Xbox bigwig: Hardware specs don't matter 'because it's not 1990'

Xbox boss: Hardware specs don't matter, 'because it's not 1990'
Xbox One and PS4 have remarkably similar insides

A senior Xbox employee has urged gamers to dismiss the respective tech specs from their thinking when debating whether to buy the Xbox One or the Sony PS4.

Xbox head of planning Albert Penello hit out at Sony for proudly displaying its "numbers" but said discussions about which console had the better specifications were "meaningless."

Breakdowns of the hardware within the two consoles has revealed incredibly similar innards, with the PS4 perhaps having a very slight edge in terms of power. This won't matter, according to Penello.

He told Official Xbox Magazine: "The problem is that Sony decided to go out and publish a bunch of numbers, which are in some ways meaningless. Because this isn't like 1990, when it was 16-bit versus 32-bit."

A bunch of no-nothings

He said gamers will struggle to notice any real-world differences in hardware and that its really the games and connectivity experiences that'll decide the battle.

He went on: "As a matter of fact, they [Sony] actually go out and they talk about how proud they are about their off-the-shelf parts.

"Our guys'll say, we touched every single component in the box and everything there is tweaked for optimum performance. For me, I'd rather not even have the conversation, because it's not going to matter."

"The box is going to be awesome. The games are going to be awesome. I heard this exact same argument last generation and it's a pointless argument, because people are debating things which they don't know about."

Via CVG

Chris Smith

A technology journalist, writer and videographer of many magazines and websites including T3, Gadget Magazine and TechRadar.com. He specializes in applications for smartphones, tablets and handheld devices, with bylines also at The Guardian, WIRED, Trusted Reviews and Wareable. Chris is also the podcast host for The Liverpool Way. As well as tech and football, Chris is a pop-punk fan and enjoys the art of wrasslin'.