Xbox Series X vs Sony PlayStation 5: performance, gaming, cost
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Specifications Xbox Series X and Sony PlayStation 5
In both cases, 8-core custom-made processors based on the AMD Zen 2 architecture are used, but with different frequencies: the GPU of the PlayStation 5 contains 36 computing blocks, operates at a frequency of up to 2.23 GHz and has a performance of 10.28 teraflops, while the Xbox Series X processor has 52 computing blocks, works at a frequency of 1.825 GHz, it boasts a performance of 12 teraflops. For comparison, the performance of the top-end NVIDIA RTX 2080 reaches about 10 teraflops.
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As you can see, the Microsoft console is a little more powerful than the PS5, but we don't see a fundamental difference here. Plus, as practice shows, teraflops do not play a decisive role in the success of the console, and architecture plays an equally important role for the final performance. Sony ran into the power consumption limit, so it made the core frequency dynamic so that it would rise and rise depending on the load. Microsoft did not have such problems (or they were kept silent about them), so the Xbox Series X will work at a stable frequency.
The main feature that will quietly turn the gaming revolution promises to be a regular SSD. Or rather, not quite ordinary, but very fast. In the case of the PlayStation 5, we are talking about a custom SSD with a capacity of 825 GB, which, thanks to a controller of its own production, is able to produce a peak speed of about 5.5 GB/s. It's actually 100 times faster than the PS4. The Xbox Series X offers NVME SSD with a higher capacity of 1 TB, but more than half the performance — 2.4 GB/s.
What does this SSD speed promise
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Both Microsoft and Sony agreed that bare teraflops are not the best measure of power. Moreover, modern processors and video cards already have record power, allowing you to squeeze all the juices out of modern engines. But a massive drive running at a speed close to the speed of RAM promises to be a departure from old problems and generally a change of old paradigms.
Thanks to the instant loading speed, developers and game designers will be able to approach the design of levels in particular in a completely different way, and change the game mechanics in general. They will be able to keep in the frame only what is needed, and the rest of the objects will be loaded in a fraction of a second. In games like The Witcher 3 or GTA 5, we will be able to get a completely seamless game world in which there will be no need to pass through the gate or ride in the elevator to hide the loading of a new level.
Only the implementation of the architecture in PS5 raises questions. If Sony gets smart with it like in the days of the PS3, when developers literally cried during coding, there is a chance that big studios simply won't want to waste precious time on it.
Chips
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In terms of additional chips, Microsoft was not surprised by the word at all. They promised hardware ray tracing, as in the new generation of NVIDIA RTX graphics cards. Ray tracing is a method of constructing three—dimensional models, which uses a principle similar to real physical processes. That is, to build an object, the system tracks the trajectory of the virtual beam from the screen to this very object. In reality, we do not see objects by themselves, but the light reflected from them. The exception is objects that themselves serve as light sources.
The ray tracing method uses approximately the same principles applied to a virtual environment. If we move away from theory to practice, then this feature will bring the lighting in games to a new level. In addition, Microsoft promised to add a new feature called Quick Resume, which makes it possible to quickly resume the passage of an abandoned game, or switch between several toys on the fly.
Sony didn't say anything about ray tracing, but given the promise of the technology and the fact that both consoles will have similar video chips from Radeon, we can predict that this feature will also be. Instead, at the presentation, Mark Cerny read a long lecture about three-dimensional sound, for which literally every blogger hated him.
In PS4, the audio data was heavily compressed, the sound cards were of average quality, so the sound in the end was so-so. Now they have presented a new sound engine Tempest 3D Audio Tech. In hardware, it will be more powerful than the main PS4 processor, and at the technical level, Sony has done a titanic job of researching binaural and spatial sound. Further more, Cerni said that they examined a lot of human auricles, decomposed them into several types and made separate profiles with three-dimensional sound for each. Moreover, these profiles can somehow be adjusted to fit your own ears. It's unclear how, but it sounds interesting.
Thanks to this, the sound in conventional speakers will become clearer, cleaner and space-oriented. They say that you will even be able to hear exactly where a drop of rain fell. Another question is whether the developers of large cross-platform blockbusters like COD or Assassin's Creed will want to mess with this thing. But the developers of virtual reality games will definitely win.
Graphics
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It is embarrassing that both camps did not show a single next-gen exclusive, for which the feet themselves will carry to the store. Sony demonstrated the already released Gears 5 with the note that earlier you could run it in 4K and get 30 FPS, and now it will be 60. As one well-known game journalist aptly put it, this is not a PS5, but rather a PS4 Pro 2. Microsoft demonstrated an increased download speed, and then suddenly turned on Minecraft. The perfect game to show all the charms of the graphics of the future. Although we have no doubt that it will be beautiful. Now is the time to really start using hardware ray tracing and other charms of modern gaming technologies.
Design and gamepads
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The new Xbox received a completely redesigned body in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped. The Xbox Series X visually resembles a desktop computer system unit. The device can be positioned both vertically and horizontally. In the upper part of the case there are hot air vents, and on the front panel there is a slot for a Blu—ray optical disc reader. The design of the gamepad is similar to the gamepad of the previous console Microsoft Xbox One X , and a new Share button catches the eye, with which you can quickly take screenshots and video recordings of games. The design turned out to be ambiguous, a bunch of memes immediately appeared on the network comparing the new console with a beer refrigerator or an ashtray.
Sony has not shown what the PS5 will look like, so the network continues to suck on the recently laid out futuristic concept. Let's just say that it's not worth waiting for him. Yes, it looks interesting, but not at all in the Sony style. In addition, such a number of compartments, recesses and cutouts will lead to the fact that in a couple of years the insides of the console will be clogged with dust. Do not wait for the redesign of the good old Sony DualShock 4 V2 Price from £36.99 up to £99.00 . Most likely they will change the touch panel or change the principles of its operation. In its current state, it's cool, but useless. There are links to new Sony patents on the web, according to which the touch panel of the gamepad will be replaced with an additional display. It will allow players to open the menu without distracting from the gameplay.
The second rumor is more interesting. It is called "biofeedback" and judging by Sony's patents merged into the network, the controller will learn to track the heart rate in order to regulate the voltage level in games. That is, so that the conditional Resident Evil makes players sweat and shudder, but not scare them to grey. They also talk about dedicated sweat sensors and the compression ratio of the controller. Again, this will be useful primarily for horror fans.
Games
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This point is still quite vague. A lot was supposed to be shown at E3, but the conference was canceled due to the coronavirus. If we turn to the past, then most likely at the start of sales, Xbox will be a little ahead, and Sony will then catch up and overtake. The only embarrassing thing is that there is confusion in the Japanese gaming division right now and we are not sure that in the conditions of a change of power, the company will be able to keep a clear course.
From the games not shown, it is also possible to draw conclusions. For example, over the past year, it was announced that a pack of large exclusive projects that used to sell consoles will become multiplatform. First, Red Dead Redemption 2 moved to the PC, then news appeared that one of the largest projects of the last generation — Death Stranding and Horizon Zero Dawn — would move along the same path. Unlike Microsoft, which regularly feeds PC players with Xbox exclusives, this is an unprecedented step for Sony.
Although Sony says that the distribution of hits was a one-time action, however, there is a chance that in the coming years the exclusivity unprofitable to publishers will become a thing of the past, and the choice between consoles will actually be a choice between two ecosystems. Where the cloud is better, the gamepad is more convenient, it's easier to communicate with friends and all that. That is, those little things that you don't pay attention to at first, but which will later play an important role.
Backward compatibility
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Judging by the number of requests on the network, the main feature that players dream of getting from both consoles should be backward compatibility with games of past generations. That is, so that you can insert a worn disk with a conditional Spider-Man for PS4 into a brand-new console, and calmly launch the game. Right now, the desire to go through all the parts of God of War or Killzone is not enough. It is necessary to have consoles of several generations.
The experience of Xbox One, which has been friends with many Xbox 360 games, allows us to hope that the new Xbox Series X will also be backward compatible with old games. But Sony has problems with this because of the more sophisticated architecture. And at the presentation, the ability to run games with PS3 and PS4 was mentioned only in passing, without answering a direct question.
How much does the Xbox Series X and Sony PlayStation 5 cost
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Usually, the price of the console is kept at $ 500, and both companies sell them below cost, beating off profits by selling games, accessories, subscriptions, etc. This year, the gaming community is expecting a serious price increase, since in fact both consoles are powerful gaming computers with all known components. If you run through the ek database.ua is an average receipt for components of new consoles, then we will get an unusually high cost price. One RTX 2080 graphics card will cost $700 — 800. But there's also an eight—core processor, 2 DDR6 strips of 8 GB, which are not even on the market yet, and a fast SSD, which physically cannot be cheaper than top-end drives from Samsung — Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 MZ-V7S500BW 500 GB Price from £65.99 up to £167.99 . And this is another $150 – 200 to the receipt.
At the same time, the Japanese manufacturer hinted that the PlayStation 5 will be sold at an "acceptable" price, and Xbox CEO Phil Spencer personally promised not to repeat the mistakes of the past and offer the Xbox Series X at a more affordable price. In general, it will be interesting. Maybe they will raise prices for the games? Nothing has changed there for a long time.
What is better to take?
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The PlayStation looks cooler for old times' sake, but this is solely for old times' sake. Both presentations were not particularly informative (especially the presentation of the Sony logo). Either they were preparing for E3 and did not have time to rebuild, or everything is not ready yet. If you look at all the facts from the outside, it seems that we are waiting for a stubborn confrontation in the spirit of the third generation. The Xbox 360 was simpler and clearer, the PS3 was more sophisticated and interesting, but more difficult for developers. Now both consoles look plus or minus the same, but so far there are too many blind spots that complicate the assessment.
In general, it seems to us that the question "to buy or not" should be put a little differently, because in this equation you need to add variables in the form of still relevant consoles of the last generation. Especially considering the relatively fresh PS4 Pro. Buy it or wait for the PS5? The top five is certainly better and promising. But so far there are few specifics about it, there is no database of exclusives and nothing is clear with backward compatibility. Therefore, we would boldly take Sony PlayStation 4 Pro Price from £699.99 up to £749.00 , and after a year and a half we were thinking about an upgrade. It is hardly worth rushing here, because in a couple of years there is a great chance that conditional PS5 Pro and Xbox Series Z with pumped hardware will enter the market.
As for the Xbox Series X, it all comes down to games. Over the past five years, literally three sane exclusives have come out for her, for which I would like to buy a console. But most of them were quickly ported to the PC, depriving the exclusive status. Judging by the activity of Microsoft in the last couple of years, the same story awaits us this time. It's just that the PC will be aimed at more hardcore gamers, and the Xbox Series X at those who just want to insert the disc into the box and play.
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