The debate between console and PC gaming has been going on for several years. Players who are loyal to the PC Master Race will always claim that gaming PCs or laptops are better than consoles like PS5, and PlayStation fans will always brag about the exclusive games. However, figuring out whether you should buy a gaming laptop or a PS5 depends on your budget, specs on both platforms, and gaming performance. If you are having some trouble deciding whether you should buy a PS5 or a gaming laptop, then this article will help you determine which one you should go for.
PS5 vs gaming laptop: Price in India
For a fair comparison between PS5 and gaming laptop, a specific budget needs to be decided. Although PS5 costs Rs 49,990, you would also need a monitor with high-refresh rate display, which could be worth an additional Rs 20,000. Now, laptops worth Rs 70,000 can be compared with PS5 to understand which one offers better gaming performance and value.
In terms of value, a gaming laptop is much better than PS5 as it can do more than just playing games and watching video content. Along with these, PC games are generally cheaper to buy compared to PS5 games and you don’t need to subscribe to a service like PS Plus to play multiplayer on PC. That being said, PS5 will most likely offer better gaming performance compared to a gaming laptop worth Rs 70,000, thanks to its impressive specs.
PS5 vs gaming laptop: Specs, features
The PS5 features a 3.5GHz octa-core AMD Zen 2 processor along with AMD RDNA 2 GPU, which deliver 10.28 TFLOPs of compute power. The console also has 16GB of RAM and a custom 825GB SSD with load speed of 5.5 GB/s. The PS5 also supports ray tracing, up to 120 FPS gameplay, and 60 FPS gameplay at 4K resolution. Along with these, PS5 has features like 3D audio, a 4K Blu-ray drive in the disc version, and content rendering at up to 8K resolution.
When it comes to laptops worth Rs 70,000, you can look at options like HP Pavilion Gaming laptop, Lenovo Legion Y540, and Asus Vivobook Gaming. None of these laptops have the latest processor or GPU. While HP Pavilion Gaming laptop has Ryzen 5 4600H processor and an Nvidia GTX 1650Ti GPU, the Asus Vivobook Gaming laptop has Intel Core i5-10300H processor and Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU. The specs of Lenovo Legion Y540 are even worse, with Intel Core i5-9300H and Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU. All of these laptops offer a maximum of 8GB RAM and up to 512GB SSD out of the box, which means you will need to upgrade your RAM to get some decent gaming experience. Along with these, Nvidia GTX 1650 does not come with ray tracing support.
In terms of specs, PS5 is the clear winner over laptops like HP Pavilion Gaming laptop, Asus Vivobook Gaming, and Lenovo Legion Y540.
PS5 vs gaming laptop: Gaming performance
As PS5 has superior specs compared to HP Pavilion Gaming laptop, Asus Vivobook Gaming, and Lenovo Legion Y540, it will most likely deliver much better gaming experience. PS5 supports ray tracing and 4K gaming at steady 60 FPS. None of the above mentioned laptop can deliver these. Laptops like HP Pavilion Gaming laptop, Asus Vivobook Gaming, and Lenovo Legion Y540 may offer 1080p gaming at 60 FPS if you play games at Low or Medium settings. Visual quality in games would most likely be subpar on these laptops, and you cannot expect steady high frame rates in games that require a lot of resources. Besides these, having just 8GB RAM and an entry-level Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU will severely impact gaming performance on these laptops.
Playing games on the PS5 will be a much better experience than playing them on a laptop worth Rs 70,000. Steady 60 FPS at 4K or 120 FPS in performance mode along with ray tracing on PS5 will be better than anything you play on these laptops.
PS5 vs gaming laptop: Games and exclusivity
A major draw for PlayStation fans is its exclusive games that are available only on PS4 and PS5. Games like Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man Miles Morales, Bloodborne, Ghost of Tsushima, Horizon Forbidden West, The Last of Us 1 and 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and others are not available to play on a laptop. Although Sony has started introducing some former PlayStation exclusives to PC, these games generally arrive years after their initial release. That being said, many Microsoft first-party games like Halo Master Chief Collection, Halo Infinite, Gears series, Forza series, Sea of Thieves, and others are available on Xbox and PC, but not on PlayStation.
If you are interested in playing PlayStation exclusives, then you should definitely go for PS5. However, if you don’t really care about PlayStation exclusive games, you can opt for a gaming laptop.
PS5 vs gaming laptop: Availability
Since Sony launched the PS5 in 2020, the stocks have been limited in India. Prospective buyers have to wait for a PS5 restock announcement every month, and some of them are lucky enough to pre-book them online before they go out of stock within minutes. The PS5 shortage is expected to last this year as well, so getting your hands on a brand-new PS5 is quite a challenge in India. Meanwhile, you can easily buy a gaming laptop worth Rs 70,000 online via Amazon, Flipkart, Croma, MD Computers, and more as well as via offline retailers.
