Best answer: There’s no way of knowing yet until both consoles are further detailed and tested with various games, but the specs that the PlayStation 5 boast are pretty impressive.
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PlayStation 5 and Xbox Scarlett tech specs
There’s a lot we don’t know about the next Xbox and PlayStation 5 yet, but Sony and Microsoft have given small glimpses into what’s under the hood of their respective consoles. If there’s one thing that’s clear, it’s that this generational leap will be like no other. The amount of computing power being packed into these consoles is immense, and this should hopefully translate to bigger and better games, with developers experimenting with the possibilities they each offer.
| Price | Unknown | Unknown |
| Dimensions | Unknown | Unknown |
| CPU | Based on AMD Ryzen 8-core | Custom based on AMD Zen 2 |
| GPU | Custom Radeon Navi (Unknown TFLOP) | Custom based on AMD Navi (Unknown TFLOP) |
| Memory | Unknown | GDDR6 RAM |
| Storage | Unknown | Unknown |
| Storage type | SSD | SSD |
| Optical out | Yes | Yes |
| Resolution support | 8K | 8K |
| USB | Unknown | Unknown |
| VR support | Yes | Unknown (likely) |
From what we can tell from these specs, both consoles will support 8K resolution and come packed with an SSD for storage. As for how the CPUs and GPUs stack up, that’s harder to tell until we get more information and see what they’re capable of in practice. Both use custom Navi processors for their GPUs and custom AMD CPUs based on the Ryzen line of microprocessors.
Microsoft’s next Xbox touts “a new generation of SSDs,” where early tests have shown a 40 times performance increase over the existing Xbox One family. Variable refresh rates should be possible, too. Sony says that its SSD can nearly eliminate load time, cutting down a 15-second loading screen in Spider-Man on a PS4 to just 0.8 seconds running on a PS5 devkit. The PlayStation 5 should also allow for configurable downloads of games.
Ray tracing, 3D audio, VR support, and other features
Both next-gen consoles will support ray tracing, which is a technique used to render lighting more realistically. Based on comments from Sony’s Mark Cerny from a Wired magazine interview, the ray tracing technology on the PS5 will be built into the GPU hardware. Likewise, ray tracing on Xbox Scarlett will be hardware accelerated as well, based on the GPU is uses.
It hasn’t been confirmed if Microsoft’s next Xbox will support 3D audio — though going by the specs it should be able to — but the PlayStation 5 certainly will. 3D audio emulates real-life sound waves by producing sounds that come from all directions in a 3D space but having it emanate from one point, making games more immersive than ever before.
As for virtual reality, Sony has already pledged that existing PlayStation VR headsets will work with the PlayStation 5, though patents show a next-gen wireless headset that could be in the works. The company has previously stated that it wants future headsets to include eye tracking and improve your field of view. Microsoft has not announced a dedicated virtual reality headset for the next Xbox, but odds are one will be supported.
And when it comes to backward compatibility, both consoles should deliver on that front.
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