PlayStation 5: What we know so far

Waiting for the PlayStation 5 (PS5) is getting more and more impatient: rumours are spreading, but so are the facts. We’ve gathered here everything that’s known about the new Sony console. Right away: It is confirmed that the console will not be launched on the market in 2019. You should be prepared for a release in 2020.

Backwards compatible

Let’s start with probably the best news so fans can breathe a sigh of relief: The PS5 will continue to have a physical media drive and be backwards compatible with all PS4 games! Amid speculation the next generation will not rely exclusively on downloaded games. Sony does not make the same mistake as Mircrosoft with its recent announcement of the Xbox One S All Digital Edition.

Hardware

The hardware of the PS5 seems to be completely trimmed to power. Below are all known specifications:

• Graphics: The new PlayStation is equipped with an AMD graphics card from the Radeon Navi series, which offers 8K resolution and ray tracing. Graphically, a significant jump in comparison to the PS4 is to be expected.
• Storage, charging: The charging times of the PS5 will also be considerably shorter. This should be possible thanks to a much faster and individual solid-state drive (SSD) hard disk. The storage capacity should be 1 TB.
• Processor: The processor is based on the third generation of the AMD Ryzen line and contains eight cores of the new 7nm Zen 2 microarchitecture. That represents a potentially massive leap and is one of the most important upgrade in the entire system.
• Sound: The AMD sound chip will include a custom unit for 3D audio.

PS5 Controller

The upcoming DualSchock 5 Wireless Controller should have an integrated camera, so that the VR experience with the Playstation 5 will be even more intense and easier to handle. The precision for first-person shooters has also been improved.

Furthermore, the new controller is very likely to have in the middle a touch-sensitive screen or touchscreen, where the previous version only offered a touchpad.

© Concept of the PS5 by Joseph Dumary

Child safety

For the upcoming PS5, Sony apparently attaches a lot of importance to child safety. A patent has been filed concerning hiding age-restricted content and multi-level authentication of users. An external device equipped with a biometric sensor is intended to provide further security and should be attached to the controller. It should restrict access to content for the appropriate age. Thanks to the biometric sensor, a fingerprint could come into play here in addition to a password.

At the end it remains to be seen whether this security will be implemented in exactly this same way.

Price

Wired author Peter Rubin has published a part of his interview with Sony’s system architect Mark Cerny on Twitter about the cost of the new Sony console. Cerny didn’t reveal the price, but calls it “appealing” considering the features:

For its launch, the PS4 cost 400 dollars/400 euros; with the PS5 you might have to open your wallet a little more. According to some specialists the price for the new playstation will be 500 US dollars – the equivalent of 445 euros. But it is very likely that the Euro price of the PS5 will be adjusted to that of the US version, i.e. 500 Euro (as it was the case with the PS4.).

So that’s all we know so far.

Until then keep playing on your PS4!