With both consoles being released in November of 2013, the Xbox One and PS4 have given gamers “next gen gaming”. Microsoft’s Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4 are constantly evolving, each adding new features and exclusive titles in a bid to take over your living room. The Xbox One offers a variety of entertainment options and will soon play tons of Xbox 360 games, while the PS4’s excellent sharing capabilities make it easy to show friends your favorite gameplay clips. Games now look better than before as you play with your friends or other players. But with all the spectacular abilities, these two consoles both have their weaknesses.

Game Library: Even though the two systems have similar current-gen game libraries, Xbox One has one major ace in the hole: backward compatibility. Starting in November, roughly 100 Xbox 360 games will be playable on Microsoft’s new console at no extra cost. Developers simply need to give Microsoft the OK in order for their 360 games to work on Xbox One, meaning that the console’s game library could be at least double the size of the PS4’s if enough companies jump aboard. If you want to play older games on PS4, your only option is to pay for PlayStation Now, which allows you to stream a small library of PS3 games from the cloud for $20 a month. Sony’s wider ecosystem of games is tied together more tightly thanks to Cross Play, which lets you purchase select games once and play them across your PS4, PS3 and Vita platforms. Both consoles have excellent game libraries, but Xbox One’s robust first-party offerings and backward compatibility with Xbox 360 games give it an edge.

Hardware: The PS4 is the clear winner in the looks department. The 6.1-pound system’s matte-black finish is sleek and easy on the eyes. It also can be propped up vertically, with a $20 stand. While still attractive, the Xbox One is basically a black box. The system’s top panel is half-glossy, half-matte — a pattern that’s reversed on the front of the machine to create a subtle checkerboard effect. Weighing 7 pounds and measuring 13 inches wide, the Xbox One is a bit harder to transport and will take up more shelf space than the slimmer, 11-inch-wide PS4.

Performance and Graphics: Both of these new systems make console gaming look beautiful, but the PS4 has the edge in terms of resolution. On the PS4, one game might run at 1080p, while that same game on the Xbox would run at 900p. However, smoothness and resolution don’t necessarily go hand in hand. Both consoles have a 500GB hard drive, the PS4 via can swap its swappable SSD drive, and the Xbox One via can use just about any external USB 3.0 storage drive.

Interface and streaming: Rolling out in November, the New Xbox One Experience brings a completely revamped, Windows 10-powered interface to Microsoft’s console. The latest Xbox One has larger icons for easier navigation, shortcuts for getting to your games quickly, and, perhaps most notably, features a new guide that lets you reach your friends, notifications and messages with a single button-tap. The PS4 interface is similarly slick and is still king in terms of capturing gameplay moments and sharing them with friends. A quick tap of the DualShock 4’s share button brings up a menu that lets you record a clip, broadcast your gameplay or take a screenshot. And the PS4-exclusive Share Play feature lets you give control of your game to an online friend for up to 60 minutes. The PS4 might have the upper hand on this one.

Entertainment: For straight forward options, the Xbox One is the superior entertainment machine. One of the system’s key distinguishing features is its ability to transmit your cable box’s TV signal, allowing you to quickly switch between playing a game and watching a show. It can also snap your TV feed to the top right of the screen so you can do both at once.  Xbox One owners have access to Sling TV, a similar online TV service that offers top networks such as ESPN and AMC for $20 a month. PS4 now offers Sony’s own PlayStation Vue online TV service (starting at $50 a month), which features lots of major cable channels, such as MTV and Nickelodeon.

Online Experience: Microsoft’s Xbox Live Gold ($60 yearly, $10 monthly) and Sony’s PlayStation Plus ($50 yearly, $10 monthly) online services are both required for you to play any game’s online multiplayer mode, and both come with their fair share of extra “goodies”. PlayStation Plus members get two free games per PlayStation console per month, while Microsoft’s Games with Gold provides the same service for Xbox gamers. Both programs have given away everything from new indie games to older blockbusters from franchises like Assassin’s Creed and Metal Gear Solid. PS4’s online service offers a wider range of free games and can be had for cheaper, but Xbox One has better cloud storage and online stability.

You couldn’t go wrong with these two consoles, but each has its differences. I myself would recommend the Xbox 1 for its first class entertainment. The Xbox is great for playing with your friends and having a good time. If you want a console with high definition game play get the PS4. Sony really focused on the full game experience. Todays next gen gaming like never then before and who knows what’s to come.