A few weeks ago, Microsoft and Sony both released their new consoles, the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, respectively. These updates have been long overdue for sometime, but nevertheless both systems boast top of the line hardware and a new look as well. With the holidays right around the corner, many people want to get a new console, but obviously you can’t get both of them, so which one is the best console?
Let’s start with some basic hardware comparison. Both consoles opted for a virtually identical CPU (central processing unit), with the exception that the Xbox has a speed of 1.75 GHz while the PlayStation has a slightly slower chip, at 1.6 GHz. Both of these setups will be very good at multitasking, which is perfect for any modern living room/media center uses. Despite the small boost in speed, the Xbox One won’t have a noticeable difference over the PlayStation 4 in this regard so here it’s a tie.
On to the graphics card, the PlayStation 4 has a graphics card that is 50% more powerful than that of the Xbox One, not only this, but 10% of the graphics card for the Xbox One is reserved for the Kinect at all times. Now the card in the Xbox is technically slightly faster in clock speed (853MHz vs. 800 MHz for the PlayStation). This tiny boost in speed hardly makes up for the difference in the power the PlayStation 4 has, meaning that the PlayStation will have a lot more available graphics power available. In terms of graphics, the PlayStation takes the cake.
Now this next component is the RAM or Random Access Memory, is used in computers to store temporary instructions and data needed to complete tasks. This enables the computer’s CPU, to access instructions and data stored in memory very quickly. Both consoles have the same amount of RAM at 8 GB. These two components seem similar until you look at their bandwidth. Bandwidth is simply the rate that memory that can be read or stored by a CPU. The PlayStation’s bandwidth almost doubles that of the Xbox. This is another big advantage for the PlayStation.
All of this means that the PlayStation 4 will have a much smoother frame rate (the number of times the image on the screen is refreshed) and a higher resolution, than that of the Xbox One. But because all of their hardware is based of the same architecture, there be very little visual difference beyond resolution and frame rate. They will have similar lighting, similar textures, and similar render distances (distance from the viewer at which objects are drawn).
This goes beyond hardware though, the PlayStation 4 is also $100 cheaper that the Xbox One. Not only this, but the Xbox requires you to have an Internet connection to use the PlayStation 4 doesn’t. Besides this, both consoles have similar features. But on the Xbox, a subscription fee is required before you can play online, use Netflix, use Skype, use Hulu Plus, or browse the web. My conclusion is this, the PlayStation 4 is a much better console that the Xbox One. Not only is it $100 cheaper, but also you do not need an Internet connection to use or a paid subscription service to access the consoles online capabilities. This is not even to mention the PlayStation’s superior power when it comes to graphics. But despite all of this, I do not think that either of these consoles should be purchased just yet, not only will the prices for both of them eventually drop, but you cannot actually play any games made for the previous generation on either console, these companies are making you purchase all of your games again if you want to use them. Also, Blu-ray players are incredibly cheap, especially this time of year. If you want a multimedia center in your living room, I would recommend a Sony Blu-ray player, a much more affordable alternative.
