How to control your Xbox One using your Lumia or Surface

There’s just one thing that you need to connect your Lumia or Surface to your console: the Xbox One SmartGlass app.

Available on both Lumia and Surface, Xbox One SmartGlass can be used for a multitude of purposes for when your Xbox One controller is powered-out or when you’re looking to catch-up on the gaming action when you’re away from your console.

As a remote

If you’re sitting in the same room as your Xbox One, you can sit back, power up your Lumia or Surface, and use the on-screen keypad to navigate around your Xbox – providing all devices are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.

Find the remote icon at the bottom right corner of your screen; that’ll present you with a screen consisting of X, Y, A, and B buttons that behave in the same way they do on your Xbox One controller. You can move up, down, left, or right by swiping the screen in those directions.

Similarly, if you tap the Xbox home key you’ll jump right back to the home screen.

For those who’ve configured your Xbox One play your Cable/TV content, select the relevant tab at the top of the remote screen to see the TV guide and browse channels.

Want to watch the latest blockbuster movie? Navigate to Xbox Video on your Xbox One via your Lumia or Surface and download a film to start watching it.

Some titles open up the Xbox Video Companion feature, which brings maps, director’s comments, movie trivia, and more directly to your handheld device while you’re watching the big screen.

For the gamers

We know how you feel: You’ve spent the past hour flipping cars off the digital hills of Los Santos in Grand Theft Auto V, or travelling to the End on Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 1: Order of the Stone, but you have to leave the house and you still want more.

With Xbox One SmartGlass on your Lumia or Surface, you can track your achievements and see how you’re comparing against your gaming friends. You can also message them through the app to let them know (read: brag) about your latest achievement.

If you’re particularly proud of that achievement, you can also add it to your “Showcase” feed.

With Xbox One, you’ve got the ability to record game DVR clips. These happen either automatically as you perform something extraordinary within a game, or when you manually activate it.

Your own game clips can be played right on your Lumia or Surface by selecting the menu bar, then game clips. To view your friends’ clips, select “Friends”, the name of your friend, and navigate to their game clip section.

Adding pins to your Xbox One home screen

As your looking through your friends’ achievements or game clips, you may be eager to try one or two of the games for yourself.

There’s direct access to the Store within the app (menu > store) that’ll show the main gaming content, any add-ons, a leader board showing the progress of your gaming pals, images and game clips from the whole Xbox Live community.

If you’ve decided to make the purchase, or just want to check it out later, hit the “Pin” icon. The next time you switch on your Xbox One, you’ll see the game waiting for you in the Pins section.

If you’re looking for a deeper, more connected Xbox One experience, download Xbox One SmartGlass on your Surface or Lumia today.