Among the highlights of the new PS5 Pro announcement, the steep $699.99 price tag takes up most of the attention, topping out at $800 for the base version plus disc drive. At this cost, the question naturally arises as to whether building a custom PC wouldn’t offer greater flexibility, access to a wider library of games, and the advantage of upgrading components in the future.
And, thanks to an analysis by Gamestar.de, who have crunched the numbers, perhaps the nearly $700 USD isn’t such a bad deal after all, and while the comparison is rather simplified, as consoles and PCs cater to different user preferences, we’ll delve deeper into the differences later in this article.
Pre-built PC vs. Custom PC
Based on their analysis, there are some limitations to both buying a fully-built PC or buying the parts separately and doing the assembly and configuration yourself. For pre-built PCs, there are limitations such as finding a pre-built PC with PS5 Pro-level specs for a similar price. Most options in this price range include GPUs like the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060, so the potential for a custom PC at this level will be to find a pre-built machine that can offer similar performance for a slightly higher cost.
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In the case of the custom PC, the experts have carefully selected the components to build a gaming PC of comparable power to the PlayStation 5 Pro for just $30 more. This configuration would have an AMD Ryzen 5 5600X processor, AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT graphics card, 16 GB of DDR4 RAM, 1 TB NVMe SSD, Sharkoon VS9 case and 700 W power supply.
Components of the “PS5 Pro PC”
With the specs outlined, the technical limitations are a non-modular power supply that makes cable management difficult, a slower SSD than the motherboard’s PCIe 3.0 interface resulting in longer loading times compared to the PS5 Pro, and ray tracing performance that, despite the similar GPU, would give the PS5 Pro a slight edge.
So according to the analysis: Is a PC or a PS5 Pro worth it?
The bottom line is that the PS5 Pro offers a simpler experience, making it a better option for those who prioritize convenience without the hassle, but for those looking for maximum customization and the ability to upgrade components, building a custom PC is a viable option. The extra “costs” after the analysis are those that have to do with peripherals and software, such as the controller, operating system, keyboard, mouse, and a monitor, which can significantly raise the total cost of a gaming PC. This is added to the complexity of building and maintaining a PC, which requires technological knowledge that does not jeopardize your investment.
And while you might not get the PS5 Pro’s 60 CUs of AMD GPUs in a $700 configuration, PC experts say it’s important to note that this isn’t the start of a new generation. The PS5 Pro has always been a mid-generation refresh, allowing some users to squeeze more out of their games before the world moves on to the next thing. But ultimately, the best choice comes down to a user’s preferences and priorities, so this data should be taken as a guide to getting the machine you want.