Apart from, you know, any modern gaming PC.
I do like consoles and I've got nothing against them but pretending that your new console is "the most powerful gaming device ever" is complete bull as long as PCs exist.

Yes, but can it run Crysis?

Sorry, old joke but I couldn't resist.....

Now I just wanna see what Microsoft is capable of.

Well, that was a massive lie. I'll admit that the 8GB RAM for a console impresses me to a degree, but a console will never overtake the hardware in PCs.

Oh wow! 8GB of unspecified fastness of RAM! How will will my PC compete with that?
Oh wait.... Bull. Announcement is hype.

Let's hope this power doesn't translate into a bull in a china shop.

Dr. Niko Tatopoulos, your thoughts on Sony's announcement?

They're right about it being the most powerful gaming device ever. My 16 gigs of ram are strictly for word processing.

And every PC gamer laughed in unison.

So lets run down the "Innovations" of this system.

Controller that is basically it's own portable system: Nintendo, 3 months ago

Remote access of your system: Cloud, 2 years ago

Less cluttered geometric UI: X Box, 10 years ago

Low power "sleep mode": Microsoft, 15 years ago

Inter device networking: Apple, 20 years ago

Cumbersome and gratuitous anti piracy software that doesn't even work: Sony, Forever ago

So in short, the only idea in this new console they can legitimately take credit for is the bad one, and its not even a new idea. Grats.

For over half a decade they said "no one cares about superior PC graphics, you PC elitists *sneer*"

Then Sony announces: "Hey we've got super PC graphics for a console!"

Greg Tito:
Sony Touts PS4 As the Most Powerful Console Ever

Fixed it for you.

I can see many a PC Fanatic doing one of two things.

1) "Challenge Accepted"

2) "My rig laughs at this"

At least this gives me something to aim for when I start on my own rig.

The funny thing is the x86 CPU, which is odd as hell when most moved to the x64 systems (OS's especially) for the use of more RAM as well as more programs to run simultaneously. An x64 natively uses more than 4gb of RAM, while a x86 requires use of a PAE to go beyond 4gb (because that's a defaulted cap).

At least textures will be a bit better on PC ports now.

KeyMaster45:

Cerny said every console up to this point was intended to be a game console first, but that the network possibilities have changed all that.

Welcome to the brave new world folks. Where the primary function of a game console is no longer to play games.

Yeah, I don't like that either. At least Nintendo is still focused on making Game Consoles for the Games, but everyone here keeps branding them as a bunch of losers.

It's as if we want Game Consoles to no longer focus on Games...

And to Think I Entertained the Thought of Going PC

The console industry will flourish; and the future -- that is, for Microsoft & Sony -- appears bright as it's predicated on "the future". The controller looks and sounds innovative, and yet not half-hearted in any measure. Everything about the controller serves a specific purpose for the game and the console itself! The console just wants to please you; the PC wants you working for pleasure -- i.e customization, mods, user keys and downloads. All of this busy work gets in the way of experiencing the game.

PC vs PS4 Spec Comparisons Are Moot

As long as the power is substantive and broad enough, you can count on human ingenuity stretch this console's capacity for their idea. Not to mention the consistency among the titles for consoles.

In other news, Sony's shares have fallen after the PS4's reveal:

http://www.destructoid.com/sony-stock-nose-dives-after-ps4-reveal-246170.phtml

Turns out, investors don't like the fact that a financially strapped company is betting the farm on selling yet more hardware at a loss. Who'da thunk it?

The non-specifics of the hardware is really annoying. I'll say this though, 2 Teraflops is impressive for a console. My 660Ti does 2.5 Teraflops. 2 Teraflops puts it at least a high end first gen DX11 card. Why they would go with x86 architecture is just confusing for me. Especially since x64 is really common, not expensive anymore, and much better. But, he is the engineer, I'm just a PC enthusiast. Spin it how you want, I didn't expect their next gen to have general stats they are giving. Makes me think the thing will be stupidly expensive after they are taking a loss for selling it. Time will tell though.

worldfest:

And to Think I Entertained the Thought of Going PC

The console industry will flourish; and the future -- that is, for Microsoft & Sony -- appears bright as it's predicated on "the future". The controller looks and sounds innovative, and yet not half-hearted in any measure. Everything about the controller serves a specific purpose for the game and the console itself! The console just wants to please you; the PC wants you working for pleasure -- i.e customization, mods, user keys and downloads. All of this busy work gets in the way of experiencing the game.

PC vs PS4 Spec Comparisons Are Moot

As long as the power is substantive and broad enough, you can count on human ingenuity stretch this console's capacity for their idea. Not to mention the consistency among the titles for consoles.

Where is that quoted from. I would be interested in reading the whole thing.

Well everyone else summed up what I was thinking.

Pc Gamer magazine already did a hypothetical "What would a PS4 spec equivalent PC cost you to build right now." article. It cost 600 dollars. So by the time the PS4 comes out, that price would have dropped and more powerful hardware would have taken it's place in the same price range.

And remember, you can argue all you want about how consoles "Last longer" spec wise, but the bottom line is they still can't do the same tasks as a conventional computer.

link here

Most powerful gaming device ever... with the exception of any PCs.

And really, a 32bit CPU?
Ok, maybe he means an X86-64 CPU, but just saying X86... That could be anything back to 16 bit computing, and is more commonly used to describe 32bit programs and such so... Yeah...

Not high hopes for this. What sounds like a meh CPU, an undefined GPU that will probably be a 560 equivalent, maybe a 570 or 580 if we're lucky, and 8Gb of RAM. Yeah... No. As said by Waaghpowa, I could probably build a PC equivalent to this for $600, and I've got a $1500 budget for one of my friends computers. He's getting a beast. Hopefully Sony is at least smart enough to release this for <$600, though with their $1000 PS3 launch here I kinda doubt that.

worldfest:

And to Think I Entertained the Thought of Going PC

The console industry will flourish; and the future -- that is, for Microsoft & Sony -- appears bright as it's predicated on "the future". The controller looks and sounds innovative, and yet not half-hearted in any measure. Everything about the controller serves a specific purpose for the game and the console itself! The console just wants to please you; the PC wants you working for pleasure -- i.e customization, mods, user keys and downloads. All of this busy work gets in the way of experiencing the game.

PC vs PS4 Spec Comparisons Are Moot

As long as the power is substantive and broad enough, you can count on human ingenuity stretch this console's capacity for their idea. Not to mention the consistency among the titles for consoles.

You know, its kinda true in that the console industry will flourish thanks to the stigma a lot of people still have about PCs [That is, thankfully, finally starting to die] - namely that they cost $3K, break all the time, need to be upgraded each year and are impossible to tell what will run on it, but otherwise... Yeah...
I mean really, that "The PC wants you working for your pleasure..." Yeah, bullshit. The PC works just fine without any of that. Its like saying the PS4 doesn't want to give you pleasure because it doesn't have customization and mods. Downloads... Pretty sure PS4 will have an online store too. CD keys I'll give, but they're not that big a deal if you can read.
And no, human ingenuity can't stretch the console's capacity for the idea. It can cut the idea down to fit the console's capacity whilst still maintaining much of the original idea, but Optimization isn't a magic Fix-All that you can apply to a game and suddenly run more stuff on the console's hardware. It doesn't work that way.

Greg Tito:
Cerny said every console up to this point was intended to be a game console first

Because that's what they fucking should be! It's called a PLAYstation, not an 'express your ideas' station. This may come as a surprise, but people buy gaming consoles primarily for gaming. Shocking I know, but it's true.

Joccaren:
Not high hopes for this. What sounds like a meh CPU, an undefined GPU that will probably be a 560 equivalent, maybe a 570 or 580 if we're lucky, and 8Gb of RAM. Yeah... No. As said by Waaghpowa, I could probably build a PC equivalent to this for $600, and I've got a $1500 budget for one of my friends computers. He's getting a beast. Hopefully Sony is at least smart enough to release this for <$600, though with their $1000 PS3 launch here I kinda doubt that.

This right here is EXACTLY why Nintendo is doing the right thing with their consoles. If your console is just a weak PC, what's even the point? Just get a PC. That's why Nintendo have gone out and tried to create a unique gaming experience. You can't (easily) get the Wii(U) experience on a PC, and for the cost of additional hardware to try and replicate that experience you may as well just get yourself a Nintendo. Now, of course the people that are only looking for that PC experience aren't going to be too interested in what Nintendo offers, and that's all well and good - different strokes for different folks and all that. But you have to give them credit for putting out a product that's more than just a handicapped PC.

GunsmithKitten:
That stigma didn't come out of nowhere. Between the years when you legitimately couldn't run a new game without the absolute latest and greatest soundcards and processors (Origin games ring a bell?), volumes of information comparing slews of different parts...not entire machines, parts....much of which is greek salad to anyone who didn't take an IT course (you think your average gamer wants to grouse over the finer points of cooling systems?) and you see where this came from, and from a community standpoint the Mustard Race has done the best job bridging this gap when you have people even saying that console gaming is akin to everything wrong in the world (and no, that's not an exaggeration, that's an actual quote from someone around here).

True, there was a time like that. That time was a getting close to 20 years ago, and the stigma has gone on for far longer than it has needed to. Hell, the 8 years that I had my last PC should have been enough for it to die, but apparently people want more time to get over the idea that PCs are impossible to use and cost as much as a second hand car. Granted consoles have generally been ahead in the price/power comparison, but this gen is likely to be the last of that. This gen they're equal, and next gen they're likely to fall behind, especially for those who only need to upgrade their PC rather than buy a new one.

Casual Shinji:
Let's hope this power doesn't translate into a bull in a china shop.

But everybody loves a bull in a china shop...

In all honesty, not sure how I feel about the new generation of consoles so far...

Al.

So the PS4, is just a locked down PC with a new dual shock controller? Because honestly that is all I'm seeing. They aren't even using a proprietary architecture this time around. Which I guess is good for a lot of reasons, easier porting, saves manufacture and design costs but at the end of the day it's still a PC.

It's like all the Mac users saying they don't use a PC. They do though Apple went to a standard x86 architecture ages ago, all you really pay for is OSX. Color me unimpressed I'm not seeing anything here but a hardware update, at least not anything that someone doesn't already do and better. The whole controller thing seems to be I dunno a half hearted attempt to steal the WiiU design, sort of like the move and kinect were to the wii's motion control (though I think the kinect did a better job of it).

All of this is beside the points because at the end of the day it's the games that make or break a console and determines who the true king of each generation is.

Deathfish15:
The funny thing is the x86 CPU, which is odd as hell when most moved to the x64 systems (OS's especially) for the use of more RAM as well as more programs to run simultaneously. An x64 natively uses more than 4gb of RAM, while a x86 requires use of a PAE to go beyond 4gb (because that's a defaulted cap).

My guess is they are using x64, the whole "supercharged pc hardware thing" makes me think they are using x64, most people don't know it but x64 is also known as x86-64. So when they are saying they are using an x86 processor but then follow it up by saying they are using a super charged pc hardware I think that is just media spin for the fact they are really just using x64.