PS5 VS XBOX SERIES X
Speed and power in a boldly designed package. The next generation of games consoles starts now
Finally, 2020’s biggest unanswered question is resolved: which next-gen console should you buy?
Here it is, the number one product this summer holiday season and, as such, the console gamers the world over are still really struggling to land.
The PlayStation 5 is an absolute beast of a console in terms of proportions. This is a system that tops out at just under 40cm in height, and is 26cm deep, and 10cm wide - though the all-digital edition, which eschews the 4K Blu-ray drive, is a little slimmer. If you want something that’s compact and easy to conceal in your entertainment setup, the PS5 isn’t it.
It comes in a compartmentalised white cardboard box, which as well as securely holding the hardware, also delivers its base, DualSense controller, cables and paperwork. The base can be affixed to the console either in its vertical or horizontal orientation, although it’s obvious that the primary usage is for when positioning vertically. The base screws into the PlayStation 5 in the vertical position, and just clamps on to one of its flared case wings when displayed horizontally.
Those wings have divided opinion, but we think that both its size, and futuristic, flared design, generate a sense of awe and power. This is a special portal to another world of mind-blowing experiences, and it should be treated with respect as the piece of futuristic, almost alien technology it is.
Its top-mounted vents, for example, look like they should be on a hypercar like the Pagani Zonda, while the tiny cross, triangle, circle, square, pattern on the inside of the console’s flared panelling is a really nice touch. It’s a bolder design than PS4, and there must be some method behind the madness, as it runs more quietly than its predecessor.
From a firmly practical point of view, you will need to think about where you can put this system in your setup. Its size will, most likely, make putting it in a TV cabinet impossible, and that might not be ideal for cooling either.
Smart setup
While technically falling short of the Xbox Series X in overall power (see p54), the PS5 comes with a suite of really strong components, including a 3.5GHz AMD Zen 2-based CPU with eight cores, a 10.28 teraflop custom AMD RDNA2 GPU, 16GB of RAM with a memory bandwidth of 448GB/s, and a custom-designed 825GB SSD that is capable of an IO throughput of 5.5GB/s.
That’s a real jumble of letters and numbers, so it’s easier to measure the PS5 by a simpler metric: its data processing ability is 100 times that of the PS4.
Setting up the PlayStation 5 is straightforward, and done directly via the controller on the console itself – unlike the Xbox Series X and S, which are set up largely through the Xbox app on a phone or tablet.
Turn the system on, and you are given both visual and audible commands that run through all the standard stuff like setting up an internet connection, creating an account (or logging into one), setting up an energy profile, and automatic sign-in options. The digital assistant has instructions in various languages as you go through the setup wizard, but you can turn it off if you prefer, and just follow the on-screen prompts.
Early on in the setup, you have the chance to insert a game disc (unless you bought the digital-only console) for installation in the background while you complete setup. This is a small but thoughtful detail that gets you gaming quicker.
The UI on PS5 is very similar to that on PS4, and has a top-mounted menu bar that allows you to cycle through games and apps, as well as access things like recordings, system
settings, and your account’s games library. You can also access things like PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now, assuming you have subscriptions to them.
Where there is a marked change, though, is that when you press the PlayStation button on the DualSense controller, a narrow new bottommounted shortcut menu appears that lets you do various things (such as access captures and notifications) as well as put the PlayStation 5 into rest mode. So, in-game or in menu, if you want to quickly turn the system off you can press the PlayStation button and then select turn off.
The PS5 is advertised as shipping with an 825GB SSD, which on paper sounds rather large. However, just as the Xbox Series X only has 800GB available on its 1TB drive, the PS5 only has 667GB of usable space when first switched on. That’s still enough for plenty of games, and the PS5 has an M2 expansion slot for more, but it’s not currently active, and that needs to change fast – hopefully in the very first system software update that Sony puts out for the machine.
Ahead of the game
Speaking of fast, the speed of the PS5’s SSD will have gamers pinching
themselves to check if they’re dreaming. When playing Marvel’s
Spider-Man: Miles Morales, which is the launch title exclusive everyone should play, loading from menu or in-game was just terrifyingly fast. Things like this really hammer home the raw power this console has on tap, and it’s more than backed up by in-game visuals, which run at 4K HDR and 60fps with ray tracing lighting effects and a fidelity that’s a simply joyous experience. If your TV supports a 120Hz refresh rate, you can activate that too. Everything in the game world is sharper, better lit, and draw distances and model detailing
are vastly superior to anything that was possible on PS4 hardware.
Unlike the competing Xbox Series X, the PS5 does actually have new, exclusive games available at launch, including Astro’s Playroom that comes pre-installed on the SSD.
While exclusive new-gen PS5 games are a little thin on the ground, the PS5 is backwardly compatible with the entire PS4 library, and games you already own can be downloaded from the PS Store or installed from disc if your console has a disc drive. And you can of course buy new ones. It doesn’t quite trump the new Xbox’s three generations of backwards compatibility, however.
While a lot of upcoming games are remakes or remasters of existing titles, anyone who skipped the last console generation can sign up for the PlayStation Plus subscriber service - a bundle is available that adds last-gen games such as Bloodborne, The Last
Guardian and God of War to your account, for free.
Rad pad
The DualSense controller, with its built-in gyroscopes and accelerometer, is a mighty fine gamepad. It easily beats the PS4’s pad, with a slightly rounder, filled out chassis sitting in the hands much more easily. It feels like a hybrid of the PS4’s controller and the Xbox One Wireless Controller.
The rear of the body is finished with the same micro cross, circle, square, triangle pattern that appears on the inside of the console wings, which looks classy and also provides that slightly rough texture the best pads have to stop things getting slippery when the in-game heat is really on.
You also get some complex haptic feedback – far from just one-note rumble, context-sensitive and with varying degrees of sensation. It blends into your gaming session, enhancing the experience. This haptic feedback tech is streets ahead of the Xbox Wireless Controller’s and Sony should be commended for it.
Triggers are also adaptive, meaning they resist your finger pressure for enhanced immersion, and the battery capacity has been raised to 1,560mAh, up from 1,000mAh in the DualShock 4, and it charges faster over USB-C.
The PS5 is also a strong multimedia hub, the 4K Blu-ray player in the drive-equipped version leading the charge and with apps for all leading streaming services. There’s a comprehensive options menu that lets you, for example, set custom button assignments to controllers, as well as tweak and control every aspect of any accessory, including the PlayStation 5’s HD camera.
Storage, both internal and external via USB, can be analysed in detail, and data shifted around to make space for something new, and you can specify myriad display settings.