Industry analysts have suggested that a more powerful version of the PlayStation 5, expected to continue the naming trend as the PlayStation 5 Pro, can be expected later this year. This news comes through CNBC which quoted Tokyo-based games analyst Serkan Toto as saying there is a “broad consensus in the game industry that Sony is indeed preparing a launch of a PS5 Pro in the second half of 2024.”
The report cautions that Sony is not likely to see an uptick in PS5 sales year-on-year, as a result of a potential Pro model launching. Additionally, there is little expectation to see the base model’s price drop even if a Proi does launch. “Sony will want to make sure to have a great piece of hardware ready when GTA 6 hits in 2025, a launch that will be a shot in the arm for the entire gaming industry,” Toto added.
These reports are nothing new to the industry, having been part of the rumor mill since the original PlayStation 5 launched in 2020. These rumors however have begun to pick up steam due to analysis by groups like Digital Foundry, based on reporting by people like Tom Henderson. Henderson himself reported on both the Project Q ( PlayStation Portal) handheld device by Sony as well as the “Slim” model and detachable disk drive, all of which were released last year.
Digital Foundry boss Rich Leadbetter commented at the time:
The mooted Viola APU for the PS5 Pro apparently has 60 compute units, possibly with four disabled. This would only constitute four more CUs than the Xbox Series X, so in terms of a key area of expense – the main processor – it seems affordable. Moving to a likely 5nm production process also means that the APU could run at higher clock speeds.
Despite this insight into what the specs of the PS5 pro might be, there is still no definitive metric for how much more powerful it will be than the base Model.
This timeline seems to fit though given that Sony has stated that the PlayStation 5 is in the ‘latter stage of its life cycle.’ Their lead competition, Microsoft has also given a confirmation they plan to release their next piece of hardware later this year as well. There is no definitive answer as to whether Microsoft plans a more powerful console as well, with leaked information from 2022 suggesting this version to be a cylinder-shaped digital version of the X with 2 TB of storage instead of 1.
Nintendo is also rumored to have its next console in development, with rumors placing its release early in 2025, a similar time frame to the Switch nearly 7 years ago. The specs for the system place it as a more powerful version of the Switch, placing it more in line with the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
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