Sony has finally taken the wraps off the next-generation gaming console called the PlayStation 5. It comes in two variants.
Sony PlayStation 5 was officially unveiled at the company’s event on early Friday. The next-generation gaming console from Sony is a big departure from the immensely-popular PlayStation 4 and its different variants. The most visible change is the design, which includes a tower-shaped console clad with two white surfaces on either side. At its reveal event, Sony showcased the PlayStation 5 in two variants – the one with a Blu-ray disc player and the one without it. The pricing and availability of the PlayStation 5 have not been announced yet.
The major takeaway from Sony’s event was how the PlayStation will stand out from its predecessors, and, of course, Microsoft’s Xbox Series X. Sony has gone for a monolithic design with the white flaps covering it from two sides, which also help in heat dissipation on the console. The gaming console stands vertically, much like the Xbox Series X but has a more pronounced design. But Sony said it can be placed horizontally below a television set or a monitor, as well.
While the design looks a little outlandish for a gaming console, it is serving as ‘meme material’ for people on social media. The Sony PlayStation 5 has been compared to a Wi-Fi router, a computer, an aircraft, as a brand-new BMW i8, as Sauron’s Tower, and even as the face of Optimus Prime from the Transformers series. Those white protrusions, trolls say, looks like a popped collar of some anime character.
Jokes aside, Sony detailed the PlayStation 5 series features at the reveal event, as well. Of course, there is a controller that comes in a black and white combination that matches with the colour tones of the console. As we mentioned, there are two variants – one with a 4K Blu-ray disc drive and another that lacks it and is purely digital. There is a similar design to both the models, except for the thickness the former has. It also means the former is more expensive, but the pricing is not available yet.
The PlayStation has a USB-A and a USB-C port at the front, along with other ports that will facilitate the attachment of accessories that Sony has launched. Sony is introducing an HD Camera, a DualSense charging station, a Plus 3D wireless headset, and a media remote for the gaming console. Under the hood, the Sony PlayStation has an octa-core AMD Zen 2 CPU and a custom AMD RDNA 2 GPU. Sony has claimed the chipset on the PlayStation 5 will deliver 10.28 teraflops of power using both CPU and GPU. Sony is also using an SSD on the console with an 852GB capacity and a read/write speed of 5.5GBps. It supports 8K graphics, in addition to offering 4K quality at 120Hz refresh rate, and 3D Audio.
Sony also announced a slew of gaming titles at its packed event, many of which will be exclusive to the PlayStation 5. The Spider-Man: Miles Morales trailer was launched while Sony also announced the Grand Theft Auto V will arrive on the platform in 2021.
