20 Awesome Things The Xbox One Can Do The PS4 Can’t

Tech debates usually have clear winners — it's pretty obvious that VHS won over Beta, a and Blu-ray defeated HD-DVD easily. PlayStation Vs. Xbox, on the other hand, since the very introduction of the original Xbox to the North American market in 2001, has no clear winners.

Many people argue that the Xbox 360 was decisively superior to the PS3, and I would tend to agree if Sony didn’t pull back into the race by the end of that generation. Blu-Ray disks were becoming mainstream and developers were finally able to master the complicated architecture of the PS3’s processing unit to come out with masterpieces like Uncharted 3.

This console generation, however, especially after the launch of the PS4 Pro and the Xbox One X, the contest is more one-sided than it has ever been. The One X is an objectively superior machine in terms of power, accessibility, output capabilities. What’s more, even the One S is a far superior package than the, frankly, outdated PS4 slim. Here in this article, we list things that you can do on the Xbox that you can’t on the PS4.

20 PS4 Can't Play The Exclusive Games (Yes, They Exist)

This one is the most obvious. Some of the other features in this list may be available on the PS4 in the future, such as better voice commands. However, one thing that you will never be able to do on the PS4 is play Halo or Gears of War in 4k HDR bliss. Actually, you will never be able to play those games at any resolution on the PS4. Sure, Sony may have Uncharted and God of War to boast about, but for those of us who have grown up with Master Chief, the choice is quite obvious.

19 Xbox Has Important Apps like Skype And OneDrive

Xbox has benefitted a lot by its association with Microsoft. Apart from the ability to cross-play many interesting games between Xbox and Windows 10, Xbox owners also benefit from access to apps like OneDrive and Skype right on their console.

If you have ever tried getting a totally legal movie you downloaded onto your computer to play through your PS4, you would know that fidgeting around with Plex or other solutions is no easy task. With the Xbox however, you can simply move the video to your PC’s OneDrive folder and have it show up on your Xbox as soon as it finished uploading.

18 The Power Of The Xbox One X Obliterates The PS4 Pro

This is likely to be the most important difference between the Xbox and PS4 for most gamers. The One X is simply much more powerful than the PS4 Pro. The Xbox has a CPU clock speed of 2.3Ghz, as opposed to 2.1Ghz on the PS4. This may not seem significant to you, and it likely isn’t for most games, but where the Xbox really shines is its GPU and RAM. While the Xbox has 12GBs of GDDR5 RAM, the PS4 makes do with 8. Similarly, Xbox’s GPU has a processing power of 6 teraflops, while the PS4 makes do with 4.2. As Digital Foundry points out, the end result of this on games can be quite drastic.

17 Even Games That Aren't Optimized For The X Run Better

While some studios may have gone the extra mile to fully utilize all the extra processing chops the One X has to offer, it would be foolish to expect all developers to have similar priorities. After all, how many multiplatform games utilized the PS3’s extra processing power over the Xbox 360’s over the course of the entire generation?

That’s the best part about the One X. It is not overly complicated to code for like the PS3. Even games like Diablo 3 benefit from more constant 4k output without too much One X specific optimization. This is, once again, made possible by the One X’s superior processing power.

16 PS4 Can't Play 4K Blu-rays (For Some Ridiculous Reason)

How the tables have turned! In the good old PS3 vs. Xbox 360 era, many people opted for the PS3 simply because it could serve as a Blu-ray player. Since both consoles were advertising themselves as “media centers,” Blu-ray playback capability was pretty important. To make matters worse, Microsoft’s solution was to release an external accessory... that supported HD-DVDs.

Now the situation is completely opposite. Microsoft not only added Blu-ray support this generation but also added 4k Blu-ray support for the One S and One X. Sony, on the other hand, bizarrely decided to skip 4k Blu-ray capability on even the PS4 Pro! The only way to watch 4k content on a PS4 Pro is through streaming services like Netflix.

15 The Voice Commands Are Much Better

This is one area where there simply is no competition. If you like using voice commands to control your devices, this is the Alexa/Google Home era, after all, you are far better off with Xbox. Voice commands for the Xbox are versatile, easy to use, and can accomplish many functions. Turning the Xbox on or off, pausing videos, etc are all possible through voice commands alone on the Xbox. These commands do not exist for the PlayStation. However, even the limited number of commands that do exist for the PS4 are nowhere near as user-friendly as those on the Xbox. According to howtogeek.com, to switch from another app to Netflix, the following string of commands would have to be uttered “PlayStation, Home Screen, Netflix, Start, Yes.”

14 That Extra HDMI Is Super Useful

Though both Sony and Microsoft claim they are selling the ultimate all-in-one entertainment systems, only the Xbox truly lives up to that claim in this console generation. Both the new Xboxes have an HDMI IN port to plug in your cable set-top box. What will happen is your cable will output to your Xbox which will then output to your TV. The advantages are many, including using voice commands to pause, play, and mute your cable TV. Many gamers will also appreciate the ability to jump between games and TV quickly without using the TV remote or changing inputs or anything like that.

13 Experience Optical Audio

This one is quite a weird omission on Sony’s part. Not only has Microsoft equipped its more expensive One X model with an optical audio port, but it has even gone ahead and equipped its much cheaper One S model with an optical audio port. Sony on the other hand only ships the PS4 Pro with this port. What this means is that if you buy a PS4 slim, you will have quite a hard time connecting your shiny new console to a home theatre or sound system.

There are ways to share digital copies of your favorite games with your friends on the PS4, however, they all involve either complicated procedures and/or violating Sony’s rules of service. On the Xbox however, it is a very easy task to accomplish, as this Digital Trends guide shows. Keep in mind though, the process involves sharing your Xbox Live log in info with whomever you want to share games with. We would recommend doing this only with trusted friends and family.

11 4K Is Happening On The Xbox (For Games And Apps)

When the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X were launching, we heard a lot about how 4k gaming will now become the standard. However, only the One X can really claim to be a true 4k gaming console.

The One X’s superior processing power means that it will be able to output native 4k far more often than the PS4. In fact, Sony acknowledges this shortcoming and offers developers two rendering choices, “resolution mode” which locks the game at a particular resolution above 1080p and “quality Mode” which dynamically scales the resolution depending on how difficult to render the active scene is.

10 Cross-Platform Play Is The Future — And The Xbox Is Ready

Another great feature of the Xbox is that there are many games out there, such as Gears of War 4 and Halo Wars 2, which have cross-platform support with Windows 10. This means that you could be playing a multiplayer game on your Xbox and the other players in the match could be playing from a PC. This alone could make the decision for many people in the market for a console, if most of their friends play mainly on their computers.

9 The Elite Controller Makes The PS4 Controller Look Lame

Though the difference is not as stark as it was in the previous generation, most people agree that the Xbox still has the more ergonomic controller than the PS4.

There is no doubt that the PS4 controller is a massive improvement over the puny PS3 controller which used to be one of the biggest complaints people had with the PS3. However, we believe that the Xbox controller’s larger size, as well as placement of joysticks, make it far more comfortable to use over extended periods of time.

8 The Xbox Controller Uses Batteries — Which Means No Wires

Depending on how you look at it, this is either the Xbox controller’s greatest advantage or disadvantage. If you have a set of 4 batteries, you can play your Xbox continuously without having to plug the controller into the Xbox. On the PS4, you would have to necessarily plug your controller into the console to charge it when it runs out of juice. On the other hand, if you have less than 4 batteries, your Xbox will be unplayable until you charge your batteries.

Another advantage of separate batteries is that when the PS4 controller’s internal batteries deteriorate, you would have to replace the controller. With the Xbox, you can simply buy a new pair of batteries.

7 The Xbox Phone App Is Light Years Ahead Of PS4s

There are a lot of major problems with the PlayStation 4 app. First and foremost, the app pops open a browser for way too many actions — in 2018, that's a bit ridiculous. Moreover, the app itself is subdivided into a handful of smaller apps, for example, having a dedicated messages app.

On the flip side, the Xbox One app is completely unified and has a bevy of useful features, such as a makeshift controller (shown above), and quickly opening up a keyboard when you need to type on-screen. It's great!

6 You Can Play Xbox 360 Games On The Xbox One

Though it did not have this functionality from the beginning, Microsoft has enabled backward compatibility on the Xbox One to allow it to play games from the Xbox 360. Doing so is exceptionally simple too, simply pop in the game’s disk and voila! You can play your Xbox 360 games on your Xbox One. If you bought a particular Xbox 360 game’s digital version, the process is even more simple. The game should automatically appear in the “Ready to Install” section.

5 You Can Play Original Xbox Games Too, That Too For Free

What's even more impressive than effortlessly playing Xbox 360 games on the Xbox One? Playing the original Xbox’s games effortlessly on the Xbox One! That’s right, you can simply pop in your 10-year-old Xbox game disks into your Xbox One and the game should run right away. Keep in mind that all of this is 100% free too. The PS4, on the other hand, requires you to buy into their PS Now service and even then the results leave much to be desired, as we shall soon see.

4 Game Pass Is A Dream Come True (Sorry, PlayStation)

Apart from the fact that you can play any previous generation games on the Xbox One at all, what really seals the deal is that the process is as simple as popping in a disk. This means that you can play your games offline too. The PS4, on the other hand, does not have any backward compatibility at all. What you get though is a paid service called PS Now. PS Now relies on streaming to let you play your previous generation games. This means that it is impossible to use this service without an internet connection. And you have to make sure this internet connection is fast and stable too.

3 You Can Plug In A Nintendo Switch (And Make The Ultimate Console)

That HDMI In port we talked about earlier? Apart from letting you plug in your TVs and set-top boxes to your Xboxes, it also allows you to plug in a Nintendo Switch! This means that you can switch between your Xbox and Switch without leaving the Xbox interface or even touching your TV remote. This ability is good if you play frequently on both consoles and want to quickly check which friends of yours are online on which console. On the downside, however, some people report significant input lag when playing on the Switch through this method.

2 The Accessibility Controller Makes Gaming Better For Everyone

Xbox has really tried to cast a very wide net this generation. While they have the elite controller geared towards “pro-level” gamers, they have also come out with the Xbox adaptive controller for gamers with limited mobility. What’s best is that you can buy this controller without breaking the bank either.

Microsoft says it collaborated with The AbleGamers Foundation, The Cerebral Palsy Foundation, SpecialEffect, and Warfighter Engaged, among others to design this controller. With such an impressive list of contributors, the controller is bound to be a joy to use for many people who wouldn’t otherwise be able to enjoy the Xbox.

1 The Kinect Was Ahead Of Its Time — PS4 Gamers Will Never Know

Microsoft may have stopped selling or manufacturing Kinects anymore, but if you somehow get your hands on one, you will still be able to connect and use it with your Xbox. That is something that is obviously not possible on the PS4. This point is only worth considering for those who already own Kinects, since its damn near impossible to buy a new one anymore. However, there are still some handy features that are useful in 2018. These include using the camera for video calling, voice commands and Cortana, and a bunch of Kinect games.