Which is better: PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X?

Ellery (Xbox Series X)

From a purely technical perspective, the Xbox Series X is far superior to the PS5, with 18% more processing power and 21% more storage space (a terabyte to the PlayStation's 825 GB). This increased hard drive could easily mean the difference between two or three installed games, a lifesaver for most gamers. What's more, the new Xbox comes with a handy quick resume feature, allowing you to suspend any number of games at a time and jump between them with ease.

Not only is the New Xbox more powerful, but it's also more cost-efficient. Both the Xbox X and the PS5 sit at a comparable $500, but their cheaper options differ wildly. The PS5 digital edition (At $400) is only mildly less expensive and comes with no disk drive—a feature that significantly hinders backward compatibility. On the other hand, the Xbox Series X sits at a much more affordable $300 and comes with all the main console features, with performance dips that most people won't even notice. 

The newest Xbox is also far more practical than the PS5, with a built-in low latency mode to greatly improve players' experience with internet issues. It contains a Game Pass system, saving users hundreds of dollars a year on game purchases. Lastly, the Xbox's design is far more practical than the PS5, which is the largest console ever made and an awkward shape to fit into any home entertainment system.

Microsoft has doubled down on affordability and backward compatibility with this newest generation of consoles: the headphones, controllers, etc. from previous Xbox consoles work seamlessly with the new generation, And the Series X is backward compatible with every previous Xbox; with many games even graphically updated at no extra charge.

Elliot (PlayStation 5)

PS5 is a better all-around choice compared to the Xbox Series X for several reasons. First of all, it’s important to note that the Series X is more powerful than the PS5 only on paper. The added power said to belong to the Series X does not translate into a better gaming experience. How so? Raw power cannot change the fact that the PS5’s proprietary SSD (Solid State Drive) is superior, despite having a lower amount of memory space. This SSD is designed specifically to work with the PS5, which explains its slightly odd storage size of 825 MB. It is faster than the Xbox’s storage solution. According to various reports, the PS5’s SSD runs about twice as fast as Microsoft’s SSD. 

A better, faster storage solution results in many noticeable benefits, including drastically lowered load times. According to The Verge, the PS5 is “mysteriously punching above its weight,” as games ran incredibly smoothly with virtually no framerate issues and exceptional picture resolution. When The Verge tested those same games on the Series X, noticeable problems started to appear. 

The PS5 also offers a much wider range of exclusive titles. While the PS5 launched with titles like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Demon’s Souls, and Sackboy: A Big Adventure, the Xbox Series X had zero exclusive titles at launch. Additionally, the digital-only variant of the PS5 still has all the same hardware for $100 less, while the cheaper version of the Series X has significantly downgraded hardware. Lastly, after taking sales performance into account, this is a battle that PS5 is clearly winning.