Following criticism that was recently received from an environmental advocacy group, Microsoft is now adding a power option screen in the setup prompt of new Xbox One gaming consoles.

On March 26, Microsoft was criticized by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) through a post made on its official blog. The post called out Microsoft for the "instant-on" power mode of the Xbox One, a feature that the environmental group said was poorly designed since it constantly uses up power.

According to the NRDC, turning off the instant-on mode of the Xbox One will lead to a cumulative total saved amount reaching $250 million annually for taxpayers. This can be broken down by the fact that, according to Microsoft, the instant-on mode for the Xbox One will cost the average consumer in the United States around an additional $6.50 to $15.50 over a year. The organization also implored Microsoft to find a way to make turning off the instant-on mode easy upon setting up a new Xbox One.

Microsoft responded to the criticism - and the challenge that it brought about - positively by working on a new energy-saving mode that can be selected while setting up new Xbox One gaming consoles, allowing users another option besides the criticized instant-on mode. According to Microsoft, the energy-saving mode will typically cost consumers the amount of between 26 cents and 62 cents over a year.

Owners of the Xbox One have always had the option to choose between the instant-on mode and the energy-saving mode. However, the new option screen for how the Xbox One consumes power during the initial setup of the gaming consoles makes the options much more prominent.

At the option screen, users are informed that upon choosing the energy-saving mode, they will be experiencing startup times that are slower and the download and installation of updates for the Xbox One will be interrupted upon going into energy-saving mode. Users who choose the instant-on mode, on the other hand, will experience much faster startup times, along with the ability to download and install updates without interruption.

In addition to the power option screen, Microsoft said that it will be continuing its reduction of the power usage of the Xbox One, similar to what it did to its predecessor, the Xbox 360. The reduced consumption of power by the instant-on mode has reached over a third of the original consumption upon the console's launch.