Hey, want to know a secret? I don’t own a PlayStation 5. Why? Truth be told, I hated how it looked. Yes, I may have called it sleek (it was an honest mistake if I did, I swear!), but the hunk of a gadget really puts me off. dbrand almost managed to convince me otherwise. Almost.
Thankfully, I did not jump on because of the retro plates because earlier today, Sony Interactive Entertainment revealed an updated design of the PS5 Disc and PS5 Digital Edition. And boy, the new design looks a mile better. And nope, it is not a PS5 Slim, but the updated PS5 is definitely slimmer.
There is a lot to be excited about the new updated PS5. For starters, the new PS5 is 30% smaller by volume than the original and 18% and 24% lighter compared to the previous models. It now touts an attachable Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive as well as a whopping 1 TB SSD for more internal storage.
There is a design tweak too. It now has not two but four separate cover panels; two on each side. The two panels allow for a gap in between, serving to break the monotony of an otherwise boring white curved panel. Moreover, the top and bottom have different finishes. The top portion has a glossy finish, while the bottom retains the original PS5 matte finish.
Now, for a truly cool feature. If you purchase the updated PS5 Digital Edition, you can choose to add the Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive for PS5 later. The bottom left panel (of the machine) can be removed to install the drive unit. Like, how cool is that?
Obviously, buying a Digital Edition and subsequently the add-on drive unit will cost more than the outright purchase of the Disc Edition. But it will be perfect for those who decide to have a Blu-ray unit at a later time. It sure beats selling the unique and buying another.
The new PS5 model will be available starting November 2023 in the U.S. at select local retailers as well as direct.playstation.com. The global rollout will happen in the following months. The flat PS5 model will still be available until it is sold out, after which the new PS5 will be the only model available.
The new PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive will sell for US$499.99, and the PS5 Digital Edition for US$449.99 when they become available in November.
The Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive will be sold separately for US$79.99. A horizontal stand will be included with the new PS5 model, but a new Vertical Stand, compatible with all PS5 models, will be sold separately at $29.99. Furthermore, a variety of PS5 Console Covers for the new model will go on sale in 2024, priced at US$54.99 and up. Beyond the design tweaks, the PS5 is very much the same as the PS5 released nearly three years ago. Keep going for the rundown of the specifications.
Sony PlayStation 5 Updated (2023)
| External dimensions(excluding projecting parts) | Approx. 358 × 96 × 216 mm(width × height × depth) |
|---|---|
| Weight | Approx. 3.2 kg |
| CPU | x86-64-AMD Ryzen™ “Zen 2” 8 Cores / 16 Threads Variable frequency, up to 3.5 GHz |
| GPU | AMD Radeon™ RDNA 2-based graphics engine Ray Tracing Acceleration Variable frequency, up to 2.23 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS) |
| System Memory | GDDR6 16GB 448GB/s Bandwidth |
| SSD | 1TB 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw) |
| PS5 Game Disc | Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc |
| BD/DVD drive | Disc Drive portequipped with Disc Drive |
| Video Out | Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1) |
| Audio | “Tempest” 3D AudioTech |
| Input/OutputFront of Console | USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB) |
| Input/OutputBack of Console | USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2 |
| Networking | Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax |
Sony PlayStation 5 Digital Edition Updated (2023)
| External dimensions(excluding projecting parts) | Approx. 358 × 80 × 216 mm(width × height × depth) |
|---|---|
| Weight | Approx. 2.6 kg |
| CPU | x86-64-AMD Ryzen™ “Zen 2” 8 Cores / 16 Threads Variable frequency, up to 3.5 GHz |
| GPU | AMD Radeon™ RDNA 2-based graphics engine Ray Tracing Acceleration Variable frequency, up to 2.23 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS) |
| System Memory | GDDR6 16GB 448GB/s Bandwidth |
| SSD | 1TB 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw) |
| PS5 Game Disc | Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc |
| BD/DVD drive | Disc Drive port |
| Video Out | Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1) |
| Audio | “Tempest” 3D AudioTech |
| Input/OutputFront of Console | USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB) |
| Input/OutputBack of Console | USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2 |
| Networking | Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax |
Images: PlayStation.
