Console value vs pc

I was just thinking about how much value consoles provide for the money. The XSX and PS5 are $500 machines with hardware that approaches something like a $2000 pc build on current market. I think we can all agree that dollar for dollar, nothing on the PC comes close.

I really liked MS strategy this gen. Offering a low end console for $300 and a high end one for $500. What if instead, MS offered a low end console for $500 and high end for $1000. The high end one would have a 6800xt gpu, double the ram, and a beefier ssd at maybe 1.5 tb. You might think that's expensive but consider the pc market currently. A single 6800xt costs as much as $1500. If MS could secure such hardware from AMD at the cost of pc gamers and the miners getting screwed over, I think they should. And people ate willing to spend $1000+ on consoles just considering how much success the scalpers have had. I would have bought a $1000 xbox with those specs.

What do you think. Should MS and Sony go ahead with this strategy in the future?

If only they offered the features PC does - wherein its value to me lies. Ah well, guess I can't be a console only gamer

Im pretty down on PC gaming as long as this mining crap and hardware shortages are a thing. Get a Series X if you can. You get $500 GPU performance (or like $900 with these scalper prices) in a full package that‘s ready to game. And if you’re on a 1440p or less monitor, the Series S should be strongly considered.

@BassMan: 🤣🤣 I had to piss off the pc gamers. I did edit it though but I guess some people are too fast

The value proposition of either console or PC is dependent on the person. It has been set.

Pretty much common knowledge that these consoles have way better value than PCs. Even PC gamers admit that.

Doubt there is a market for premium consoles like that. doubt pro's from last gen sold much units, and the units they did sold where probably on discount.

PC still has more value, to me at least.

I spent 200 dollars on a PS4 Slim about two years ago and I don't think I've used it more than 100 hours total. Played God of War and some Dragon Quest 11 and dabbled with a few other games.

Meanwhile let's just say I spent 2,000 dollars on my PC and I spend about 100+ hours playing games on it each month.

So I spent 200 dollars for 100 hours total over two years...and 2000 dollars for my current PC about four years ago and got 4,800+ hours out of it, and counting.

And that's just games. I also use my PC for research, music, movies, and general time wasting.

*Oh and I didn't really enjoy those 100 hours on console, either, but that's a less tangible metric.

Yeah, this is the short and concise answer.

Not really. The APU is a low-power, scaled-down version of the desktop counterparts. You can read more here: https://www.anandtech.com/show/16217/the-xbox-series-x-review-ushering-in-next-gen/2

The fact that you have to share a paltry 16GB of RAM between CPU and GPU is crippling. I've got games right now that eat up 15+GB of System RAM by themselves (Modded Cities Skylines, looking right at you, buddy).

Entirely depends on what the individual is wanting from their gaming experience.

Yes This. Well said.

People value things differently.

What's the value of a Switch? Literally nothing. A pc from 2002 destroys it.

I value choice and avoiding corporate censorship as much as i can.

@BassMan said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

I was just thinking about how much value consoles provide for the money. The XSX and PS5 are $500 machines with hardware that approaches the 3070 gpu.

Quick edit on that one. And its more like 2060 super.

@Archangel3371: Why shouldn't MS offer people the choice? If they can give you a radeon 6800xt level gpu, and extra ram, let's say 32gb, extra SSD capacity by 500gb, all for $1000, then would you buy it? I would and judging by how many paid scalpers this time around, I'm sure many others would do the same.

@moosewayne: its close to 3060ti. That's the power of 12 tflops. A 2060 super can't even do 4k native.

i love to here what standard for native is for gaming.. they fly very loss with terms of native,rez etc

@blaznwiipspman1: No where near a 3060TI DF already put ps5 at 2060 super/2070.

Consoles are closed and severely limited ecosystems, that's why they can afford to be sold at a loss/break even.

No way will they ever come close to a 2080 and up desktop GPU. Theyay get get close to laptops since they are low powered, but PC will always be ahead.

We go through the same crap at the start of every generation where console gamers think they have finally caught up to PC

Let's not forget that the vast majority of games are cross gen, that is the only reason it APPEARS close.

Happens every generation

The bold has me dying. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Even if we were to approach the fact that consoles are still not 500 dollars unless you get lucky right now. You can build quite a bit better PC at less than 1000 dollars MSRP.

@blaznwiipspman1: 'The XSX and PS5 are $500 machines with hardware that approaches something like a $2000 pc build on current market'

Wait, wot?

Huh? I never said one way or the other on whether Microsoft or Sony should put out a $1000 console. Simply said that people will hold a different perspective on the value of either console or PC.

Yes for many, but many like myself find PC to be more convenient. So again really depends on the person and their preferences.

@DragonfireXZ95: 3060 Ti for $400 isn't a bad deal at all.

Consoles have very little value to me.

As others have said, it depends on what you want.

I don't think at $1000 Xbox makes sense. Very few people would buy it.

@DragonfireXZ95: 🤣 did you just quote a 3060ti for $400. How dishonest, you pc gamers are shameless

@blaznwiipspman1: I really wish you could still get it at MSRP of $400, I would buy it today at that price. Very annoying the current prices being so bad over MSRP.

Let me install Windows with full functionality on a console and I'll say it's better value than a PC.

You can, you just have to buy one within seconds of them going in stock.

Thanks for the info, good to know. I will keep looking and trying and maybe I will get lucky. Do you know specific best places to keep checking? I have not had much luck on Amazon and Newegg so far, but I have not checked them super quick multiple times a day.

For gaming, on a performance:dollar metric, yeah consoles certainly offer a lot more value now (even at their scalped prices). At the moment its a really REALLY REALLY bad time to be buying or building a PC. It could very well be the first time, at least since the time (back in the 90s) when Ram was worth more than gold, that it has been this bad. I mean the money you will pay just for a 6500XT or RTX 3050 (300 and probably closer to 500 for the latter) is a joke. Hell its so bad on the desktop front that it could be argued that gaming laptops offer better value now.

It's a shame because, at MSRP, i thought the latest gens of GPU actually offered really solid value for money. the 3080, 3070, 6800, 6800XT: all great hardware at MSRP. intel actually just released the I5 12400 CPU also and it seems to offer wonderful value for money in gaming.

I'm just hoping my ol 1500X, Vega 64 and 16GB PC keeps on trucking. Thankfully Monster Hunter Rise just came out so thats me sorted for a while. I also have a massive backlog. I do want to upgrade for VR and Cyberpunk but the urge is not strong enough to suck up current prices (and CP2077 is still in Beta :P).

As for the more expensive console option. In hindsight you could argue that MS and Sony have low balled themselves. They could have charged 600+ quid for the XSX and PS5. of course thats easy to say now but historically consoles that have crossed the 500 threshold have faired very poorly. even sony, after the huge success of the PS2, had to quickly backtrack with the Ps3. inflation be dammed: it's like 499 is just some psychological hard limit with consumers when it comes to consoles.

I would love to see what MS, Sony and Nintendo would do though if they made a $1000 console/handheld/hybrid/whatever. But one of the reasons console makers can put a good price:performance package together is mass production and $1000 is not a mass production price. the orders for the 1000 spec console would be a lot smaller which would mean they wouldn't get as much performance per dollar.

PC fans here get really insecure and defensive when exposed to the fact that current consoles are far above their low ball pre-launch expectations.

I mean, it's only going to get more apparent as the generation moves along, but this is the same reaction I saw from PC know it all's who tried to argue all you needed to keep up with a PS4 last generation was R9 270 or a GTX 750, lol that worked out well.

In hindsight, you'll never hear these guys make that argument now, but they're the same one's running with the 2060 super equivalent argument against all evidence that suggests otherwise now.

Ghostrunner with RT on 6900XT using FSR to assist performance. The RT used on PC is higher quality than console but that is offset by the huge resolution reduction on PC needed to achieve 60fps.

FYI: FSR in Ultra Quality settings is only a 1662p internal resolution.

Here is Ghostrunner at native 4k with RT on PS5.

LINK: https://youtu.be/ycsF3EcL1EY?t=333

Do PC guys think a 2060 super can match these same results at NATIVE 4k and RT?

DF mentioned the RT mode on PS5 was a locked 60fps with no found drops. This is one example where PS5 FAR exceeds a 2060 super, but there are others (my GOW PS5 vs PC thread being another example & PC guys were REALLY REALLY angry)

€80 games and forced online subscriptions.

Nope, consoles still don't offer great value.

2060 Super is so 2019. Get with the decade, man. /3080TI master race

someone should tell that to Sony and MS because they are tripping over themselves to put their games on PC. Apparently the market puts more value on PC than consoles.

As for power and $500 vs $2000 PC, well, a 3 year old laptop easily beat the PS5 in UE5 demo.

Is someone actually denying that that you get more for your money with consoles tho? we have this same thread over and over again lol.

Shit dont change, like how my PC beats my consoles and does stuff my consoles cant do

@DragonfireXZ95 said:

@blaznwiipspman1 said:

I was just thinking about how much value consoles provide for the money. The XSX and PS5 are $500 machines with hardware that approaches something like a $2000 pc build on current market. I think we can all agree that dollar for dollar, nothing on the PC comes close.

I really liked MS strategy this gen. Offering a low end console for $300 and a high end one for $500. What if instead, MS offered a low end console for $500 and high end for $1000. The high end one would have a 6800xt gpu, double the ram, and a beefier ssd at maybe 1.5 tb. You might think that's expensive but consider the pc market currently. A single 6800xt costs as much as $1500. If MS could secure such hardware from AMD at the cost of pc gamers and the miners getting screwed over, I think they should. And people ate willing to spend $1000+ on consoles just considering how much success the scalpers have had. I would have bought a $1000 xbox with those specs.

What do you think. Should MS and Sony go ahead with this strategy in the future?

The bold has me dying. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Even if we were to approach the fact that consoles are still not 500 dollars unless you get lucky right now. You can build quite a bit better PC at less than 1000 dollars MSRP.

No buy button next to graphics card and that is the current problem.

Best to join one of the GPU drop groups on Discord or Telegram depending on where you live.

For a console To try and do/play everything a $2000 PC can do out of the box it would cost at least $1,820 over a console generation with online taxes. Add another $1000 to that for a mid gen refresh to stay viable, and you still give up mods, 100% backward compatibility, free games, and cheaper games in the process. I've broken this down mathmatically a few times previously. You're not getting a big value, you're just paying less upfront for less software access out of the box, and getting Nickle and dimed with monthly fees over the next few years to pay nearly the same amount. That's my personal experience.

Well this veered along the expected course. 😌

The problem with consoles has always been their utility. If you're just looking to game with a controller, they're mostly fine. If you use your pc for gaming and everything else, they're not really a great value. I find that I am getting much more value from my new $1200 rtx 3070 gaming laptop than from my series s, so myself and the s are going to part ways. Now, when you factor gamepass ultimate prices over the next 5 years, assuming they don't increase, plus the price of the console, you're at the same price point anyway. Only problem is less utility for the console. I guess the fact that the PC will get more games than either console is a benefit as well.

@Pedro: yes it did. I wanted to know what people thought about a $1000 console, whether they would be willing to buy one if the specs were much higher. For example, a xbox series x-2, with more ram, say 32gb, a larger ssd capacity at 1.5tb and higher end gpu, something on the level of the 6800. I would buy one at that price.

@tjandmia: I see your point of view, but to me it makes more sense to use the xbox series x for gaming, and a non gaming laptop for work related stuff.

I also don't see the point in including gamepass into cost. You dont need to buy it, it's a subscription service, and many pc gamers also subscribe to it. I mean, if xbox or pc gamers were to use the service instead of spending money on a certain game, then that balances out, end of the day.

@osan0: IF the msrp tags meant something, instead of being a pile of steaming BS, then I agree that it would be great value. If the crypto ponzi scheme crashes, then we will have cheap gpus again. If the government targeted bitcoin, our gpu prices would normalize. Bitcoin is the problem.

I dont think we should use the past history to judge what people are willing to spend. Many people this time around are spending $1000 to get a scalped console and similarly many pc gamers spent $2k to buy a 3080 or 3090 or 6800xt.

Also that's why I mentioned the two tier system. Offering a cheaper console on the level of the series X for $500, and a more expensive one for $800, or even $1000.

@above_average: exactly...there is no 2060super on the planet that can run these games at 4k 60fps. Heck it would struggle at 1440p. Console gaming is far more optimized, which is why i said the series x is on the level of the 3060ti.

On the console side.

They are buying scalped consoles....for now. these are not ordinary times (hopefully). When making a console, Generally companies don't tool up for a 1-2 year run. they want to be making that console for at least 5 years. There could be some appetite for a 1000 bucks console now. 2-3 years from now, when (hopefully) PC prices have more normalised. would the same appetite be there? i don't know.

I'm sure there is a small market there for a luxury console but the console market doesn't do small niches. its all about mass market adoption. making a 1000 quid PS5 pro, say, and going into a potential market of 5 million people is just not worth their time.

Remember that, for all the talk around the X1X and PS4 pro, both consoles sold less than the X1S and PS4 Slim in the same time frame (last time i checked anyway). Neither MS nor Sony have come out boasting about strong Pro or X1X sales which would suggest that they didn't do the numbers hoped.

On the PC side:

There doesn't actually seem to be that many PC gamers coughing up stupid money for stuff. Not enough to make Nvidia/AMD think "hey, lets actually make a GPU thats worth 2000 bucks". the presence of both the RTX 3000 series and RX 6000 series is woeful on steam after, what, 18 months on the market. Yet GPUs are being produced and selling in very high numbers (its not like AMD and Nvidia and their board partners are trying to play the whole artificial shortage card. they really can't make them fast enough).

So this suggests the vast majority of current gen and even used previous gen cards are going to Mine Etherium (the big GPU mining crypto). Miners are willing to pay stupid money for a GPU (as its currently a money printing machine in certain parts of the world). but PC gamers...not so much.

If i was a console manufacturer, i wouldn't be looking at current PC hardware sales data to determine anything about the spending habits of gamers.

i may think about developing a mining app for my console though if i was nasty :P.

Imagine if Microsoft built an operating system that could be utilized on a seemingly limitless configuration of hardware components, there'd be no end to the possibilities... oh, wait.