Xbox One vs. PS4

The new Xbox One and Playstation 4, both to be released November 2013, both have great features. Unfortunately, most gamers are only choosing one console.

It’s a hard choice, but it must be made. Now, let’s compare the two and see which one is best for you.

Since both the Xbox One and PS4 are scheduled to be released in the same month, console wars are expected. Most people are going to buy the console that most of their friends are getting. I mean, it really isn’t any fun to play a massively multiplayer game with strangers all the time. If you decide NOT to get the same console as your friends, or don’t care what console your friends are getting, you need to decide on which one is best for you!

The Xbox One is to be released November 22nd, 2013, and the starting price will be $499. The Playstation 4 will be released November 15, 2013, starting at $399, and is smaller in size than the Xbox One. If you’re on a budget, the Xbox One probably isn’t a great buy for you, since after buying the console almost all the features of the Xbox One will be locked, unless you buy Xbox Live for $60 a year, or $10 a month. The Playstation 4 also requires a Playstation Network membership to use all the features, but will start at $50 a year, $10 less than Xbox Live.

The processor used for the Xbox One is the same as the PS4, except the PS4 has 18 compute units, while the Xbox One only has 12. This will affect performance on multi-format games. They will both have 8GB of RAM and a  500mb hard drive. (a fancy way of saying memory, which determines how many games it will hold). Unfortunately, the Xbox One’s hard drive is not removable, so you won't be able to add more memory or switch hard drives. The Playstation 4’s hard drive is removable, though. Also, Playstation 4 will not have a USB port, while the Xbox One does.

The PS4 can play 4 controllers at once, while the Xbox One can play 8 controllers at once. This is to be expected, since the Xbox 360 has been out before the PS3 was out, and the Xbox 360 has always had the ability to play with 4 people at a time, while the PS2 was always only 2 players. Playstation is taking it one step at a time, while Microsoft already had experience with simultaneous controllers.

Both consoles won’t have backwards compatibility, meaning you cannot play PS3 games on the PS4, and Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One. This time, the Playstation is coming out with it’s own sensor, similar to the Xbox 360’s Kinect sensor. They will call it the Playstation Camera, while the Xbox One will be coming out with the Kinect 2.0. The Playstation camera is starting at $60, being sold separately, unlike the Xbox One where it will come with the console.

Both consoles are seemingly good buys, both with pros and cons. Depending on the type of gamer you are, you can see which console will fill your needs. Like fast, great graphics, want to be able to remove your hard drive, and like Playstation Exclusives? Playstation 4. Like playing with large groups, plugging in USBs, don’t want to pay separately for the sensor, and likes Xbox exclusives such as Halo? Xbox One.