaster from the Xbox One S and X. It is not something that needs to be synced to the console, but rather to a more traditional infrared remote control. It also allows for a wider range of compatible third-party remotes to be used when streaming or watching movies on Blu-ray.

Now on the Xbox Series X and S, you won't have to upgrade your console and find that your old remote is incompatible and needs to be replaced. Also, by integrating the IR blaster into the bind button, it takes up less overall space and doesn't interfere with the console's aesthetics with a strange black oval.

Of course, if you want a fresh start with a new remote for your new console, there are official media remotes for the Series X available for only $20. Even if the old remote is still usable, this new remote can control TV volume and power, in addition to general browsing and playback controls.

This is a very convenient feature and means that you don't have to search for your original TV remote just to use the Xbox.

Whatever you do, this is another great example of how Microsoft is making sure that older consoles are not just discarded after the launch of the Series X and S. After all, with this news and the knowledge that all Xbox One games are backward compatible, the only thing missing from the Series X is Kinect. But that's probably not a huge loss.