PS4 Vs Xbox One – Which one to buy?

With the initial frenzy and hype around the launch of these two consoles now subsiding and widely available to buy once again, the big question for you is: which one should I buy? Our goal is to take a look at the pros and cons of both and give you an idea of ​​where to put your money for the best gaming experience.

sales to date

Both consoles launched with all the usual hype, causing demand to greatly outstrip supply. This led to most people not being able to get their hands on a console until January 2014, which is now commonplace on tech launch days. Both Sony and Microsoft reported that over a million units of their console had been sold on launch day. This doesn’t give much of an idea of ​​who is doing better. If you look at the latest published sales figures, Microsoft says that Xbox One has sold 3.9 million units. This compares with Sony, which posted sales figures of 4.2 million units. That’s a difference of just 300,000, so there’s not much to compare here. Both companies, unsurprisingly, predict that the sales surge will continue for a while.

Price

The basic Xbox One unit is priced at £429 and the PlayStation 4 at £349. That’s quite a difference in starting prices, but what do you really get for your money? Both come with the basics to get you started: console, power cord, HDMI cable, controller, and headphones. The Xbox comes with the Kinect 2 bar; the PlayStation alternative camera will cost around £55. The question about these two additional devices is will I use them? Only time will tell, but at least there’s an option to buy at a later date with the PS4, whereas you have to pay the extra regardless with the Xbox.

Games

Both machines launched with a poor variety of games. Since launch, the games released have been very similar. This doesn’t seem likely to change at this point, as only Xbox can boast Halo above anything PlayStation will release.

A big problem with the PlayStation 3 was the price of the software needed to develop games for the machine. This meant that the games were proving expensive to develop compared to the Xbox 360. Sony has identified this as a problem and has effectively been lending the software to developers in the hope that more games will be developed for their machine. Microsoft has not changed its policy in this regard and does not disclose the cost of its software. Sony’s approach may prove to be a winner in the long run, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Neither machine is backwards compatible, so you can’t play your old favorites while you wait for the big game to launch. However, Sony did reveal at launch a cloud gaming facility that streams older games, called PlayStation Now. With the US launch expected in the summer, everyone will have to wait and see how it will play out.

The console itself

Both machines have higher specifications than their predecessors, unsurprisingly. Side by side, they look familiar: same storage, both have Blu-Ray drives, and Wi-Fi. However, the raw power of the PlayStation, combined with its superior graphics capabilities, put the Xbox behind the PlayStation. The big question is whether developers will take advantage of this additional power and release superior games on PlayStation. Only time will tell, but history shows that developers don’t always take advantage of the extra power.

online service

Microsoft established with the Xbox 360 its online service known as Xbox Live. This required a monthly subscription and proved quite successful. Sony, on the other hand, offered this service for free with PlayStation 3. Microsoft will continue to provide the Xbox Live service with Xbox One. Sony has introduced PlayStation Plus, which has an annual cost of £39.99 to match that of Xbox Live.

User interface

Both have their own unique setup and PlayStation users will argue that they prefer their system and Xbox users will argue that they prefer theirs. It really comes down to what the user prefers. The addition of social media uploading will appeal to some, but players will want to play the games and not necessarily want to post to their social media account about progress. Therefore, many people see this as a useless trick.

The Kinect 2 gives the Xbox an advantage here. The hands-free system and voice activation are a big plus and it seems that this is the way technology goes. However, this is a gaming machine and modern TVs come with these kinds of features anyway. An arcade machine is what most people will want, so the additions will be seen as a gimmick, especially after the initial use has worn off.

The verdict

You have to say that both machines are very evenly matched and both look excellent. Sony seems to have gone the more direct gaming route and Microsoft has gone on to produce a complete machine. The Xbox’s teething problems may have slowed it down a bit, especially given the sales numbers, though not by much.

With all this being said, a gamer will want an arcade machine. This seems to be what Sony, with the PlayStation 4, has produced. The power, the thinking behind the development, the simplicity, it all gives the PlayStation 4 the edge. That doesn’t take anything away from the Xbox One, which is shaping up to be an excellent machine, but there are just too many “finicky” elements that would put many off. With this in mind, the PlayStation 4 comes out on top.

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