The Battle of the Next Generation

October 16th, 2020 | Blog

This is a moment that nearly every console-gaming player has been waiting for: Next Gen consoles. In the time since the Xbox One and the PS4 were released, gaming PCs have become increasingly popular. However, for those that will always be a console gamer at heart, this post is for you. Here are how the two consoles stack up against one another, and which one I will personally be purchasing when these consoles are released on November 10th, 2020 and November 12th, 2020.

Xbox Series X Specifications

This writing is going to get pretty technical, but bear with me as I lay them out for you. Below, you will find the specifications for the Xbox Series X (I won’t go into much detail on the specifications until I compare each console to one another).

  • CPU: 8x Cores @ 3.8 GHz (3.66 GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
  • GPU: 12 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @ 1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
  • Die Size: 360.45 mm
  • Process: 7nm Enhanced
  • Memory: 16 GB GDDR6 w/ 320mb bus
  • Memory Bandwidth: 10GB @ 560 GB/s, 6GB @ 336 GB/s
  • Internal Storage: 1 TB Custom NVME SSD
  • I/O Throughput: 2.4 GB/s (Raw), 4.8 GB/s (Compressed, with custom hardware decompression block)
  • Expandable Storage: 1 TB Expansion Card (matches internal storage exactly)
  • External Storage: USB 3.2 External HDD Support
  • Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-Ray Drive
  • Performance Target: 4K @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS

PlayStation 5 Specifications

Similar to the section above, I will lay out the specifications for the PlayStation 5. Here, you will be able to compare the consoles on your own before I go into more detail on how each console stack up against one another. The PlayStation 5 specifications are below.

  • CPU: AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores at 3.5GHz (variable frequency)
  • GPU: 10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs at 2.23GHz (variable frequency)
  • GPU Architecture: Custom RDNA 2
  • Memory Interface: 16GB GDDR6 / 256-bit
  • Memory Bandwidth: 448GB/s
  • Internal Storage: Custom 825GB SSD
  • IO Throughput: 5.5GB/s (raw), typical 8-9GB/s (compressed)
  • Expandable Storage: NVMe SSD slot
  • External Storage: USB HDD support (PS4 games only)
  • Optical Drive: 4K UHD Blu-ray drive

Xbox Series X vs. PlayStation 5

Now that you’ve had a chance to look at the possibly confusing specifications for each system, let’s take a look at how they compare. Referring to the lists above, let’s get the “ties” out of the way. Both consoles share a similar memory interface and optical drive, making the consoles (in this area) nearly identical. When compared, it’s clear that the Xbox Series X specifications dominate when compared the the PS5. The Xbox Series X has better parts in the following categories: CPU, GPU, Memory Bandwidth, Internal Storage, and Expandable Storage. The PS5 does lead in one category, however. When compared to the Xbox Series X, the PS5 has a noticeably better I/O Throughput. Though specifications are important, they aren’t everything.

Author’s Choice

I grew up playing PlayStation, in fact, I owned the first three consoles in succession, rarely giving the Xbox systems a chance. However, after being robbed (yes, burglarized) in my childhood, my beloved PS3 was stolen. I didn’t have much money of my own, but my parents decided that an Xbox One would be coming out and were set on buying it. Since then, I have been playing Xbox as my main means of video game gratification. That being said, I miss having access to the games that are sold exclusively for PlayStation systems. Even then, I still have to go with the Xbox Series X, as it beats out the PlayStation 5 in nearly every category, offering next-level graphics that I don’t feel the PlayStation 5 will be able to pull off. I’m so dedicated to my decision, in fact, that I plan to buy a monitor strong enough to withstand the 120 FPS graphic capability that the Xbox Series X has to offer.

Surprised with my decision in choice of console? Maybe you’re a player that uses a gaming PC to pass the time. Or, maybe you have some opinions of your own as to which console will truly reign supreme. Whatever the case may be, please let me know what you think below. I look forward to hearing from you.

References

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3 Responses to “The Battle of the Next Generation”

  1. Samuel Adams | October 20th, 2020 | 3:13 pm

    I grew up playing Playstation and Playstation only. I have never been someone that preferred XBOX over Playstation. However, I recently built a gaming PC because the market for them is fairly good right now and they aren’t extremely overpriced like they were a couple of years ago. I am leaning towards not even buying a console when these release this fall. I feel like most games are becoming cross platform and the FPS and performance on a gaming PC is such a huge game changer.

  2. Matt Sisak | October 20th, 2020 | 5:35 pm

    Hey,
    Love the post. Im super into video games as well more so xbox, but I liked the post. I was also thinking about picking up the series x even though i have a one x already. I do agree with you on missing some PS specific games however. Back in the day I as well used to have a PS4 and played thing like the Last of US and now I cant anymore.

  3. Nick Hogan | October 20th, 2020 | 9:28 pm

    This is an interesting post, and I was glad to be able to find out more about the specifications of the new-generation consoles. I am much more of a casual gamer, so I will probably wait a while to purchase one of these consoles. I believe when I do make a purchase, it will be the Xbox simply because I am more comfortable with the feel of this type of console. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions!

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