HERE WE GO AGAIN, Sony and Microsoft go head to head with new consoles. Microsoft is historically the underdog, while the PlayStation has an excellent track record. The PS2 dominated the original Xbox, the PS3 eventually outsold the Xbox 360, and the PS4 sold twice as many as the Xbox One. Will this round finally go to Microsoft? What’s clear is that there isn’t a huge technical gap between the machines. Both carry an eight-core Zen 2 processor and RDNA2 GPUs. Clock speeds are similar—Microsoft has opted for fixed rates, while Sony has gone with variable ones. Both have 16GB of GDDR6, and fast solid state storage. The Xbox does have a beefier GPU. Both boast of customization, Microsoft makes much of it storage system, and Sony says it has various “tricks” to close any performance gaps, and its storage bandwidth is (on paper) faster.
So, both are hugely capable gaming machines, and neither has an unequivocal lead. Yes, the Xbox has proved a few percentage points faster in early gaming tests in most modes, but it’s hardly a convincing win. While advocates of both sides will no doubt claim superiority, this is a wellmatched pair. The Xbox has Game Pass (a considerable plus), Quick Resume, excellent backward compatibility, but lacks exclusive games. The PS has more exclusive games, faster storage, better audio, and a haptic controller. There are some teething troubles, some TVs don’t cooperate with the PS5 very well, and both have suffered bugs. The top models are both $499 too. Sony’s digital edition (no optical drive) is $399, and has the same guts as its big brother. Microsoft’s digital edition, the Xbox Series S, is $299, a useful saving, but you get a GPU with about half the power. It is far too early to say which one is selling better either, as both companies are selling as many as they can get to market. This year’s sales will show the real story.
–CL