We have reviewed PlayStation 5, digital edition, Xbox X and Xbox S after comparing their specs, performance, prices, graphics, games and special features. After reading this review you will be able to decide which is better: PlayStation or Xbox series. We got a chance to finish a bunch of games on these consoles as well on each. You will find below the deep analysis of PS5 vs Xbox. In this post a comprehensive guide for buying your first gaming console – XBox vs PlayStation we’ll be covering:
- The design of XBox vs PlayStation
- The controllers – XBox Core Controller VS PS5 DualSense
- The games you can enjoy on XBox vs PlayStation
- UI of XBox vs PlayStation
- Special features of XBox vs PlayStation
- XBox vs PlayStation – Which console wins and is more value driven?
We are going to analyse both and give you suggestions on each one of these after testing for the past few months of 2021. Now without any further ado let’s dig into the PS5 versus the XBox comparison starting off with their design comparison.
XBox vs PlayStation 5 Design- Which one has a better design?
After checking different aspects of both we can say we do actually like both a lot so the PS5 looks more like a console from the future with its spaceship style design and the LED strip not even to mention the extreme attention to detail that Sony has given it. The XBox series x on the other hand, looks more strapped into the present but it still has a very modern look we do like the black monolithic look that it has as it’s very clean and very industrial. We also like the fact that the XBox looks good in both vertical and horizontal orientation whereas the PS5 only looks good when it’s standing up as when you put it on its side; the disk version looks quite odd.
Build – When it comes to build there is no comparison–the XBox is built like a tank and it feels premium with its exponentially superb whereas the PS5 actually feels a bit of a let-down.
Quality- Quality-wise the plastic of PS5 feels flimsy and thin, the glossy middle gets scratched super easily and build quality wise the XBox takes this one by far a thousand leagues.
Size- We also like that the XBox is smaller in size than PS5. For example we can easily put the XBox in a TV cabinet whereas the PS5 would barely fit-in. So we can say that if you count the build quality and the size of Xbox Series S vs PS5 in the design comparison the XBox series X clearly wins this one.
XBox Core Controller VS DualSense PlayStation Controller – Which one is better?
“We’ve tested both of these quite heavily and there’s absolutely no comparison as for the most part you already know which one would be better- the PS5 DualSense controller just plainly defeats the XBox core controller”
Let’s find out in detail why DualSense is a better controller?
1- Haptics
First of all the dual sense has some absolutely incredible haptics while the XBox controller just vibrates. Technically a PS5 controller gives you actual haptic feedback. Which is very similar to how on most of the expensive phones you have haptic feedback when you’re typing but on the really cheap ones you can hear the vibration motor rattling inside your phone and the experience would be just horrible.
Once you get to more high-end ones the haptic feedback literally gives you the impression that you’re pressing actual keys on the display and it’s literally the same thing with the XBox and the PS5 controllers. The best place that you can test this is in Astro’s playroom which is a free game that comes pre-installed with your PS5 and the haptics are so good that you can feel individual droplets of rain hitting your fingers. While the spider-man model does kind of use it to the point where you can kind of feel the punches but nothing to the extent of Astro’s playroom.
2- Build of PS5 DualSense Controller vs Xbox Core Controller
The build quality like we mentioned earlier is that the PS5 feels cheap when compared to the XBox’s which again feels a lot premium. This is actually the opposite when it comes to controllers. When you’d touch the XBox controller, it’d feel like cheaper plastic and less refined overall when compared to the PS5’s controller. However there are two advantages that the XBox controller does have over the PS5’s:
i- Comfortability
You’d find the PS5 control to be far more comfortable than the PS4 one. It is a bit too big for the average hands-size and it’s a bit too enlarged as well which would feel to the most of the users out of the place.
While the XBox controller fits any hand-size, we tried with different people’s hands and surprisingly it fits perfectly. As a result you’d find it more comfortable because of that.
ii- Built-in Rechargeable Battery
The second big sway that the XBox controller has is, it doesn’t have a built-in rechargeable battery like the PS5 controller does. Which is actually a downside but in one way it is actually an upgrade as well. For example we used our old apple rechargeable batteries for this one. If you put your two batteries in the XBox controller and when the controller dies you simply swap them with other charged ones. While with a PS5 controller if you don’t have a spare controller you need to have to plug it into a charger to be able to continue playing. Well you do have to buy a rechargeable battery separately for the XBox controller. But you can also buy Microsoft’s own kit. But dude, that costs almost like buying the entirely new XBox controller itself.
Anyway overall the PS5 controller is plainly many more light years ahead of the XBox controller.
3- PS5 vs Xbox Series X Triggers
Now the second reason why the PS5’s controller is leagues better is when it comes to the triggers; while the XBox controller does give you vibration feedback inside the triggers. The PS5 controller also has adaptive triggers meaning that in some games the triggers will have different tension levels and this surprisingly does work in more games than we expected before using it. It works in astros playroom of course but also in spider-man when you’re swinging across New York city; in black ops cold war when you’re shooting a gun and technically each gun will have a different trigger feel in which you’d also deeply feel in Hitman 3 you can feel the tension before you’re about to throw a coin or fire a weapon. A lot more games support the adapter triggers than the haptic feedback that seem quite interesting.
4- Built-in Speakers
The PS5 controller also has a built-in speaker which you might think is pretty useless but as a matter of fact it actually adds to the immersion as you don’t necessarily hear the same sound as on your TV. But instead you only hear the sound effects in Astro’s playroom. For example you can hear how the droplets of water hit your finger and then you can also feel them. Thanks to the haptic feedback all of that is coming from the controller itself whereas on the TV you will hear the storm and the rest of the game music also. If you’re in a party you can hear the voice chat through the controller and you can even re-spawn.
5- Built-in Mic
The PS5 controller also has a microphone which the XBox lacks. By the way you can disable this via the mute button If you want to. Definitely you can use it during streaming sessions if you are one of the streamers.
6- Touchpad
The PS5 controller also has a touchpad which some games do actually take really good advantage of and for the ones that don’t it actually acts as a menu button. As the touchpad is fully pressable the XBox controller has none of that which we find quite a let-down. The touchpad makes things a lot easier for PS5 folks.
Sony PS5 vs Xbox Series X Games- Which console has better games?
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Now what about the games which console has better games? This is where it gets tricky.
The games that we tested on the PS5
- Astro’s playroom fully finished it all went well
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales fully finished it all went well
- Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War fully finished it all went well without any hurdles
- Hitman 3 – All the maps went well
- Campaign etc.
The games that we tested on the XBox Series X
- Forza Horizon 4 – Played and loved as a whole
- Zoo Tycoon – Again cool game and we played like for 12 hours
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla this is actually the game that we played the most and loved the most
If you like the first party exclusive games like God of War or others that you can only play on that console then go for the PlayStation and that’s because Microsoft’s policy on the XBox is that you can also play XBox games on your PC too and if you already have a powerful PC then there’s no point in getting an XBox if you don’t want to.
On the other hand, Sony does have some amazing first party titles such as God of War, Last of Us, Spider-man, Uncharted, Horizon and tons of many more which can only be played on a playstation. However at the moment none of these games are actually exclusives to the PS5 as even the latest Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales game is actually a cross-generation title which does also work on the PS4. But there are three very good PS5 exclusives indeed and those are:
- Astro’s Playroom
- Demon Souls
- Ratchet & Clank
Those are not playable on the PS4 at all which means that they can fully take advantage of the PS5 hardware. If you are someone who’s more about exclusives then go for playstation. However if you care about other compatible titles like Battlefield, Bard’s Tale, Bad Company or Beholder and love cross-platform games at the highest possible settings then go for the XBox.
“For example on the XBox you can not only play XBox One games but also XBox 360 games and even the original XBox Games”
While the PS5 only supports PS4 games. Not only that but the XBox sort of acts like a PC–that means if you play an XBox One game on the series x it will automatically run at higher settings than when compared to the XBox One, X. The PS5 on the other hand will require an update for every single game to run at fullest. Here’s what we mean by that as during playing the games on both these Xbox Series X and PS5 what we noticed like in Call of Duty Warzone the XBox series X ran the game in native 4k at 60fps. Whereas the PS5 was Only 1440p60. Not only that but the drawing distance was far better on the XBox as the shadows were visible and clear in much improved quality than PS5 and the texture detail far exceeded the one on the PS5.
You need to keep in mind, this is before any update and that’s because the PS5 needs a manual patch for these games to take full advantage of the hardware whereas the XBox does not. Now the XBox did actually get a patch which enabled native 4k at 120fps which is absolutely ridiculous. Now the PS5 also got a patch which increased the texture resolution but the rendering resolution was still running at 1440p and the frame rate was still around 60. According to the developers this is because the PS5 is still running the PS4 Pro version of the game rather than an actual PS5 and because of how the dynamic resolution was implemented in that PS4 version of the game with checkerboard rendering the PS5 just cannot run the game at a high resolution unless it is rewritten with a PS5 in mind. Same thing happens in Cities: Skylines where the PS5 was running the game at 1440p or even 1080p to be honest as it was super blurry and these were the exact same settings as on the PS4 pro but at 60fps same as the PS4 Pro however the XBox was running at native 4k60 now obviously once developers update their games the PS5 will match the XBox. But most of the old games will never get updated so if you want to play those games then definitely go for the XBox.
Gen. AAA Games On PS5 vs XBox X
On the contrary, if you want to play contemporary Gen AAA games then these will actually run better on the XBox as this is a far more powerful console. For example Hitman 3 runs on the PS5 at 1800p resolution 60fps compared to native 4k 60fps on the XBox series X which also uses higher quality shadows when compared to the PS5 version. Not only that but Iron Interactive announced that the XBox series X will be getting Ray Tracing support in a future update. The PS5 will be getting this if ever so in terms of games it really depends on what you want. If you want exclusives then go for the PS5, do you want to play tons of older titles then go for the XBox? If you want to play current Gen cross platform games at the highest possible quality then also go for the XBox.
UI – PS5 or Xbox Series X which one has a better User Interface?
Home Screen – Which one has a better UI and here we think that the PS5 UI is better and that’s because it is far easier to use. The design is more streamlined and way more intuitive. On the XBox you have menus on top of menus and the fact that you literally get ads on the home screen which is annoying. There’s no way to actually remove those ads. You can customize the home screen and just have fewer ads but some ads will always remain.
Surround Sound System – If you have surround sound system installed and you want to use that with the consoles on the XBox you’d have to literally buy a Dolby Atmos license to use it. While on the PS5 on the other hand your surround system would just work. Not only that but on the PS5 all games supported whereas on the XBox even after buying Dolby Atmos the license Assassin’s Creed Valhalla would still mess up the sound a lot of the times. Even your speakers might not work at all sometimes. You’d note an issue like this on the PS5.
Resolution Xbox X 1080p vs PS5 4K – The XBox UI is 1080p so even if you have a 4K TV still the UI runs at 1080p. Most of you are probably not bothered by this but when you’re playing a super sharp game in full 4K and then you bring up the UI. It just looks off having this low resolution side menu right next to that 4K game. The PS5 doesn’t have this problem as the UI is full 4K.
Downloading Games on PS5 Vs Xbox – The PS5 has a serious user interface problem when it comes to downloading games. On the XBox, if you download the game it will automatically download the XBox series X version of it and if there is no XBox series X version of that game it will download the XBox one x version which will automatically run at higher settings.
Contrarily, on the PS5 at least at launch it would actually download the PS4 version by default unless you manually selected a PS5 version. Although now they have changed it, so that the PS5 version is downloaded by default but you can still download the PS4 version on your PS5 which doesn’t make any sense at all. You should not be allowed to download a PS4 game that also has a PS5 version on the PS5.
XBox Vs PS5 VR support and other features
- In some games like Hitman 3 which does actually support VR on the playstation you have to download the PS4 version of it as PS5 games do not have native VR support.
- If you want to chat with your friends on PC you can do that on the XBox but not on the PS5. The XBox supports third-party voice chat apps such as Skype which the PS5 does not.
- In many ways the PS5 is the equivalent of apple where you have a closed ecosystem whereas the XBox is the equivalent of android where everything is open and you can do way more things with it.
What are the special features of PS5 vs Xbox Series X?
There are some really special features that make each of these consoles unique. The biggest feature by far is Game Pass on the XBox which is pretty much Netflix for games. You pay $10 a month and get access to hundreds of AAA games that you can download and play at any time you want. Sony does have PlayStation Now which is a similar service but that is mostly for older PS3 games and only a few PS4 games. It is also a game streaming service meaning that the quality is heavily downgraded. You can download some games too but not all of them and most of them are actually just streaming only and all the titles are also a bit older rather than literally new releases like we get with Game Pass. With game pass you fully download the games and when you have games such as Doom Eternal, Forza Horizon 4, Battlefield 5, Destiny 2 or Fifa you don’t even need to buy games at all. The game pass collection is very strong and for just $120 a year also known as the price of buying two games you have access to hundreds of top tier games to play on the XBox. Which is by far the strongest feature of the XBox and both of these consoles.
If you have an android phone you can play all of these Game Pass games on your phone on the go with an XBox controller. The XBox also has a quick resume which lets you quickly go from one game to another, something that the PS5 does not have.
Game Loading – PS5 or Xbox which one loads games faster?
Now the PS5 is super quick at loading games and it only takes about 15 to 20 seconds or so to load one but the XBox is faster where you have to switch games quickly. So if you’re the kind of person that jumps from one game to another then the XBox is a better choice.
i- VR Support – The PS5 does have VR support which the XBox does not but you need to buy an adapter if you want to use the PlayStation VR and you have to actually to reserve one you have to place your order for one which is free. Since you have to download PS4 games to play them in VR on your PS5. It’s pretty obvious that Sony doesn’t really want you to use the PlayStation VR on the PS5. We all know that they’re working on a brand new headset the PSVR ii which should be launching in 2022 or sooner. If you buy the PS5 it will be VR proof.
ii- Storage – When it comes to storage the XBoxes offer you more as it comes with one terabyte of storage when compared to 825 gigabytes on the PS5. Both consoles support external hard drives but you can only store previous generation titles there and not current gen. As the current gen games do need that super fast control storage. You can expand that storage by buying the Seagate Expansion Drive for the XBox or NVMe SSD drive that has 5.5 gigabytes per second.
PS5 vs. Xbox Series X: Which console wins?
In the end which console is a better value driven? The PS5 costs $500 which is actually the same price as the XBox X and for this price getting the XBox X gives you a chance to enjoy widespread features. As with Game Pass you get plenty of games to play most of which are AAA titles. However the PS5 also comes in a digital only version for $400 which removes the ability to play games from disc. But other than that that is a fully fledged PS5. Microsoft also has another XBox series s which retails for $300. We do not recommend it as it is pretty much a 1080p console in most of the games and for a $100 more you can get the mighty PS5 Digital which is significantly more powerful and way more futuristic in terms of everything.
However the XBox does actually have a major advantage in terms of the price and that is the fact that you can actually get XBox all access where you pay 21 pounds a month and you get the XBox series s as well as two years of XBox Game Pass ultimate. If you pay more $41 a month you get a series x. Surprisingly, gain the same two years of game pass included so in the end they’re both great consoles the PS5 offers you the advantage of a better controller and exclusive games whereas the XBox acts more like a PC aside from game pass which is a massive advantage. You also have the ability to play a large catalog of previous gen games while also being able to run those games and the current gen cross platform games at higher settings on the XBox. Let us know in the comments which one would you guys pick and why?
Last update on 2021-02-07. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
