Compare and contrast XBox One and PlayStation 4 from the user perspective

[dlm]

Edge is claiming that the XBone interface/UI/OS has lost (or made worse) a lot of features that were available on the XB360.

They're claiming much more than that. The article uses very deliberate rhetoric in an attempt to paint the unfortunate artifacts of a rushed console launch as deal-breaking and unfixable flaws that are causing the XBox One to be a sales failure.

It's incredibly obvious that the author of this article is a Win8 hater who is attempting to use the XBox One as a pawn in his proxy battle with a completely different operating system.

Is the XB1 rough in several spots? Yes. Is the PS4 interface for friends better right now? I'd say yes. Is it remotely the cataclysmic big deal this hack is making it out to be? Not remotely. Does it still play games? Yup.

 

[Cyan]

I just found out that I can say

"playstation"
"login"
"user 1"
"killzone"
"flower"
"killzone"
"espace plan"
"internet browser"
"killzone"
"start"

and it recognised my voice input constantly, and it switched very fast as well.

So I think Kinect is not alone in voice control, though I don't think the PS4 equivalent works during gamplay. But then again: you will have a controller in your hand then, which is 10 times faster. maybe even 100 times:
By the time an xbox fan has pronounced: "Xbox, record that", a few seconds will have passed, while pressing the button takes only 1/10th of a second.

Depends on the game. For most things voice commands are much faster. Especially at switching games.

If your games are physical games then it will ask you to insert your game disc, but you can switch to another game regardless of that using a voice command, it might ask you for the disc again, but you can see it works fast.

On BF4 it is much more intuitive to say "Engage!" to your squad mates than pressing LB. You can focus on LT to zoom in and RT, in the flow of combat.

On Need For Speed Rivals you don't have to remember the button to switch camera, you just say Change View and it works perfectly, so you can focus on LT -braking- and RT -accelerating-. I could go on and on.

As for the Edge article, huh? I am not going to read it. I am sure it won't be anything constructive in it. Pass.

 

[Phil]

They're claiming much more than that. The article uses very deliberate rhetoric in an attempt to paint the unfortunate artifacts of a rushed console launch as deal-breaking and unfixable flaws that are causing the XBox One to be a sales failure.

To be honest, it sounded more like a frustrated user who liked what X360 brought to the game and finds the One a huge step back in many of these areas. His opinion might not be mirrored across all Xbox One owners, but it wouldn't make them less valid either.

 

[Cornsnake]

I play some Xbox One at a friend. The Xbox One hasn't released here in the Netherlands, but he ordered it in Germany 2 weeks ago, and was able to come pick it up a week later. He can buy stuff he wants from the Ireland store, and kinect works just fine when the system language is set to US. So there's no reason not to go buy one abroad if you can. And no reason for Microsoft's crazy release scheme.

I'm not as familiar with the 360 as I am with DS3, so I wasn't immediately comfortable with it. I was surprised how loose the sticks felt. It's much closer to the DS3 then it is to the 360. The force feedback in the triggers was a very nice feature. I've never played much of Forza so I don't know how much difference it makes. More feedback is always good though. Kinect still lags a bit behind seeing it on the configuration screen. I can't compare it the old one because I've never played with it. Neither of us ever really cared for Kinect though.

I've played CoD Ghosts, Forza 4 and Battlefield 4. CoD and Forza both don't seem like much of a step up from previous gen. CoD has always looked bad, and racing games have always looked kind of good. Battlefield 4 looks fantastic though. If all games are going look like that going forward then the Xbox One should make for a good console.

I wasn't able to convince my friend to buy aPS4 instead. Most of his friends are on the 360 and should eventually move to the One, and he doesn't really the PS4 controller, so I can understand why he'd stay with Xbox. And this way he can still play the exclusive PS4 games, and I can still play the exclusive Xbox games.

 

[Florin]

I feel really stupid now. I picked up an Xbone on a recent trip to the US (and ran day 1 update and some games fine in my hotel room) but when I connected it at home the power brick gave a loud bang. Heh I didn't even think to check, I can't remember the last time I bought something that didn't come with a universal power supply..

Just ordered a replacement PSU from Europe, hopefully it won't take forever to get here.

 

[Arwin]

On the upside, if it wasn't universal (and I feel you), it was useless to you now anyway - or did you have a converter.

 

[Nesh]

On the upside, if it wasn't universal (and I feel you), it was useless to you now anyway - or did you have a converter.

I thought the point was that the brick wasnt universal hence why it got burnt

 

[Rurouni]

Wait wait wait... sorry for the OT, but I just have to ask. How much MS can save by using non universal PSU? Or non universal PSU have other virtue (more efficient? Cooler? Smaller?)

 

[Arwin]

I thought the point was that the brick wasnt universal hence why it got burnt

Yes, and my point was that he wouldn't been able to use it even if he hadn't burnt it.

 

[Nesh]

Yes, and my point was that he wouldn't been able to use it even if he hadn't burnt it.

You are confusing me.

 

[Arwin]

He had to buy a new PSU whether he blew it up or not - or, well, maybe he could have bought a converter, or maybe already had one even, so that's not completely true.

 

[Dave Baumann]

He had to buy a new PSU whether he blew it up or not - or, well, maybe he could have bought a converter, or maybe already had one even, so that's not completely true.

Well, most CE devices have the power supply built in so its pretty much impossible to buy devices in Europe to work in the States or vice versa. Moving from UK to Canada I had to start from scratch with all my CE equipment, with the exception of a 360 which I sources an alternative power brick for.

 

[Arwin]

Not vice versa. There are converters. And all Sony stuff works both ways the last 10 years or so? TVs nowadays have external powerbricks too I noticed.

 

[Florin]

I guess CE might still not be as cut and dried yet as (portable) computing stuff. But my Samsung and LG TVs both do 100-240V 50/60hz, and the bricks for my Macbook, HP laptop, Asus and Google tablets, iPhone and Galaxy S4 are all universal too. All you need is simple passive plug converters. The PS4 is like that also.

None of which takes away from the fact that blowing the fuse in this sealed PSU is my own dumb mistake.

So the aftermarket for Xbone PSUs seems to be extremely sketchy still. The most common Chinese clone is only rated for 10.83 A, which is not enough so these only tend to last a few days. Had to search for a bit before finding a supplier of bricks with a 17.9 A rating. It's supposedly shipped but not holding my breath for Christmas.

 

[Cyan]

I guess CE might still not be as cut and dried yet as (portable) computing stuff. But my Samsung and LG TVs both do 100-240V 50/60hz, and the bricks for my Macbook, HP laptop, Asus and Google tablets, iPhone and Galaxy S4 are all universal too. All you need is simple passive plug converters. The PS4 is like that also.

None of which takes away from the fact that blowing the fuse in this sealed PSU is my own dumb mistake.

So the aftermarket for Xbone PSUs seems to be extremely sketchy still. The most common Chinese clone is only rated for 10.83 A, which is not enough so these only tend to last a few days. Had to search for a bit before finding a supplier of bricks with a 17.9 A rating. It's supposedly shipped but not holding my breath for Christmas.

Can't you just ask for a replacement here?

https://myservice.xbox.com/en-GB/Pages/Welcome.aspx

You can also register your console, which extends the warranty to 2016.

 

[Florin]

Can't you just ask for a replacement here?

https://myservice.xbox.com/en-GB/Pages/Welcome.aspx

You can also register your console, which extends the warranty to 2016.

Thanks, but as a European living in Asia, with both of my countries squarely in the Xbox middle finger zone of 3rd quarter 2014 release, not really. I'm a faithful repeat Xbox customer (day one original, still a 360 user) and I find this situation less than ideal but at the end of the day I took my chances, and broke it, and now I can't go claiming warranty.

While it would be great if Microsoft would start selling power bricks separately just about now, so I could get a reliable, official device, so far all they offer is replacements, and only when you send in your original brick.

 

[AzBat]

Did you check Alibaba?

Tommy McClain

 

[Florin]

Did you check Alibaba?

Tommy McClain

Thank you. Yeah I did check Alibaba as well, and while that particular seller doesn't specify any electrical rating, the label which is vaguely visible on the stock photography suggests to me that it is likely the same unit as this one, this and this.

Bricks with that rating and box art seem to be all over the net right now. And well.. read the customer experiences on my 1st link

I went with this one instead. Fingers crossed.

 

[AlphaWolf]

Couldn't you just get one through myservice.xbox.com? Or would they only send you a US version?

 

[Florin]

Couldn't you just get one through myservice.xbox.com? Or would they only send you a US version?

Well as a manufacturer I'd consider this a case of user abuse, or failing to use the product in accordance with instructions. And even if they were to replace it (whether at cost, or perhaps freely out of leniency) I'd still only be eligible for a US one. You need to supply your serial number at myservice.