Choosing between an Xbox 360 and a PS3 can be a tricky task, especially when you aren’t familiar with the differences between them.
This article will serve as a pivot point towards making a better buying decision.
Xbox 360 vs PS3 – (Specifications, Performance and Retail Prices Comparison)
Let’s start off with online multiplayer support, because both of these consoles (and the whole generation in general) introduced online gameplay with almost zero hassles involved. But there is a slight difference between the two; PS3’s Playstation Network is totally free to use, while online multiplayer on Xbox360 requires a monthly fee. Both of these networks can be used for more than that, however. By taking part, you can also opt to download free and paid games, movies, surf the internet, or meet other players such as yourself.
Both of these consoles also come with a hard drive. The size depends on the model purchased, so it can range from 20 GB and all the way to 300 GB for both consoles. Earlier models used to come with smaller hard drives, and later on, the consoles featured more disk space, as well as several other goodies (like free games and such).
If you’re geared towards watching movies, let’s just state straight off the bat that PS3 supports Blu-ray, while Xbox360 doesn’t. But if you’re more into video games, it’s hard to decide, because each console has its own exclusives. From the PS3 side, there is Uncharted 2, Little Big Planet, Metal Gear Solid, God of War and Infamous, while Xbox360 prides itself in hosting Gears of War 3, Forza Motorsport 4, Halo Combat and more.
Their technical aspects aren’t as impressive, since this is now an older generation of consoles, but let’s briefly look at them anyway. Both of them have HDMI output, which means they’re compatible with HD displays. But if you’re among those who still have an older television, you’d be delighted to know that you can also plug a composite or component cable into these consoles.
Both have some backwards compatibility. On Xbox360, you have Xbox Originals, and on the PS3, there are PSONE and PS2 games you can download. PS3 supports Wi-fi, and Xbox360 also includes it as of S model. Both support the Ethernet cable, and it’s actually the recommended choice if you’re mainly going to be using the console to play video games online.
The performance of these two consoles is very similar, although they use different components. PS3 uses Nvidia graphics card, while Xbox360 uses ATI graphics. PS3 uses the Cell processor (8-core), while Xbox360 uses a Tri-Core Xenon. In any case, graphics and performance of these two consoles are probably not identical, but gamers report that these differences are pretty much minuscule. The untrained eye wouldn’t be able to spot them anyway.
Finally, let’s go over the pricing. This totally depends on the model you want to purchase. As of winter 2014, getting a 160GB PS3 will cost you $250, but if you want the 320 GB version, you’ll have to pay slightly more at $320. If the extra disk space matters to you, it might be worth the investment, otherwise it’s not that important. Xbox360 is a slightly bit different in this regard – although cheaper, you only get 4 GB for $200, and 250 GB for $300. If you’re interested in getting a Kinect with it, the 4 GB version will cost you $300, and the 250 GB version a whopping $420.
Hopefully that gave you a rough idea about which console to choose. Happy gaming!
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