The next generation of Sony’s legendary PlayStation is about to be released. Boasting an impressive array of improvements over the PlayStation 4, the PS5 promises to be one of the 2020 holiday season’s most sought-after gadgets. Sony has given us a lot of information on what to expect from their new console, so we’ve compiled a summary of what’s to be expected from the PlayStation 5 and how it stacks against its direct competitor, the Xbox Series X.

Powering the PS5 is a custom 8-core AMD Zen 2 CPU; although it’s slightly weaker compared to the Xbox Series X’s CPU, the 10.28 teraflops it delivers are more than enough to tackle on the most demanding titles of next-gen. Similarly impressive are its ray-tracing capabilities, which would mean that we can expect enhanced reflections and lighting effects on the PS5 compared to last-gen consoles.

Another tech advancement on the PS5 is its custom SSD: the potent drive has a 12-channel interface that goes up to a throughput of 9 GB/s. This means that loading times are a thing of the past for next-generation games on PS5. Additionally, developers will be able to create more detail-rich open worlds that don’t require loading times and with reduced texture buffering.

Sony has finally abandoned its DualShock series and instead named the PS5 controllers the DualSense. At first glance, the DualSense looks like a refined version of the DualShock 4, but appearances can be deceiving. Inside the DualSense is an arrangement of haptic feedback motors that will help to immerse the player further into the action.

Just like its predecessor, the PS5’s DualSense has a touchpad; it also includes an audio jack and USB-C connectivity. Hearing complaints from users, Sony has also expanded the battery life on these controllers, which should put them a notch above the Xbox Series X’s controllers AA batteries.

No matter how powerful a console might be, it will always be as good as its games. Sony has prepared a good selection of launching titles for the PS5, although it’s certainly a little disappointing to see that much of these games are remastered versions of previous Sony classics.

Among the PS5 launch titles is Spider-Man: Miles Morales, a game based on 2018’s Spider-Man game on PS4. The game has an original story based on Miles Morales, and the “Ultimate Edition” of the game includes a remastered version of the 2018 original game.

Other games that will be available on the PlayStation 5 at launch are Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, Demon’s Souls Remastered, and the much-anticipated Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War.

The PlayStation 5 is different from previous Sony releases in that it will come in two versions: a Base version and a Digital one. The Base variety will have a retail price of $499, while the Digital one will cost you $399. The $499 price tag is the highest one for a PlayStation console on release, but Sony seems confident that players will prefer this edition to the all-digital one.

Keep in mind that the lack of a disc drive on the Digital variety means that you lose Blu-Ray compatibility. If you have a collection of physical movies, you might want to consider going for the pricier Base PS5.

As for the release date, the PlayStation 5 is expected to release on November 12, 2020, in selected territories, including North America and Japan. The rest of the world will have to wait a little more, as the global launch is expected to be on November 19, 2020.