XBox One AND PS4 Discussion

[10spro]

The DS4 is a great controller from what little time I put into it at the kiosks. The touch pad is dumb, and not something I would want in a controller, but everything else felt million times better than the DS3.

Some games actually put the touch psd to pretty good use. Madden uses it as a quick and easy way to call a time out. In Killzone, you use it to decide what you want that drone to do. Attack, hack a computer, shields, etc. FIFA uses it to switch the camera view.

Yeah, i don't understand the term dumb based on a kiosk trial where probably the game was not put to work with it like "Knack". it works like a charm in Killzone and it has great potential as the developers make more use of it.

[10spro]

But I game in the dark most late nights, and I really don't want a blue light coming ut of my controller, either.

It's a controller not an LED flashlight. Unless you play the DS4 vertically like a stiff, I can hardly notice it.

Not an issue.

[Diablo25]

The DS4 is a great controller from what little time I put into it at the kiosks. The touch pad is dumb, and not something I would want in a controller, but everything else felt million times better than the DS3.

Some games actually put the touch psd to pretty good use. Madden uses it as a quick and easy way to call a time out. In Killzone, you use it to decide what you want that drone to do. Attack, hack a computer, shields, etc. FIFA uses it to switch the camera view.

Yeah, i don't understand the term dumb based on a kiosk trial where probably the game was not put to work with it like "Knack". it works like a charm in Killzone and it has great potential as the developers make more use of it.

The touch pad is clickable so it's more than just a ’touch pad'. It's that big that you won't miss it. KZ, as mentioned, uses it well. In ACBF it is the map button so it is very easily accessed.

[Diablo25]

But I game in the dark most late nights, and I really don't want a blue light coming ut of my controller, either.

It's a controller not an LED flashlight. Unless you play the DS4 vertically like a stiff, I can hardly notice it.

Not an issue.

Battery life on the DS4 is a joke. I get the feeling that light has something to do with it.

[Aristo]

The DS4 is a great controller from what little time I put into it at the kiosks. The touch pad is dumb, and not something I would want in a controller, but everything else felt million times better than the DS3.

Some games actually put the touch psd to pretty good use. Madden uses it as a quick and easy way to call a time out. In Killzone, you use it to decide what you want that drone to do. Attack, hack a computer, shields, etc. FIFA uses it to switch the camera view.

Yeah, i don't understand the term dumb based on a kiosk trial where probably the game was not put to work with it like "Knack". it works like a charm in Killzone and it has great potential as the developers make more use of it.

Well dumb is touting a touch pad as being innovative with actions that literally were single button presses with "outdated" tech. I have a Vita, so I'm fully aware of the "immersion" the dumb touchpad brings to games. I was kind of shocked they decided to keep it.

It's a good controller, but the touchpad has nothing to do with why it is good.

[Aristo]

But I game in the dark most late nights, and I really don't want a blue light coming ut of my controller, either.

It's a controller not an LED flashlight. Unless you play the DS4 vertically like a stiff, I can hardly notice it.

Not an issue.

Maybe I'm wrong, but DB complained specifically about the light in a dark room. And I probably do most of my gaming late and with all lights off.

And if that is killing battery life, it's a double strike against it.

It doesn't matter to me. My point wasn't so much to say that the DS4 is a bad controller, but that the XB1 controller has been a nice upgrade from the 360. I've seen enough impressions, and felt it in my hands at a Kiosk enough to understand why so many prefer the DS4. I would not have assumed that Sony would have actually made a good controller until I saw it.

But the trigger rumble in the XB1 controller has made a great impression in Forza, the D-Pad is improved, and the sticks feel better. It is lighter, but it still feels solid and easy to use. The tech it is missing is not a touch pad, but better headphone access. The XB1 controller also sends a signal to provide information to the Kinect, but doesn't need a glowing bulb to accomplish it.

[dbdynsty25]

Yeah that was me. Literally the only thing I don't like about the DS4 is the light. Its kind of annoying late night when I get the reflection off the bezel of my TV but I'm to the point I don't notice it anymore. The battery life is moot since its rechargable without having to spend 30 bucks on an extra charging kit. So not sure where that complaint comes from. I've got the dual controller charger to just drop it in at anytime (I guess there is your extra 20 bucks but it was not necessary).

[Diablo25]

Yeah that was me. Literally the only thing I don't like about the DS4 is the light. Its kind of annoying late night when I get the reflection off the bezel of my TV but I'm to the point I don't notice it anymore. The battery life is moot since its rechargable without having to spend 30 bucks on an extra charging kit. So not sure where that complaint comes from. I've got the dual controller charger to just drop it in at anytime (I guess there is your extra 20 bucks but it was not necessary).

The battery life isn't a deal killer but it is annoying that I have to connect it (almost) EVERY night. With the 360 or One controller the batteries last for nearly a week or more some times. The PS3 controller also lasted a LONG time. All things considered, the DS4 is a great controller. Glad it's on par (or even better for some) with the One's controller. I'll call the next gen controller battle a draw from my vantage point. Very happy with both.

[Spooky]

What is that light on the DS4 even used for? I read that KZ uses it for a health meter. Can you even see the light when holding it normally (aside from in the reflection of your TV)? Like you'd have to tilt the controller toward you to even look at the color change right? Seems like an odd design.

I have not had any complaints with the XB1 controller. Feels very familiar and I do like the triggers better vs the 360.

I did spend about 5 min in a store the other day checking out the DS4 and was definitely impressed - a very nice and needed upgrade for Sony.

Overall I'm enjoying my XB1 but haven't been able to dive into it as much as I'd like since I've been pretty sick (Pneumonia).

Couple updated thoughts:

- Still can't get over how fast the XB1 can switch apps/menus, etc. It's truly next-gen.

- I'm still enjoying the TV integration and voice controls but am very curious if/when that novelty will wear off. Right now though, because I am not much of a TV watcher, to be able to just quickly and easily say "Xbox On...Xbox Go to TV...Watch NBC..." when I want to watch Sunday Night Football feels really simple, intuitive and speedy. I'll attribute that to still not being familiar with the channels and the horrible interface that Time Warner has.

- Even though I probably won't use it very much in the future, I really love how XB1 integrated the game DVR feature. Being able to say "Xbox Record That..." and have it grab the last 30 seconds and save it is just too cool! I've read a lot of comparisons between the PS4 and XB1's game DVR's and while the PS4 has some nice advantages, I think for my use, the XB1's ease is a better fit. PS4 records the last 15 minutes with XB1 only recording the last 5, but I can't see myself ever wanting to record or share anything that's more than the 30 second "highlight". **Question for those that have both - does BF4 on the PS4 automatically save the game highlight when you level up like the XB1 does? What a neat idea to program that feature into the game itself!**

- Skype works really, really well and should be a fairly regularly used app in my house.

[Pete1210]

I was in BestBuy today to return the PS4. I was planning on selling it, but the demand is not there to make it worthwhile.

BestBuy had both XB1 and PS4 displays running. Both happened to be playing the FIFA demo. The PS4 version looked a little better to me, but they were in different aisles and the PS4 camera was more zoomed in.

[10spro]

What is that light on the DS4 even used for? I read that KZ uses it for a health meter. Can you even see the light when holding it normally (aside from in the reflection of your TV)? Like you'd have to tilt the controller toward you to even look at the color change right? Seems like an odd design.

You may argue its actual use in games, and if there's one feature that I can do without, this is the one. Personally when I play KZ, the controller rests on my lap so any indicative light that may pop up, I hardly notice it. I am also about 8' away from the TV which is a bit higher than the couch so again, it hasn't affected my gameplay. But yeah, if people play standing or hold the DS4 vertically, it may be more noticeable. But who does that?

[Murph]

What is that light on the DS4 even used for? I read that KZ uses it for a health meter. Can you even see the light when holding it normally (aside from in the reflection of your TV)? Like you'd have to tilt the controller toward you to even look at the color change right? Seems like an odd design.

You may argue its actual use in games, and if there's one feature that I can do without, this is the one. Personally when I play KZ, the controller rests on my lap so any indicative light that may pop up, I hardly notice it. I am also about 8' away from the TV which is a bit higher than the couch so again, it hasn't affected my gameplay. But yeah, if people play standing or hold the DS4 vertically, it may be more noticeable. But who does that?

From what I've read, the LEDs in the DS4 have the same purpose as the the light in the Move controller. I assume the brightness is so the PS camera can sense your DS4. Granted, at this point, not many games utilize it.

[Aristo]

What is that light on the DS4 even used for? I read that KZ uses it for a health meter. Can you even see the light when holding it normally (aside from in the reflection of your TV)? Like you'd have to tilt the controller toward you to even look at the color change right? Seems like an odd design.

You may argue its actual use in games, and if there's one feature that I can do without, this is the one. Personally when I play KZ, the controller rests on my lap so any indicative light that may pop up, I hardly notice it. I am also about 8' away from the TV which is a bit higher than the couch so again, it hasn't affected my gameplay. But yeah, if people play standing or hold the DS4 vertically, it may be more noticeable. But who does that?

From what I've read, the LEDs in the DS4 have the same purpose as the the light in the Move controller. I assume the brightness is so the PS camera can sense your DS4. Granted, at this point, not many games utilize it.

Yeah, it was reported that Sony dropped the camera as part of the package very late in the process. They saw the negative reaction to the Kinect and an opportunity to undercut Microsoft on cost. It was a smart move, but the lights are a legacy from that.

And I would rather have the option to drop in AA's or rechargeable batteries over being stuck with whatever charge the DS4 batteries will provide. That is going to wane over time, and the only option is to buy a new controller when they stop holding a charge. And if it is starting from seven hours, there is not a lot of give there. I wonder what kind of charge the battery pack gives compared to traditional AA's in the XB1 controller.

[greggsand]

I love the Xbox 1 controller (the rumble trigger effect on Forza is cool). The only thing that really feels different to me are the shoulder buttons. They seem harder to get to on games like NBA that heavily use them. I too haven't had to switch out the AA's yet.

[Danimal]

Has anyone been able to activate these PS Plus cards on their PS4? I enter the code off on and hit continue and it just dumps me back to the main screen of the PS4. I have no idea if it took or not.

Is there a way to tell this?

http://www.engadget.com/2013/11/29/sony ... e-support/

I was just able to add my second card, so you might wanna give it a shot now.

I added one but I would still love to know how I see when my membership expires.

[Leebo33]

I added one but I would still love to know how I see when my membership expires.

Settings, PSN, Account Information, Services List, Playstation Plus, PS Plus 12 Month Membership

[Danimal]

I added one but I would still love to know how I see when my membership expires.

Settings, PSN, Account Information, Services List, Playstation Plus, PS Plus 12 Month Membership

Thank you!

[Leadfoot5]

Wasn't planning on getting the XBOne, but couldn't resist when I saw them at Target today while shopping for other stuff...

After about an hour of setting up, I got it to control my Samsung TV, Bose Cinemate System and Cable Box. Having everything turn on and off with a single voice command is WAY cool. The only glitch at this point is with my Cox Cable box. Most of the time, when switching channels, the Cable Box Channel Info box comes up and you need to use the Cable remote to make it go away. I've searched the web and other have the same problem, but I have yet to see a solution yet. I'm hopeful that one will come soon so that I can put that remote away for good. The wife and I also enjoyed Skype-ing with our son at college, and it was pretty cool the way the Kinect camera followed us around our living room.

Off to try Forza...

[Diablo25]

Been messing with the Smartglass app and it's pretty damn cool to simply use it as a remote. Great stuff.

[Zeppo]

I had a bit of a misadventure this AM with TV through Xbone.

I turned on the EPL match on NBC Sports and it looked like ass. It was blurry with lots of jaggies and just looked awful. I flipped around to some other channels and this was consistent no matter what I watched.

What was weird was that I had watched the Auburn vs Alabama game on CBS yesterday and it looked really good. I couldn't get my head around why it was different today, and I started to believe I had just not noticed how bad TV had looked last night.

The interwebs seemed to support that thinking. There was a fair amount of bitching and moaning about poor TV image quality through Xbone.

Finally I figured, well, I can quit and restart the TV app (I finally figured out how to actually quit an app that's running), or even restart the Xbone and see if either of those things helped. Restarting the TV app didn't seem to help, but before restarting the Xbone I went into my cable box's settings in search of something awry.

Somehow my cable box had decided to send a 480p signal to my Xbone. I have no idea why it had decided to do that. Suddenly after my fiddling with the cable box settings, it decided to snap up to what it should have been doing all along and send 1080i through my Xbone. And damn it all if I can't tell any difference whatsoever between what I'm used to seeing direct to my TV and what I'm now seeing through the Xbone. Looks fantastic.

So, long story just a tad bit longer, if your TV image doesn't look right when you pass it through the Xbone TV app, try messing around with some settings on you Cable or satellite box before declaring TV through Xbone worthless. I'd bet satellite boxes won't have any issue, and that it's the craptastic shitfest that is the TWC software that runs my cable box that causes all the problems.

Now, as to audio.... Well, suffice it to say I am resigned to two channel stereo decoded in my receiver via DTS Neo6: Cinema for the time being. Of course I'd much rather have Dolby Digital, but alas the Xbone will not send anything but two channel stereo over its S/Pdif optical out. Apparently, it will pass through uncompressed 5.1 and 7.1 and DTS over HDMI (you have to go into settings and turn it on), so if you have a HDMI AV receiver make sure to check that box, but until they deliver the promised patch, it will not send DD over optical.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/43 ... -promised/

[TheTruth]

Wasn't planning on getting the XBOne, but couldn't resist when I saw them at Target today while shopping for other stuff...

After about an hour of setting up, I got it to control my Samsung TV, Bose Cinemate System and Cable Box. Having everything turn on and off with a single voice command is WAY cool. The only glitch at this point is with my Cox Cable box. Most of the time, when switching channels, the Cable Box Channel Info box comes up and you need to use the Cable remote to make it go away. I've searched the web and other have the same problem, but I have yet to see a solution yet. I'm hopeful that one will come soon so that I can put that remote away for good. The wife and I also enjoyed Skype-ing with our son at college, and it was pretty cool the way the Kinect camera followed us around our living room.

Off to try Forza...

I'm getting the same thing on my cox box as well. If you figure it out let me know.

Love the smart glass functionality as well. Still having some issues with voice control even after recalibrating several times. Think it has to do with echoing in my game room.

Has anyone else had an issue with the hdmi port from the xbox to the tv box seeming a bit loose?

[Leadfoot5]

Hogz, will do. By the way, I had some great races with your Drivatar in Forza last night. Really fun stuff.

The voice recognition has been great for me, although it's pretty hit or miss for my wife or daughter. I'm really impressed, they aren't. :p

On the controller topic, I really like the XBOne controller better for racing games as the left stick is just in a better position for me and I LOVE the dual vibe motors. But the fit and finish sucks on the controller that came with my system. The plastic is sharp and irritating to my hand where the three sections of plastic meet at the bottom left and right of each controller. I'm assuming this will be improved in the next builds. The PS4 controller is definitely more comfortable and a huge improvement over the DS3.

Glad I have both systems, still trying to figure out which one will get the nod for the games available on both...

[Inuyasha]

Thanks everyone fro the impressions. 100 pages! Don't think there was a DSP thread this long.

I'm going to go ahead and pull the trigger on one of these. Leaning PS4 right now, just because I only want a system for games, not anything else. But I also get a feeling that maybe XBO is onto something. Maybe the future is just not one gaming device but a device for all your entertainment.

I can sell my current XB and games have enough left over to spend under 100 for a PS4. Under 200 for a XBO. Such a hard decision!

[dbdynsty25]

Thanks everyone fro the impressions. 100 pages! Don't think there was a DSP thread this long.

I'm going to go ahead and pull the trigger on one of these. Leaning PS4 right now, just because I only want a system for games, not anything else. But I also get a feeling that maybe XBO is onto something. Maybe the future is just not one gaming device but a device for all your entertainment.

I can sell my current XB and games have enough left over to spend under 100 for a PS4. Under 200 for a XBO. Such a hard decision!

If you want the best system to game on when it comes to cross platform games, the PS4 is just where it's going to be at...and the gap will likely widen as this generation matures. It's really that simple, if that's your main objective and there aren't any exclusive Xbox titles that are tickling your fancy.

[Diablo25]

Thanks everyone fro the impressions. 100 pages! Don't think there was a DSP thread this long.

I'm going to go ahead and pull the trigger on one of these. Leaning PS4 right now, just because I only want a system for games, not anything else. But I also get a feeling that maybe XBO is onto something. Maybe the future is just not one gaming device but a device for all your entertainment.

I can sell my current XB and games have enough left over to spend under 100 for a PS4. Under 200 for a XBO. Such a hard decision!

Well, if you are just going for gaming then go with the PS4...it is, as you mentioned, $100 cheaper - easy decision. If you are looking for more then its the XB1. Gaming wise the systems are pretty much identical so you won't go wrong either way.