PlayStation 5: the specs and the tech

I&#x27;m not a big gamer, but at this point it seems like Microsoft and Sony are just selling the same hardware. There are very minor differences, but I remember when N64 was such a vastly different experience from the PlayStation. Even the original Xbox was differentiated - it had a hard drive and an Intel Pentium III and Nvidia graphics. Now, they&#x27;re basically identical hardware. Maybe the PS5 will load games a little faster and maybe the Xbox Series X will have a little more power, but there&#x27;s nothing radically different.<p>In a lot of ways, it feels like I should be able to buy one and then just buy a license to play games designed for the other system. Why should I buy (basically) the same processor, same RAM, same graphics, etc. twice?<p>N64 and PS1 could do very different things and the consoles felt very different and led to very different games. With XSX and PS5, I&#x27;d rather throw Sony some money so I can play PS5 games on an Xbox Series X (or Microsoft to play XSX games on the PS5) than create a lot of e-waste buying an undifferentiated platform twice.<p>Am I missing something about the consoles (other than the whole business&#x2F;market aspect)?

Shorter load times is an attractive argument, but it doesn&#x27;t matter when the #1 issue with current-gen consoles is how unoptimized most games are. The traditional argument to game consoles was that it was cheaper and allowed developers to make the most out of known hardware configurations.<p>As things are now, flagship games on the PS4&#x2F;Xbox One struggle to stay at 30FPS, frequently dropping to 20FPS or less, without the option to reduce graphics quality or resolution PC gamers have. All the while the low power Nintendo Switch is a joy to game on because most games are specifically optimized for it.

&gt; The only problem is that PC technology is significantly behind PS5. It&#x27;ll take some time for the newer, PCIe 4.0-based drives with the bandwidth required to match Sony&#x27;s spec to hit the market.<p>This is what stands out for me (I know this quote is a bit dramatic but bare with me): for a long time consoles have lagged behind PC technology - in the sense that PC was always the early adopter and spread out before consoles.<p>I&#x27;ll dare to say that the last console that achieved this was probably the PS3.<p>The PS4 was a bit of a turn off for a lot of people spec wise.<p>So it&#x27;s good to see they&#x27;re using these platforms to push the early adoption of new standards.<p>Also, good for Sony to let standard NVMEs be used, and not some proprietary form factor that adds no value, and has no benefit to the consumer. That&#x27;s one of the reasons some of their consoles lost traction - proprietary storage media.

I’m a layman, so I’d like someone from the community to elaborate on Sony’s approach of constant power to the CPU&#x2F;GPU while the clocks are variable. My interpretation is that the silicon will downclock based on load - if it is only running the UI dashboard, it will slow down appropriately; if running an intensive software title, it will clock up to theoretical max frequency.

I&#x27;m not from the industry, but from the outside, it looks to me as if the actual graphics quality these days is more about the studio art budget than clever tricks with hardware. Further improvement - to my eye - brings diminishing returns.<p>In this context, converging hardware with multiple compatible frameworks on top looks like a logical choice.<p>Console differentiation is more about exclusivity contracts these days.

I’m hyped, the PS5 sounds incredible.<p>The SSD is twice as fast as the XB SX and the 3D audio chip is huge. The design is fascinating and it includes a ton of propriety tech. Sony’s devs will have a field day with this.<p>Watch how 1st party games blow Microsoft out the box at 10.3 teraflops.<p>Ppl spouting that 12 teraflops from the SX will steamroll Sony’s 10.3 are fools. Teraflops is a vastly overstated term purposely popularized by Microsoft. It isn’t the sole determining factor for performance, nor are all teraflops necessarily created equal.<p>PS5 is going to be the premier console next gen with the best games and….VR

Consoles are now branded PCs with DRM lock-in. Makes way more sense to buy a PC.

The CPU in these machines is better than the one in my desktop. Hard to guess what kind of GPU equivalent it will have, but from a cost POV, these new consoles seem too good to be true. It completely changes my assumptions about what sort of graphics the game I am working on can output on consoles (although, the vast majority of pc owners will have weaker hardware; unusual!)<p>I sold custom gaming pcs very briefly, these components aren’t free!

Interesting, did AMD just sold the same RDNA 2 GPU to both Sony and Microsoft ?

Remember that PS2 required a military export license because it could be used as a missile guidance device? I quote: &quot;Parts of the machine resemble a small supercomputer&quot;. Isn&#x27;t that funny as hell from today&#x27;s point of view? Here is a link to that story: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.latimes.com&#x2F;archives&#x2F;la-xpm-2000-apr-17-fi-20482-story.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.latimes.com&#x2F;archives&#x2F;la-xpm-2000-apr-17-fi-20482...</a>

The bits about hrtf made me smile : this technology is at least 25 years old. That’s how every single 3D audio over headphone has been done since the beginning.

I wish they would differentiate on connectivity. Like usb-c ports for video and power delivery, Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi 6, usb-c rechargeable controllers, etc.

Is it x86?

&gt; PlayStation 5 VS PlayStation 4<p>The proper comparison would have been against the PS4 Pro