YEYIAN Odachi VR Gaming PC
YEYIAN Odachi VR Gaming PC boasts a beautiful mid-tower with several RGB pre-installed fans for ample cooling and an AIO cooling solution for the CPU. The Ryzen 7800X3D makes it a beast in gaming and the RTX 4070 further elevates its performance in modern titles. From aesthetics to performance, this PC doesn’t lack anything.
PS5
Sony’s PlayStation 5 is part of the ninth console generation and debuted with a launch lineup that included Demon’s Souls and Astro’s Playroom. The console comes with a Blu-ray disc, although a digital-only edition is also available for a cheaper price.
It was the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One that sparked a fierce debate betweenthe gaming PCand consoles to the point that, for the first time, it looked like going withgaming consolesmight be a wiser decision. More than a decade has passed, and the debate couldn’t be more relevant than ever. Console manufacturers are trying their best to compete with gaming PCs, since the latter has no apparent limits on performance, but can be incredibly pricey.
This gives gaming consoles a slight advantage, as going with one may actually be better in terms of price-to-performance ratio. However, the difference isn’t too simple. Between both platforms, numerous aspects need to be analyzed before declaring one of them a winner. In this guide, we will look at what’s better between a gaming PC and a console, by comparing and analyzing several factors like specs, performance, ease of use, game library, etc. followed by our verdict.
Specifications
Specifications of a gaming PC and a console can’t be compared directly. They are far apart in how they are designed, but gaming consoles share the architectures of CPUs and GPUs from the mainstream desktop parts. Let’s dive deep into the hardware of both to see which one is better.
Gaming PC
A gaming PC generally uses six or seven components in total, which include a CPU, motherboard, RAM, storage drive, CPU cooler, case, PSU, and GPU. A gaming PC with an APU, or Accelerated Processing Unit, brings both the CPU and GPU on the main chip itself, but users are free to add a dedicated GPU of their choice. Each component has its own particular interface, which consists of a set of pins that go only one way on the headers and slots present on a desktop motherboard.
In case of gaming laptops, the slots/headers are somewhat different, but they generally share the same concept of connecting these components through the motherboard so that each component can communicate with the other. Additionally, gaming PCs allow the installation of individual parts.
you may simply take the CPU out of the motherboard socket to install another one that is compatible with that socket, install more RAM, or swap the cooler or the GPU according to your needs. This versatile nature of the gaming PC allows it to be highly upgradeable, letting users modify their gaming systems to suit their gaming requirements.
This helps users build a gaming PC at different prices. So, whether you are looking to build a gaming PC for just $500 or a gaming PC that crosses a few thousand dollars, you will be able to. We will compare the pricing aspect of the gaming PC later, but currently, let’s focus on the configuration of a gaming PC.
One of the reasons why a gaming PC can stay relevant even after several years is that users can simply choose a newer generation CPU, change the motherboard, or upgrade to a higher-end GPU from the latest generation. This gives the gaming PC access to unrestricted performance to keep up with the demands of the latest titles.
Gaming Consoles
Every gaming consolehas different hardware inside. So, it’s not just gaming PC vs gaming console, but it’s also gaming PC vs a particular gaming console model. While gaming consoles generally follow a particular pattern in their hardware selection and design, they will always feature a different configuration from their predecessors.
Consider the PlayStation 4 as an example. It uses an octa-core AMD Jaguar chip, featuring a GPU with 1.84 TFLOPS of theoretical performance based on the GCN architecture. It gets 8GB GDDR5 memory in total, shared by both the CPU and GPU and a storage size of either 500GB or 1TB. Considering it’s a decade-old console, the PS4 isn’t bad at all, but in 2013, it was possible to obtain a significantly faster and superior CPU, GPU, and system RAM. Therefore, even though the PS4 might be a fantastic console of its time, it couldn’t compete with the flagship gaming PC of that era. However, keep in mind we have yet to consider their prices and what you would have got for $500 at that time.
Fast-forward to 2024, we have Xbox Series X as the fastest gaming console to date, followed by PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S. Other consoles, such as the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck are also available, though their specs are far behind Microsoft and Sony’s offerings.
Xbox Series X uses a custom Zen 2 AMD CPU, featuring eight cores clocked at 3.8GHz and a GPU with 52 CUs, based on the RDNA architecture with a theoretical performance of 12TFLOPS. Similarly, the PS5 isn’t too behind with its Zen 2-based eight-core CPU clocked at 3.5GHz and has an RDNA 2-based GPU with 36 CUs.
With the latest 13th/14th gen Intel andZen 4-based AMD CPUs, the CPUs could feature as low as four cores all the way up to 24 cores depending on the CPU model. Of course, the latter will be significantly more expensive, but getting an eight-core CPU is possible for under $200 if you were to choose a 12th gen Intel CPU or a Zen 3-based AMD CPU.
GPUs are also significantly faster with huge VRAM and theoretical performance that is several times higher than what is found on the current-gen consoles. System RAM and storage space can be increased to several folds compared to consoles and that sums up the difference between the core hardware of a gaming PC and gaming consoles.
Ease of Use and Portability
Most standard gaming consoles are going to be several times smaller than regular PCs, assuming you are comparing an ATX tower or a micro-ATX tower to the consoles. Even though a console like the PlayStation 5 is the biggest console Sony has ever made, it’s still going to be shorter, narrower and will require less space. Unless you opt for a mini gaming PC or a custom PC built using asmall mini-ITX case, there is no debate about the great portability of consoles.
Xbox and PS consoles are the largest ones on the market, which are generally more portable than compact desktops. However, when you consider handheld consoles, then the debate is out of the question. Still, we are only comparing standard consoles as they offer the best possible gaming performance that can close the gap with a gaming PC.
One thing that is often missed by a lot of users is how easy it is to operate a gaming console. With a proprietary operating system, the interface on consoles is generally easier to understand and operate, unlike gaming PCs that run on Windows or Linux, which have a learning curve of their own. Yes, it does get easier over time, but consoles are made to get right into the games quickly after you switch them on.
On the other hand, on PCs, after your OS boots up, several crucial applications and drivers take time to get ready. After that, you also need to open up a gaming client like Steam or Epic to start your game. However, this isn’t always all there is to it. You may also need to update your GPU drivers, OS, peripheral drivers, and stuff like that most of the time, which ends up consuming a lot of time.
Moreover, with conflicting drivers and programs, a lot of times the games end up freezing or crashing, which may require you to dive into troubleshooting, which can take anywhere from a few minutes to several hours, depending on how serious the bug is. It’s not that consoles don’t face such problems, but they are significantly less frequent than what you encounter on a gaming PC.
Games Library and Optimization
Both gaming consoles and gaming PC have their own exclusive titles for the users. The game library for gaming PCs far exceeds all the games combined on all the consoles. PC clearly has a big edge over consoles here, but let’s not forget that consoles have some of the best exclusives a lot of PC users yearn for, includingSpider-Man: 2, The Last of Us: Part 2, Rise of the Ronin,and several others in the making.
Some of the console exclusives have made it to the PC, likeUncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection, Spider-Man: Miles Morales,andThe Last of Us: Part 1, but these took several years before they were optimized for the PC. This is because optimizing the games for the PC is much more difficult than optimizing them for a particular console. Developers have to take care of the wide hardware compatibility where every GPU, every CPU, every graphical preset, and every GPU driver needs to work in harmony to achieve better performance.
On the other hand, consoles do not suffer from bad optimizations and can run fairly smoothly despite having inferior hardware. Even though bad optimization is not common in every game, a lot of recent titles have shown that developers may hurry up the release before actually fixing the bugs for the PC.
On the other hand, there are a plethora of triple-Atitles available for the PC, not available for the consoles in general. They might take some time before ending up on a console or two, but then we also have tons of indie games for PC, of which only a few make it to the consoles.
Online multiplayer gaming is another important factor when choosing between the two platforms. Here, the PC is substantially superior by providing free-of-cost multiplayer gaming and has a significant player base of popular online games. Some consoles offer a subscription model to allow their users to access the online mode. It’s not much, and it also provides free games every month, which is definitely a cash-saver in the long run.
Pricing
Let’s get to the most important deciding factor, i.e, the price. We have already seen how gaming PCs can be several times faster than the fastest available gaming console today, but it’s crucial to note here that even the most powerful gaming consoles don’t cost over $500. Consider the prices of Xbox Series X and PS5. Both cost $500 and may come bundled with a free game. To compare these consoles to a $3000 gaming PC is unfair and doesn’t make the latter a winner.
Rather, it’s important tobuild a gaming PC for $500to see if it can match the performance of those consoles. If you try to build a PS5-equivalent gaming PC, you would require something equivalent to a Ryzen 5600X for the CPU and an RTX 4060 Ti or RX 6700 XT for the GPU. The cost for both components comes close to $500, which doesn’t even include the cost of the motherboard, chassis, PSU, RAM, CPU cooler, and storage drive. On top of that, if you are going with an officially licensed Windows OS, you have to add another 80-$100 bucks.
The total cost of a gaming PC, which is equivalent to the PS5, should come close to $800-$1000. So, the PS5 or any other such console is already far ahead of gaming PCs in price-to-performance ratio if no other factor that we discussed earlier is considered. This is just one example of how it would end up if you were to go for the same price tag as a console and try to build a gaming PC with that money. If you decide to build a gaming PC for $300, which is the official MSRP of the Xbox Series S, it may not even be possible to get a dedicated GPU at that price tag.
Conclusion
There is no doubt or question about how fast gaming PCs are evolving in the current times and, withpowerful GPUs like RTX 4090, it is becoming more and more difficult for the consoles to catch up to the performance of gaming PCs. The vast game library, access to various apps for productivity, the ease of upgradeability, and the superior hardware will always keep the gaming PC ahead of gaming consoles.
On the other hand, gaming consoles have started to offerexcellent performance at higher resolutions, and are now equipped with better hardware and connectivity features than ever before. One of the solid reasons to go for a console is the price tag, for which it’s nearly impossible to build a gaming PC with brand-new parts to deliver an equivalent gaming performance. Exclusive titles that come free with cheap subscriptions are another reason many would want to go with the consoles.
FAQ
Q: Is gaming on PC or PS5 better?
Gaming on PC gives you access to thousands of games, but PS5 can support a maximum of PS4 games and some exclusive titles. On the other hand, the optimizations on PS5 are generally better, and it costs much less than an equivalently powerful gaming PC.
Q: Is PC gaming the future?
With the incredible and rapid evolution of architecture and hardware, PC gaming is the future for enthusiasts. Consoles are still catching up but they hit their limit much sooner than PCs do.
Q: Will a PC last longer than a console?
It depends on the configuration of the PC. If it uses entry-level hardware, it is more likely going to need an upgrade soon. Consoles, however, can last up to a decade without needing any upgrade, since every game is optimized properly for their hardware. The PC, on the other hand, can definitely last longer if its configuration is better and allows the swapping of parts with better ones.
