A comprehensive comparison of ChatGPT 3.5 and ChatGPT 4

As an AI enthusiast, I’m always on the lookout for the latest advancements and improvements in AI technology. Today, I’m going to examine whether the paid version, ChatGPT 4, is worth the price compared to the free version, ChatGPT 3.5.

ChatGPT: A brief overview

ChatGPT is a sophisticated AI language model developed by OpenAI. It’s designed to generate human-like responses in conversation, making significant advancements in natural language processing. Today we evaluate their strengths and weaknesses, and determine if the premium subscription to ChatGPT 4 is truly worth the investment of $24 per month.

The problems of ChatGPT 3.5

One of the most annoying features of ChatGPT 3.5 is its tendency to repeat wrong answers multiple times. Even after discussing this issue, it just keeps repeating the same mistake.

ChatGPT 3.5 normally works reasonably fast, but according to my experience, there has been a lot of latency and network problems, and many times the message is interrupted.

Most of the time it gives pretty good answers and can explain difficult topics in a reasonable way. I have learned a lot of new things while talking with it. However, it easily forgets what we have talked about before so you might need to explain everything again. It is also very stubborn when it has decided that something is the right answer then it will keep telling you that even when I have shown it wrong.

The last update to ChatGPT 3.5 was in January 2022 so it does not know anything after that.

ChatGPT 3.5 has helped me with a lot of website text and a wide variety of code, so I still think the free version is a very good tool.

ChatGPT Plus - Is the subscription worth it?

ChatGPT 4, also known as ChatGPT Plus, comes with an annual price tag of $288 (inclusive of taxes). So, does it offer enough value to justify this cost? In my opinion, ChatGPT 4 needs to offer a plethora of impressive features and significantly ease my workload to warrant this investment.

Reasoning and explaining complex concepts

One of the most significant enhancements is its reasoning ability. Although its speed may not be a substantial improvement from ChatGPT 3.5, the superior quality of its responses compensates for any minor delay.

When it comes to explaining complex concepts like cryptocurrency, ChatGPT 4 outshines ChatGPT 3.5 by providing more detailed, concise, and creative answers, demonstrating a deeper understanding. This comprehension extends to educational explanations as well. For instance, when asked to simplify concepts like SSH and SMTP for fifth-graders, ChatGPT 4 exhibited adaptability and clarity, tailoring its responses perfectly to the intended audience.

Coding

When it comes to coding, ChatGPT 4 does not really outshine ChatGPT 3.5. They both make the same mistakes when I ask them complex questions or help to fix my code. Usually they both are equally good and they can handle most of the cases, but sometimes I have to cut the code in peases if I want good answers from the ChatGPTs. Espeacially ORM softwares are weak points and they rarely know SvelteKit’s basic rules like what you can use in +server.ts and what only in +page.ts files. Maybe I am not good enough to tell them what I really want. Overall, in my point of view, the paid version is not worth it if you mostly only do coding.

I also noticed that ChatGPT 4 is slower than ChatGPT 3.5 Turbo, which is also included in the paid version. It is an enchanted version of ChatGPT 3.5.

Creating your own AI tool

A major advancement in the paid version is that it opens a gallery of AI tools that combine instructions, extra knowledge, and any combination of skills. You can create your own AI tool or use any of these advanced AI tools that others have made.

These models can make better decisions based on better data, try to predict the future stock market based on past performance, design logos and website templates, draw amazing pictures, analyze YouTube videos, teach you to do things, analyze complex data, etc.

I really like the possibility that I might be able to create AI tools for my company’s needs and probably enchant my investment strategies. I have not yet created my own AI tool, but I will definitely try that soon.

If you need images for your PowerPoint or website, just tell ChatGPT 4 what you need, and it will create very good-looking images for you. Absolutely great.

But if you want to make changes to a previously made image, then you will be disappointed. Every time I’ve tried to change the previous image, be it logo or wallpaper, DELL-E always creates a new image that doesn’t look the same at all and I haven’t managed to edit the original image.

But there is a limitation: you can only send 40 messages to ChatGPT every 3 hours. It is not always a hard limit, but it depends on ChatGPT’s current workload. Sometimes it is possible to send more than 40 messages in 3 hours.

Conclusion

The subscription fee for ChatGPT 4 unlocks a wealth of enhanced features and capabilities. While the decision to upgrade depends on individual needs and budget constraints, the clear improvements in reasoning, comprehension, creativity, and the added ability to create images make ChatGPT 4 a compelling choice. The real question is whether ChatGPT 4 can enhance efficiency and save more time than ChatGPT 3.5. In my line of work, I don’t need ChatGPT’s special features too often even when those are nice to have. For me, only creating my own AI tools feels worth of subscription fee. I will try the premium version for a few months and see if it makes me more productive.

As we navigate the ever-expanding landscape of AI technologies, one thing remains clear: the future is full of possibilities, driven by innovation and powered by intelligence.

Thank you for joining us on this exploration of AI excellence. Until next time, stay curious, stay inspired, and let the journey of discovery continue.