Release year
The official release year of the game console. Usually, it is indicated by the date of official sale. This information allows you to determine the "age" of the device — and, accordingly, its functionality (to some extent), including within its own platform. So, for example, the difference between the Xbox One S and Xbox One X in terms of name is not particularly obvious; but knowing that the first was released in
2016, and the second —
in 2017, you can definitely determine which model will be newer and more advanced. Accordingly
, the novelties of 2020 and
2019 will be even better.
Resolution
Set-top box native display resolution. This parameter largely determines the quality of the image: the higher the resolution (with the same diagonal) — the more even and smoothed the “picture” will be, the less noticeable will be the individual points that make up it. Here, however, it must be borne in mind that the corresponding graphics resolution should be provided for in the games themselves. Ideally, it should match the display values — otherwise the image will look either too rough, "grainy" (if the game resolution is less than that of the screen), or small and cloudy (if the game resolution is higher). However, most platforms for portable models have certain requirements for screens, and manufacturers, even unofficial ones, usually try to follow them.
CPU
The model of the processor installed in the game console.
The processor is the main computing module of the device; the capabilities of the set-top box as a whole largely depend on its characteristics. However, it is worth noting that information about its model in game consoles is usually of a general reference and promotional nature. The fact is that set-top boxes are usually designed for a specific platform, and this implies certain requirements for the power of the hardware so that the corresponding games work normally. Of course, knowing the name, you can find more detailed information — characteristics, test results, reviews, reviews, etc. — and make the most clear impression of the capabilities of the processor; however, unless you plan to use the prefix in non-standard roles, this information is unlikely to be of real practical value. The only exception is gaming tablets (see "Form Factor"): since they are very versatile and can be equipped with a variety of programs, processor data can be useful in assessing how fast an application will run.
Note that advanced desktop set-top boxes can have multiple processors.
Graphics card performance
The performance of the graphics card installed in the game console.
Performance is measured in FLOPS, the number of floating point math operations that a graphics card processor can perform in one second. Game consoles traditionally use teraflops, or trillions of operations per second.
Theoretically, higher performance means a more advanced graphics card and corresponding graphics quality. However, in fact, this parameter is often given more for promotional purposes than to describe the actual capabilities of the console. The fact is that the quality of game graphics depends not only on the capabilities of the graphics card, but also on other factors — including the general characteristics of the set-top box (processor, memory, etc.), as well as how well the games are optimized for this platform . Therefore, models similar to each other in this indicator may differ markedly in the actual video capabilities. Moreover, a relatively modest graphics card can also outperform a more performant counterpart. For example, Microsoft's Xbox One S, which has a "only" 1.4 TFLOPS video accelerator, supports 4K resolution and HDR (see "Features"), while its peer PS 4 Slim with a 1.84 TFLOPS graphics card TFLOPS does not have such capabilities. Therefore, it makes sense to compare video performance only on consoles that differ significantly in digital indicators.
RAM
The amount of RAM installed on board the console.
RAM is one of the main components of computer systems (which are all game consoles). Performance significantly depends on its volume: the more memory (ceteris paribus), the higher the speed, usually, and the better the system handles with resource-intensive tasks. On the other hand, in game consoles, RAM is installed in such a way that it is guaranteed to correspond to the claimed platform, so it makes sense to pay close attention to this parameter only in gaming tablets. This moment is described in more detail above in the “Processor” paragraph.
Internal storage
The volume of the set-top box's own built-in storage (see "Storage"). The larger this volume, the more information can fit directly in the device, the less often you have to clean the storage. It is worth noting that the same model of a desktop set-top box can be produced with different volumes (
500 GB,
1 TB and
2 TB). For portable set-top boxes, much less volume is available — up to
250 GB
