The next-generation of gaming is upon us and both Xbox and PlayStation are gearing up with brand new consoles this holiday season. On the Xbox side, we have the Xbox Series X and the Xbox Series S. On the other hand, Sony has the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Digital Edition. All the consoles are equipped with some pretty impressive hardware that is sure to wow players and offer brand new gaming experiences.
What’s the difference between all of these consoles? Which is right for me? These are probably just some of the questions that might be going through your mind. Today we are going to look at each console and break it down by hardware specs, controllers, games, and services offered.
Xbox Series X & Xbox Series S pre-orders start at 11:00 AM EDT on September 22
Pre-order PS5 consoles, accessories, and games
Hardware specs
A quick glance at the raw numbers below, you can see that the Xbox Series X is more technically advanced than the PlayStation 5. And, the Xbox Series S is an entry level next-generation console with similar performance to Xbox Series X. On the other hand, the PlayStation 5 is no slouch. It’s specs are slightly under the Xbox Series X but its SSD is significantly faster.
Although it is fun to look at hardware specs, just because one console has better specs than another, doesn’t mean its games will be better. It’s up to each developer how they will use the power found in these next-generation machines.
Xbox Series X specs
- CPU 8x Cores @ 3.8 GHz (3.6 GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
- GPU 12 TFLOPS, 52 CUs @ 1.825 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
- Memory 16 GB GDDR6
- 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 3.1 External HDD Support
- Optical Drive 4K UHD Blu-Ray Drive
- Performance Target 4K @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS, 8K capable
- Video out: HDMI 2.1
- Input/Output: 3x USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A ports
- Networking: 10/100/1000 ethernet port, 802.11ac dual band wireless
- Dimensions: 15.1cm wide x 30.1cm high x 15.1cm deep
- Weight: 4.45kg
Xbox Series S specs
- CPU: 8x Cores @ 3.6 GHz (3.4 GHz w/ SMT) Custom Zen 2 CPU
- GPU: 4 TFLOPS, 20 CUs @ 1.565 GHz Custom RDNA 2 GPU
- Memory: 10 GB GDDR6
- Memory Bandwidth: 8GB @ 224 GB/s, 2GB @ 56 GB/s
- Internal Storage: 512 GB 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 3.1 External HDD Support
- Performance Target: 1440p @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS
- Video out: HDMI 2.1
- Input/Output: 3x USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A ports
- Networking: 10/100/1000 ethernet port, 802.11ac dual band wireless
- Dimensions: 6.5cm wide x 27.5cm high x 15.1cm deep
- Weight: 1.93Kg
PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Digital Edition specs
- CPU: AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores at 3.5GHz (variable frequency)
- GPU: 10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs at 2.23GHz RDNA 2 GPU (variable frequency)
- Memory interface: 16GB GDDR6
- 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
- Optical drive: 4K UHD Blu-ray drive up to 100GB/disc (PlayStation 5)
- Performance Target 4K @ 60 FPS, Up to 120 FPS, 8K capable
- Video out: HDMI 2.1
- Input/Output: 1x USB Type-A (Hi-Speed USB), USB Type-A (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps), 2x USB Type-C (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)
- Networking: 10/100/1000 ethernet port, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/axBluetooth 5.1 wireless
- Dimensions: 10.4cm wide x 39cm high x 26cm deep (PlayStation 5)
- Dimensions: 9.2cm wide x 39cm high x 26cm deep (PlayStation 5 Digital Edition)
- Weight: 4.5kg (PlayStation 5) 3.9kg (PlayStation 5 Digital Edition)
Controllers
Aside from the consoles themselves, the controllers play an important role in your gaming experience. And, both Xbox and PlayStation took different routes with their controllers for the next-generation consoles. One example is in controller backwards compatibility.
On PlayStation 5, you can only use the DualSense controller to play PS5 games. PS4, DualShock 4 controllers can only be used to play PS4 games. On the other hand, with Xbox, you can use Xbox One controllers to play Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S games. In addition, the new Xbox controller can be used on Xbox One.
The PlayStation 5 DualSense controller
Much of what PlayStation fans love about the DualShock 4 is included with the DualSense controller but new features such as haptic feedback, offer a whole new level of immersion. With haptic feedback, games can now have a variety of powerful sensations that you actually feel when you play.
For example, you can now feel the slow grittiness of driving a car through mud in a racing game. Additionally, the DualSense controller has adaptive L2 and R2 triggers, which allow you to feel the tension of things like drawing a bow to shoot an arrow. The share button from the DualShock 4 has been replaced with a “Create” button that features new and innovative ways to share content with the world.
Looking for a quick conversation with friends online while playing and don’t want to get the headset out? The DualSense controller comes with a built-in microphone array that will allow you to quickly jump into a conversation without the need of a headset. Finally, the DualSense controller comes with a light bar sitting on each side of the touchpad.
The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S controller
Xbox took a more traditional approach when developing their new controller. The Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S controller retains the classic Xbox layout that fans have come to know and love over the years.
It features many tweaks such as a redesigned d-pad that closely remembers that from the Xbox Elite controllers, a share button and some new textures and finishes. Additionally, the new controller will remember multiple devices that you connect to (PC, Android, and iOS) and switch between me more seamlessly.
Games
So now that we have looked at hardware specs and the controllers, let’s take a look at the games. The main reason for owning a home console is to play games. Both Microsoft and Sony have first party studios and partners that produce some of the best games on their respective consoles.
Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S games
For those wondering what games you’ll have to play this year, there will be plenty. There are more than 50 new games planned for 2020 across generations and optimized for Xbox Series X. Here is a small sample of console exclusive games and third party games coming for Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S this year.
Console exclusive
- Gears Tactics (Nov 10)
- The Falconeer (Nov 10)
- Tetris Effect: Connected (Nov 10)
- The Medium (Dec 2020)
Third party games
- Watch Dogs: Legion (Oct 29)
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (Nov 10)
- Destiny 2: Beyond Light (Nov 10)
- Dirt 5 (Nov 10)
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Nov 10)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Nov 13)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (Nov 19)
- Immortals Fenyx Rising (Dec 3)
Games such as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Watch Dogs: Legion, Dirt 5, Madden NFL 21, Marvel’s Avengers and more are smart delivery compatible. What this means is, you only have to buy these games once to play the best version for your console. Additionally, there will be more than 40 popular games newly optimized to take full advantage of Series X. For example, Destiny 2, Forza Horizon 4, Gears 5, and more will be fully optimized.
Other games fans can look forward to next year and beyond include: Halo Infinite, Fable, State of Decay 3, Forza Motorsport, Everwild, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, and The Gunk—to name a few.
Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S backwards compatibility
Keeping in tradition with previous generations, the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S will have thousands of Xbox One, Xbox 360, and Xbox backwards compatible titles on day one. Compatible games run natively on the Xbox Series X with no additional work from developers. This means, higher and more steady frame rates, reductions in in-game load times, increased visual quality and resolution.
And, a new, innovative HDR reconstruction technique can be used to add HDR support to games that existed before HDR. That means Xbox 360 and Xbox games can support HDR with no impact at all to the game’s performance.
The Xbox Series S will run the Xbox One S version of backwards compatible games. This means that if a game got Xbox One X enhancements, you won’t see those on Xbox Series S unless the developer offers a free next-generation upgrade. However, you’ll still get improved texture filtering, higher and more consistent rates, faster load times and Auto HDR.
PlayStation 5 games
Sony has a plethora of first party studios that include: Naughty Dog, Santa Monica Studios, Bend Studios, Sucker Punch, San Diego Studios, Guerrilla Games, Media Molecule, Polyphony Digital, Japan Studio, and more. These studios are hard at work on PlayStation 5 games.
Here’s a small list of exclusive and third party games confirmed to be coming to PlayStation 5.
Console exclusive
- Astro’s Playroom (Comes pre-loaded with every PS5)
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Launch title)
- BugSnax (Holiday 2020)
- Godfall (Holiday 2020)
- Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart (Launch window)
- Sackboy: A Big Adventure (Launch title)
- Destruction All Stars (Launch title)
- Demon’s Souls (Launch title)
Third party games
- Watch Dogs: Legion (Oct 29)
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla (Nov 10)
- Immortals Fenyx Rising (Dec 3)
- Dirt 5 (Nov 10)
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Nov 13)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (Nov 19)
Just like Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, many games on PlayStation 5 offer free upgrades to next-gen versions of the games. This means you only have to buy these games once to play the best version for your console.
Other games fans can look forward to next year and beyond include: Deathloop, Dying Light 2, Far Cry 6, and Ghostwire: Tokyo—to name a few.
PlayStation 5 backwards compatibility
The majority of, the over 4000, PlayStation 4 games available are backwards compatible with the PlayStation 5. That means you’ll be able to play your favourite PlayStation 4 games like God of War, Uncharted 4 and The Last of Us Part II on PlayStation 5. PlayStation 4 games will run at a more stable frame rate and some games will even have higher resolutions.
Unfortunately, the PlayStation 5 is not directly backwards compatible with PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation games.
Services
In today’s gaming market, services play a big role. Let’s take a look at what both consoles have to offer.
Online multiplayer and digital delivery
First and foremost, both Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S and PlayStation 5 offer online multiplayer and digital media delivery service in the form of Xbox Live and PlayStation Network. Both give you the ability to play online games with friends and also to download new games and demos.
Additionally, both services allow you to stream movies from various different companies such as Netflix. Both Xbox Live and PlayStation Network offer free monthly games to subscribers.
Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate are often referred to as the best value in gaming. You can think of it as a Netflix for video games. You pay a nominal monthly fee to get access to download hundreds of games. The service has games from a wide range of publishers such as SEGA, Capcom, WB Games, Namco and Microsoft Studios.
Recently changes were made to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. On September 15, 2020 players have access to more than 100 games from the cloud to play on their Android phone and tablet via Project xCloud. And, this fall EA Play is coming to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for no additional cost. This means that more than 60 of EA’s biggest and best console games are available to play.
However, what really sets this service apart from others is that fact that brand new Microsoft Studios games are available on launch day on Xbox Game Pass. So that means games such as Tell Me Why, Wasteland 3, and The Medium are available for play when they launch.
PlayStation Now
PlayStation Now functions in a similar fashion to Xbox Game Pass. For a monthly fee you have access to hundreds of PS4, PS3 and PS2 games to play from a wide variety of publishers.
Some games are available for download, while others are available only to stream. Games are added and removed on a regular basis to give you a variety of games to choose from.
The PlayStation Plus collection
Beginning at launch, PS5 PlayStation Plus subscribers will have access to the PlayStation Plus Collection. This a curated library of generation defining PS4 games to download and play that include Bloodborne, God of War, Monster Hunter: World, Persona 5 and many more. The PS Plus Collection will be an added benefit to the existing PS4 benefits that PS Plus members receive for a single subscription price.
What is the difference between each Xbox and PlayStation console?
Both Xbox and PlayStation are launching 2 next-generation consoles. And, each company is taking a different route in how they will offer value to the consumer. Let’s take a look at the differences.
What is the difference between Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S?
The Xbox Series X and the Xbox Series S are both next-generation consoles. They both use the exact same processor and use AMD RDNA 2 graphics processors. Additionally, they both play the same games. Whereas the Xbox Series X can play games at 4K 120 FPS all the way up to 8K 30 FPS, the Xbox Series S can play games at 1440p 60 FPS up to 120 FPS and games can be upscaled to 4K.
Additionally, the Xbox Series X comes with a 4K UHD Blu-ray drive and the Xbox Series S does not. Storage wise, the Xbox Series X comes with 1 TB of storage for games and the Xbox Series S comes with 512 GB. Both consoles can expand storage via USB external hard drives or by using Seagate Xbox Series X Storage Expansion Cards. Furthermore, the Xbox Series X retails for $599.99 and the Xbox Series S sells for $379.99.
What is the difference between PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Digital Edition?
It’s very simple when it comes to the difference between the PlayStation 5 and the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition. Aside from price, which is unknown for either PS5 console at the moment, the only difference is that the PlayStation 5 includes an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive and the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition does not. That’s it! Everything else is completely the same!
Which console will you choose?
So, as you can see, Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 are fairly similar. Yet, they offer different experiences and each their own type of games. A few things to consider, the Xbox Series S is an entry level next-generation console with an attractive price tag. And, the Xbox Series X is a monster when it comes to technical specs—there is no other console as powerful as it.
On the other hand, the PlayStation 5 offers next-generation gameplay experiences through the DualSense controller. And, it comes with an amazingly fast SSD that virtually eliminates load times. So now that we have looked at hardware specs, games, and services—you can decide which system is right for you.
Armed with this knowledge, you can go out and make an educated purchase based on what is right for you. Let me know in the comments section below, which system you choose and why.
Xbox Series X & Xbox Series S pre-orders start at 11:00 AM EDT on September 22
Pre-order PS5 consoles, accessories, and games
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This coming November is super awesome for all the gamers, especially for cyberpunk 2077 who will be finally playing this much anticipated game in the next month as the game will be released on November 19th. The game will not be available on these next-gen consoles until next year so all these cyberpunk 2077 and next-gen consoles have a decision to make whether they can wait a few more months to play the game on their new console or they are ready to spend money to buy the game twice.
PS5 for many reasons, mostly the exclusive titles. I feel MS is still lacking that game that excites me the same way God of War, Uncharted, Last of Us, Spiderman or Horizon does whenever they announce something new.
Both Xbox and Sony look like they are creating great consoles. I’m sure that eventually I will pick up one of the consoles, likely the Xbox Series X, but for now I don’t feel the need to play the big games immediately. I definitely look forward to seeing more of the consoles in action. This is going to be a great gen for games!
Thanks Jon!
Great article and I appreciate that there’s no bias. Just the facts. Picking up xsx day one.
This is journalism at its finest, it’s clear when someone doesn’t get paid per click. Best buy knows to stay independent, and give gamers what they want!
I’m buying an Xbox series x day one, and need to buy a new playstation as my ps4 just died… The playstation 5 (disc version) has to wait likely until the new year, which likely will be when I can find stock.
Thanks for compiling all this information. Maybe you could have someone create (if it doesn’t exist yet) an hdmi 2.1 tv guide and link to it, as that
Great article. I can’t wait to buy xbox series x day 1.
Im torn because my ps4 just died so I might have to pickup a ps5 disc version, soon after as I’m missing my vr.
Leaning towards PS5 DE. Pricing and availability plays a big part of that.
Can’t beat the value of Xbox Series S, I can’t help but not get one!
Great Article. Series X at launch for this cat. Then a PS5 Pro when it launches mid-cycle.
Definitely going to be picking up a PS5 day 1, can’t wait!
Great blog, lots of useful information.
I will be buying the PS5 physical edition.
I hope to get it on launch day.
Always trusting best buy as my choice of store to pre-order it from.
I’m really excited. My main reason for choosing the PS5 is because I’ve owned everything Playstation based since the original Playstation was released, and I mean everything. PSP, Vita, Vita TV, PSVR, PS1, 2, 3, 4 and PS4 Pro.
They have always had the games I’m most interested in, God of War, Uncharted series, Last of Us series, I love their exclusives. For me I think the only way I would ever buy a different console is if someone released FFXI on their console. I used to live in Vana’Diel and played FFXI for close to 10 years and made a ton of lifelong friends that I still talk to today.
I’m a Sony guy through and through and would LOVE a Sony PS5 (disc version) but with the lack of info on pricing and pre-order options coupled with the release of the @NVIDIAGeForce RTX3000 series at good prices and the pending @AMDRyzen 4000 series desktop chips, my time as a console gamer may be ending. It will be a sad choice because I do enjoy my PS experience but my gaming budget is limited (to an extent) and the RTX3000 series look soooo good. Time will tell. Depends on Sony drops more info but for now, it is too silent for my liking.
More info on Wednesday, don’t give up!
Fantastic Jon
Really helpful Article breaking it all done. Myself I’m Ps5 and Xbox Series X all the way. Day 1 baby
This is an excellent, comprehensive reference for all things next gen. Well done, Jon. I’ll be picking up both Series X and PS5, day one!
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