Sony PS4 vs. Microsoft Xbox One rematch

[MUSIC] What's up Prize Fight fans? I'm Brian Tong and next gen consoles have had over a year to grow up. But we're throwing them back into the Prize Fight ring. [MUSIC] It's a rematch between Sony's Playstation 4, and Microsoft's X-BOX One. Our judges for this fight, are CNET's Senior Editor, Dan, the man, Ackerman. Senior Associate Editor, Jeff, Backstreet Boy, Bakalar. And you know who, Ring a Ling a Ding Tong. We'll take all three judge's scores, and average them out [UNKNOWN]. To the nearest tenth. The final divided by four gives you an average of all the rounds in the decimal system. Round one is design. Sony's PS4 is the sleekest console with an edgy design that you can still pick up and take to your friend's house, and it still has the best feeling controller on the market. The XBox One, still big. Still clunky. And that power supply is still separate. Now, I love the specific vibration feedback on the controllers, but it's just not enough. Sony strikes first with a 4.7 and Microsoft gets a 3.3. Round 2 is navigation and interface. Sony's PS4. Retains a single bar interface that's easy to figure out from the start, and we like the quick access to notifications and updates. The Xbox one still has a lot going on here with its bold tiles, but you have to dive into layers to do certain tasks. There's still too much going on here, and we're curious if they can make any changes with Windows 10 rolling out this year. Now Connect voice control is still here. It can be hit or miss. And there's real multi-tasking with its Snap feature. But how many of you are honestly using it today? Not me. I disconnected mine. Plus the removal of the Connect as a required part of the console confirms it's not that important to Microsoft either. The PS4 takes another round with a four. And the XBOX One gets a three. So after averaging 2 rounds Sony leads big, round 3 is hardware. The biggest hardware difference from year 1 to year 2 is the fact the kinect is no longer included or needed at all for the Xbox 1 making voice commands and Skype functionality optional. HDMI pass throughs still make this more than just a gaming machine. To switch between TV and games. Both consoles bring Blu-Ray players and the PS4's real hardware advantage is graphical power that runs the same third-party games at a higher native resolution at times. PS4's remote play is still a thing with the PS Vita, but it's never been responsive enough for me to consistently use. Playstation TV needs optimal network conditions to be useful. I returned mine and the only time I used the Playstation camera was to scan my face in NBA 2K15, but people who love Ustream of Twitch streaming won't be able to go without it. Now the XBox One takes this round with a 3.3 and the PS4 gets a 2.7. Next round is game library. We're just about to hit the flood of truly next-gen titles. That will extend through 2015, so we're still in a holding pattern. But one big change from last-gen is that it's now the PS4 instead of the Xbox One that has become the default choice for many multiplatform games. More people are really gaming with their friends on the PS4 versus the XBox One right now. Triple A console exclusives currently favor the XBox One, with Titles like Titan Fall, Forza Five, and Sunset Overdrive that really took me by surprise. The PS4 has Infamous Second Son, The Last of Us Remastered and is ramping up with the War 1886 and Uncharted 4. Now, you can stream games with the Playstation Now service, and play older titles on the PS4. XBox Live games with gold and the Playstation Plus's service brings new games for both monthly, but Sony still has stronger Indie developers, one area that the XBox lacks in. And Xbox fans, I'm not forgetting about the Halo Masterchief collection, but [MUSIC] Its online issues killed it for me. If you have to look at it right now, we're giving Sony the slightest of edges if you're really talking about the overall gaming picture with a 3.3, and the Xbox gets a three. So, after four rounds, Microsoft has significantly closed the gap. Round five is software features and online services. Playstation plus and XBox Live are pretty much required to get the most out of your console these days. Netflix, Amazon Prime and VooDoo live on both. Twitch streaming is now available on both consoles, but the XBox offers more media apps and content, while the PS4 has better social integration with hooks to Facebook, and makes it really easy to share and stream content. Plus al la carte streaming services are on their way with Sony's Vue TV service coming to the the PS4. And Sling TV service coming to the XBox One. Overall we're calling this one a tie at 4.0. And the final round that decides it all in value. Sony's PS4 system is still the same 399 but the entry level Xbox One is now 349. You'll still need Playstation Plus or Xbox Live Gold for any online gaming but you can now stream apps and content without an Xbox membership. Now right now the Xbox One is bringing more value and we've got to give it the edge with a four and the PlayStation 4 gets a 3.7 [MUSIC] So let's average out all six rounds, and in this rematch, some things have changed, and some things have still remained the same, but it's still the Sony PlayStation 4 that beats out the Xbox One, 3.7 to 3.4, and is your prize fight winner. 2015 is going to be a big year for gaming consoles as they finally grow up and start showing us what their really capable of. And really forget the results. The console preview always comes out what you do and the games you wanna play. I'm Brian Tong thanks for watching, and we'll catch you guys next time for another Prize Fight. [MUSIC]