Xbox Companion updated, is now Xbox Smartglass

An update is being pushed through for your Windows Phone Xbox Companion app that transforms things into the Xbox Smartglass app. You get a change in layout too boot.

Xbox Smartglass continues to allow you to interact with your Xbox 360 console through your Windows Phone. Not only will it allow you to control your console but it also delivers unique content about what you are watching or playing to your Windows Phone.

Xbox Smartglass's key features include:

Navigate your Xbox 360 with swipe and tap.
Use your phone's keyboard to type to your Xbox 360.
Browse the Internet on your Xbox 360 with full keyboard and zooming.
Play, pause, fast forward, rewind, and stop videos and music on your Xbox 360.
Search the full Xbox catalog of music, video, and games.
Enjoy rich, interactive experiences from select game and entertainment content creators.

If you haven't seen the update pushed to your Windows Phone, you can find the Xbox Smartglass app here at the (opens in new tab) Windows Phone Store. It's a free app and does require an Xbox 360 console and Xbox membership.

Thanks, everyone, for the tip!

George Ponder

George is the Reviews Editor at Windows Central, concentrating on Windows 10 PC and Mobile apps. He's been a supporter of the platform since the days of Windows CE and uses his current Windows 10 Mobile phone daily to keep up with life and enjoy a game during down time.

127 Comments

Yes!! Well done to those involved in getting this out around the new dash. Was expecting the usual wait. Hopefully it will be exclusive for a short time at least.
I think I read somewhere that iOS and Android won't be geting the smartglass update until sometime in 2013, with iOS maybe getting it sooner. Kind of shame with the Wii U coming out, would have been a lot more people using smartglass. Doesn't effect me at all since I use WP and am getting a surface, but most of my friends will be bummed.
No Ballmer finally laid down the law and told the various divisions to stop giving away the keys to the castle to the competition. The Windows platforms have to be supported first with everything else coming later.
It's already available for android...
Check out "Gallery" under the "Xbox Music Experience" in the SmartGlass app and you will see screenshot taken in iOS. Edit: That was clearly a screenshot taken in iOS (was a screenshot of search, and you could see the iOS keyboard in the picture), but I can't seem to find the screenshot in the app anylonger. But its clearly that SmartGlass is coming soon to other platforms.
Good. Let smartglass boost windows phone sales
thats not gonna happen because android already has their smartglass app released... this should have been exclusive to windows phone at least for the launch of wp8. it would def give wp a cool factor.
The companion app wasn't available in the Indian marketplace..but smartglass is!!! LOVE IT!!!
I got to the smartglass app by searching in Bing for Xbox companion which on tapping automatically changed to smartglass..i have installed the app.. But I can't seem to search it in the marketplace. Anyone having this issue???
I didn't with this app but for several others I have seen online as being available I would go search marketplace but it wouldn't be there, but if I just go to Bing and search online for the web download page it redirects me to the page in the marketplace so I can download it, doesn't make sense how that works
Does the smartglass allow for any interaction between a Windows phone and Windows PC?
No just Xbox 360
I believe what Microsoft has done here with Smartglass is that the Xbox serves as the host. Umm for example the Nexus Q that google released (think of it like that). So yes you can intertact with your windows phone and your windows 8 PC. BUT you NEED an Xbox. (Anyone correct me if they know other wise)

Seeing as Microsoft have sold 70 million Xbox 360's worldwide, they figured it would be the perfect host :)
can this be used to play music and video outside of Xbox music and Xbox video?? I know this sounds even silly even while questioning but I don't think Xbox music and video are available in every region
Yes smartglass on windows 8 you can stream any media content that is on your PC to the Xbox, you don't have to rely on only Xbox video and music services.
At least it works here in Finland so quite nice coverage. xbox music I mean.
Yessssss! Finally!
xbox extras is updatet too.
Xbox extras was somehow broken by that update as it won't open for most people anymore.
Yup. Times out on connecting to the Xbox service and says it cannot retrieve avatar items. Also, the Xbox (Live) Service is being shit today. There are issues with syncing saves to the cloud, which makes subsequent autosaves fail. For example after playing two songs in dance central, you'll find that you can't save the score for the second one, cause the first save hasn't been synced to the cloud yet and thus further saving is blocked. Well, I expected problems with XBL after milions of new PC users join the service in addition to the current 70 milion Xboxes and a couple of WP7 and GfWL users, but I didn't think the overflow would happen that soon after lanuch. FFS, one day hasn't even passed yet.
Thank goodness. Typing in Bing on the 360 was atrocious.
Using the Xbox remote control on the updated IE was just as bad. Fortunately I still had an old chatpad laying around to plug into controller
I was not able to use the keyboard on my phone to input text...seems like that might have been a feature people might want, but you know w/e
Is Microsoft going with the old Xbox logo or the metro one? It's not that big of a deal, but the metro logo looks much better!
It is a play on the Metro logo, but the green doesn't change color...so it won't stay with my theme color unless you select "Green" as your theme. Booooo
Will SmartGlass work with Windows 8, the PC version?
I don't have an Xbox, but I'd love to use that with my WindowsPhone and the PC, it would awesome :)
actually something that I am wondering.
Like, is smart glass going to be the unification of the entire ecosystem?

Can I be doing somethign and send it to my pc similar to the way you can do it with the xbox.
Yes there is a smartglass app for windows 8. I tries it out yesterday and it works pretty good with the xbox
Nope, only PC to xbox or phone to xbox. No PC to phone interaction.
FYI, there is a kindle app for windows 8. I sent a tip.
Why does the SmartGlass app need a gyroscope?
I was wondering that as well but it worked fine without my hd7 having one, so I wouldn't worry about it if it it works on your device.
My assumption is that is built in for extra APIs...so if you don't have a kinect (for example) you could hold your phone out in front and use it to move around a cursor on the screen. Just my idea...not based on anything but a pie in the sky.
Which games are interactive games? I'm buying one ASAP. Who knows, I might already have one. LIST PLEASE!
Dance central 3 and forza horizon
I can get down with some Forza. Thanks!
Halo 4 when it releases. There is a small list in the tab about smartglass on the Xbox dash.
Awesome will be giving this update a workout. :)
What gyroscope for the app
I've installed smartglass, but I'm at work and haven't had the opportunity to try it out. I've also updated to the latest Xbox extras, but everytime I launch it it ends up telling me it can't access my avatar items. Is anyone else experiencing this?
Most everyone is having that problem with Xbox extras. I asked Xbox support on twitter but haven't gotten a reply yet.
Come on why can't I type with the phone? Its so much easier than a controller
What and where are you trying to type that the phone doesn't work?

With the phone you can send xbox messages, search bing (which is the equivalent of searching any of the media apps all at once), etc.
I will only use the phone here on out to type. In not sure of your issue. Mine works.
I assume he's talking about the fact you can't type in IE or use the phone as a keyboard / mouse.
What are you Reffering to, I can use the phone as a keyboard and mouse in IE..
Does anyone know if the update allows you to turn the console on and off. I know the old app made you have to be powered on and signed in before it could work.
No, you can't as it requires a connection through your Microsoft account. That's why it even works when your phone isn't even connected to WiFi.
You can open the guide and scroll to turn off console with smartglass, there is no dedicated button though within the app.
Uninstalled the Xbox Companion app and installed Xbox Smartglass because it wasn't loading properly, Now I get a can't sign in error. Anyone else experiencing this?
I'm in you exact situation! trying to figure out something if i do ill let you know.
I will do the same, I am tweeting back and forth with Xbox support hoping to get some help. I also made sure that the Xbox Smartglass settings in the Xbox were set to on. The Xbox Companion app worked great before, but it wasn't auto updating to the new SmartGlass app in the marketplace, which is why I uninstalled it and manually installed SmartGlass
Same issue here. Can't log in now. Hopefully it'll get fixed soon
Apparently it is not supposed to be released until tomorrow, so according to Xbox Support, some regions may be able to log in but not all regions. I am in Canada so that may explain it.
Thanks, I have the same issue, login fail. I will try later.
Thanks for that, all my settings are correct also. I'll try when i get home, but im in the US so i dont know it wouldnt work.
Yes!
On screen pointer issues for me. Slow and covers no ground. Help
Never mind, working like a charm now
This is just for XBox. What I'm intersted in is Mirroring from a Windows 8 device to device. F.e., Surface RT to a Windows 8 media PC connected to an HDTV. Just like Apple's Mirroring tech. Where is it?
On the apple devices you constantly bring up.
Smartglass is more then just mirroring. For mirroring there's allready Intel WiDi for that.
my IE on xbox doesnt work! anyone else suffering from the same issue? i redownloaded the damn thing like twice but still it just wouldnt open!
Had that problem as well and had to open ie with controller. But it started up the game in the tray no problem.
Looks like I need to buy an Xbox now. Great.

:P
That's the whole idea. Got mine a few months after the WP7 launch. More for consumption than games. Should be in every living/family room. Great entertainment console, and today it just got better.
I downloaded it and gave it a spin. It made IE work much better than the controller. Microsoft has so many things happening right now it's almost impossible to keep up. Sweet
I couldn't agree more in how much better the experience is. I will use IE now, where as previously it was just to crappy. I only had controllers and remote.
Once again, not avaliable here in Brazil. :(
I like that I can now run the app and search content even when I'm not connected to my Xbox.
I know. Kool feature.
This app is just beautiful to look at. It's a shame I'm at work and can't test it on my Xbox.
Not working worth a damn. IE keeps downloading when activated with smartglass. Typing is sluggish and Bing only returns results for media. :-(
Restart it. My was sluggish at first, now it's great!
Love it. Allready used it with great pleasure from my W8 tablet and now I can also do it with my Lumia 800. Like!
Loving it so far, can't wait to try it on games and movies
Maybe they didn't forget us Windows Phone 7 user after all. Let's hope so. This is good start. :)
I don't have time to test my app right now, but tomorrow i will be sure to test it.
With smartglass coming to windows phone 7 and still 7.8 being hush, hush, with all its features , I might have to wait this generation out until 2013...but don't quote me ;)
Working great here!! Now when do we get the Madden 13 companion app so I can design my defenses like Juan Castillo (only 2 plays)
I believe they were using smartglass, not a separate madden app.
Can I turn the Xbox on and off yet?
Nope....and that's the first thing it should do
If you bring up the guide with smartglass, you can scroll to turn off console.
Thnks WPCentral for this loooovly news. Im loving it, typing from it now actually.
Not seeing any update, my Xbox Extras updated yesterday and hasn't worked since :(
Does anyone know where to actually get the Xbox Smartglass app? I don't see it in the marketplace anywhere.
Type in Xbox companion
I have the companion app installed, have for a long long time now. But there is no update showing for it.
Scan the QR Code up in the Article.
Thank you, scanning the QR code brought me to the page in the marketplace and gave me the 'update' option.

Odd though, because manually navigating to the app page in the marketplace only gave me the 'share' option.
I went to the companion app in the marketplace, that's how I noticed the update available.
not gunna lie, I am a bit disappointed. I expected something more then just being able to control your xbox.
Kind hope the eventual plan is to combine capatablities of smartglass and Play To.

Want to be able to stream stuff directly from my device also on the fly.
Smartglass is my favorite app for Windows 8 and will be on the phone too. Before smartglass it would take 30-45 minutes to start an XBLA game, my profile is a disaster. Using smartglass, it will start loading in under 10 seconds at worst! I'm so happy to have it on the phone too.
When will SmartGlass work with Madden?
Tried the app just a minute ago and it is very different from my expectations.
The phone's keyboard is unable to be used in both the Youtube and Internet Explorer apps. Additionally there are big problems with scrolling in Internet Explorer. It seems to only move the cursor one pixel at a time.
Am I just using it wrong?
Yepp, works smooth and great in IE, also a scrollbar on the right.
I am really liking it. Great thing to have and use.
App works pretty well.Can't wait to get it on the Surface. Internet surfing on the TV using my phone as the controller was pretty neat.
im typing this comment from ie on xbox and the only main gripe i have with this app is with the inverted scrolling on webpages. its a bit awkward scrolling down to go down but i guess we'll get used to it.
Awesome
This sucks!
Am I the only one who thinks it's totally ridiculous of Microsoft to demand a Xbox live gold account to be able to use IE? Its a frickin web browser! Why should I pay microsoft a monthly fee to surf the net? This sucks so bad. This makes surface useless to me as browsing from the sofa with smartglass was a killer feature for me. I am so disappointed. :-(
Buy a HTC device :-D. Only these SAMOLED screen devices that needs to protect burns in the screen and have short maximum screen out time. I have "never" on my Titan.
Hmm, wrong post, was for Mirai808.
I got it to work with the Kinect in forza horizons. Its neat and useful. Shortcuts to friends list and achievement listings, its not mind blowing but very promising. I have however found a huge problem with SmartGlass... It does not override the screen off timer. In settings we have.. 30secs, 1,3 and 5 mins. So think about how long a race is... The idea of leaving it on the tv as a handy GPS works, its great... For 5mins. Has anybody found a workaround for this? I have a lumia 900.. And its plugged in. This is my only complaint with SmartGlass... It seems trivial but it's not... After a hour of this... It just becomes a tiring experience. Somebody please share a workaround. :] thanks.
+100. The timing out issue suuuux
Does your lumia not have an option for never timing out? My hd7 has the 30sec, 1, 3, 5, and never in settings. Of course I have been constantly touch the screen before it times out anyway.
Can anyone confirm that this doesnt work with the Lumia 610... i installed it on my 800 and it worked, but a friend tried the same link (above) and it said that it wasnt available for his device...
Great news! Just hope it'll actually work on my wi-fi connection this time, because before even though me and my gf (her having iOS) being on the same wireless connection as my 360, it kept telling me to connect to wi-fi...
Well its official, it says that it wont operate on phones with 256mb ram. Its a bit rude that they even cant keep the old app and use!
I'm in Sweden and I got the app from the link here on wpc. It works fine but I keep getting a update notice in marketplace. When I try to update the process just stops. Anyone experiencing the same?
@aderud
No such problem here (also in sweden) on lumia 800
Problem solved. :) Uninstalled it and downloaded it from marketplace again.
Works flawless for me (GBG and on Titan)
App works great. Used with Hulu and Xbox music. Awesome new feature
I used smartglass on my lumia 900 last night. It was awesome. Gave me snartglass info on my music, showed scenes and actors in movies and is cool with forza horizon. I am glad they didn't forget about us wp7.5 users
Well, theyve obviously forgotten about some of us..... (256mb models)
Smart glass is pretty awsome...I'm glad they added swipe to control your xbox now.
if our primary a/c of wp and our a/c for xbox differs
will it work?
why mircosoft don't allow different primary a/c and xbox a/c on wp........................................
Dont think so. Need to be same account i guess. Can anyone confirm?
Has to be same account. Read it somewhere, can't Remember where.
Has anybody got the video demos to play? On the opening screen it shows 3 demo videos. When I try to play them, it just says Loading then goes back to the opening screen.
OK, I've been playing around with this on my Trophy. Works pretty good, neat idea behind it, but why in the world would I use my phone over my controller? I don't use the Bing search on the Xbox, so being able to type is not a factor. Now, I'm just gonna run the battery down on my phone faster than normal.
I guess that it will come to its right when used on a surface or other slate! :)
I really only want it for what they plan to do with the gaming aspect. Extra content like a map/radar or something would be a nice feature. The video I watched on my Xbox showed this dude playing some hack n slash and smartglass showed the enemies stats and whatnot.
Even tho i know an exclusivity with this app would be nice, im excited for the iOS version for my iPad
Installed smartglass on my Mozart but everytime i start the app, once it connects, it kicks me out of the app. Every single time! Have tried rebooting the phone, uninstalling and reinstalling, same result....

Any mozart user out there who installed smartglass? is it working for you?
There are a lot of people commenting about not being able to sign in to the new smartglass app, plus on the rate and review section for the app loads of people have only given it 1 star for this reason. I have found a solution and wanted to share it with the WPcentral community.
Go into the games hub on the phone, touch the 3 dots to bring up the menu, touch settings and then turn on the option connect with Xbox live.
That fixed it for me. Hope this is useful.
Jason.

Show more comments