Rumors are swirling around new models of PlayStation 5 consoles. It’s time to take stock of the possible PlayStation 5 Slim and PlayStation 5 Pro. Release date, power, price: should we believe the rumors?
Since the launch of its first PlayStation, Sony has consistently offered major revisions to its mid-gen consoles. This resulted in a completely new design and a reduction in the volume of the machine. With the PS4 Pro, Sony had even dabbled in creating a more powerful mid-generation console to handle 4K screens.
Now, what does the manufacturer have in store for the PS5 generation? Rumors abound on the subject, but the reality of the market could limit Sony’s options.
A PlayStation 5 Slim: a new model not so slim
The first idea is that of a new design for the PlayStation 5. This would respect the tradition of Sony. The rumors here mostly come from leaker and journalist Tom Handerson, who cut his teeth on game leaks. Battlefield And call of duty. According to its sources, Sony is preparing the launch of a new model of PlayStation 5 to replace the two models currently marketed.
Indeed, this new model of PlayStation 5 would no longer have its integrated disc player, but Sony would offer an optional external Blu-ray player. Enough to allow merchants to store a single mass console reference, and thus streamline the supply of machines. Sony could take the opportunity to change the design of its console and offer something more compact.
No price drop
As early as 2020, however, Xbox engineers warned against the hope of slim consoles that would lower prices for this generation. Previously, slim consoles were indeed accompanied by a significant drop in the price of the console. From now on, the technological developments which make it possible to reduce the size of the machines no longer translate into a reduction in the cost of manufacture. Quite the contrary.
If the idea of a new PlayStation 5 therefore has its share of credibility, it is too early to really imagine a major design change. Above all, the price should remain very close to the median price of 500 euros today (450 euros for the Digital model, 550 euros for the standard model).
No name change
As for the PlayStation 4 in its time, Sony should not give a particular name to this model. Indeed, if we can often see “PS4 Slim” in the trade to designate the second generation of PlayStation 4 consoles, Sony has never officially adopted this name. For Sony, there were only two consoles on the previous generation: the PlayStation 4 and the PlayStation 4 Pro.
Here, Sony should therefore be content to market a new PlayStation 5.
PlayStation 5 Pro: should we believe it?
AMD, which supplies the chips for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, is still at work to offer more and more powerful components. Since the Zen 2 / RDNA 2 chip that currently equips game consoles, AMD has launched two generations of CPU architectures (Zen 3 and Zen 4) and one generation of GPUs (RDNA 3) on the market. We can therefore wonder when the consoles will be able to take advantage of these new features.
A job posting opened by AMD as early as May 2022 indicates that the development of next-generation SoCs for consoles is well underway.
When will the PS5 Pro be released?
According to the website Phonandroidwhich cites a source “close to the file“, a PS5 Pro would be planned from this month of April 2023. The media indicates however that it is necessary to take its assertions “with huge tweezers“.
What would the design of the PS5 Pro be?
This name suggests that it would be a new PlayStation 5 console more efficient than previous models. The site indicates in particular that this model could have the right to a liquid cooling system, that is to say watercooling. This type of cooling is already used on desktop PCs, but has never been seen on a machine sold at such high volume as a game console.
At what price ?
At what price could Sony market this PlayStation 5 Pro? The article does not advance on a sale price. If Sony does not change the price of the PlayStation 5, we can imagine a PlayStation 5 Pro whose price would take off at, at least, 600 or 650 euros in France. A price rarely achieved for a game console on our market. The manufacturer would even exceed the psychological bar of 600 euros which had done so much harm to the PS3 when it was launched.
PS5 Pro: why we don’t believe it
Sony has not yet given any sign of the launch of a possible new game console and even less for a model that would be more efficient.
We have to admit that we have a hard time giving credit to the theory of a PS5 Pro. Indeed, what would such a console be for Sony on the market today? Instead, the giant is looking to sell off as much of the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Digital Edition as possible and is just about to complete the transition by dropping PS4 support on its new games.
Adding a PlayStation 5 Pro to the catalog would once again mean cutting the installed base while it is still nascent, and would further complicate the work of developers. The latter can just abandon the PlayStation 4 and therefore make the most of the capabilities of the PlayStation 5.
What need?
Above all, the PlayStation 5 Pro would not meet any need today. Sony’s current console, like Microsoft’s, can run games in 4K thanks to a dynamic image definition system, most often with a 60 FPS mode available.
The PlayStation 4 Pro was launched because the installed base of 4K screens was growing rapidly. The same cannot be said for 8K TVs.
What is Sony’s strategy?
For all these reasons, it seems more credible to us the idea of a new PlayStation 5 without disc drive which would allow Sony to rationalize its production and its stocks. The objective for the giant is above all to succeed in growing the installed base of PS5 and to supply the markets correctly.
Segmenting the production of PS5 a little more for a market where the need does not seem clearly identifiable and by complicating the life of the developers seems against the strategy of the company. We can even estimate that neither Sony nor Microsoft will launch intermediate models on this generation of console with such a complex start.
Want to join a community of enthusiasts? Our Discord welcomes you, it is a place of mutual aid and passion around tech.
