The long-rumored PlayStation 5 Pro is real. The newly announced console is everything the leaks said it would be; in the looks department, it appears very much like the PlayStation 5 slim edition with more ridges running through it. The Pro version of the PS5 is a more powerful console than the one from 2020, with an updated chip with higher clock speeds that could make your existing PS5 and PlayStation 4 games look even better.
In a mere nine minutes of technical presentation (the same time it takes to boil an egg), Sony’s PlayStation 5 architect Mark Cerny revealed all the first details of the mid-cycle console refresh. This time around, the big improvement from 2023’s slim PS5 model is 45% better rendering. It’s also going to have better capability to handle faster ray tracing.
Cerny said games should have sharper graphics and still support more games up to 60 FPS without choosing between 30 FPS fidelity and less intensive performance modes. Sony claims in its blog post the PS5 Pro has a GPU with 67% more compute power with 28% faster memory.
How Much Will the PlayStation 5 Pro Cost?
The PS5 Pro will be available Nov. 7 for $700, $200 more than the base PS5 with disc drive in the U.S., or $250 more than the digital edition. Preorders are set to start Sept. 26 specifically for PlayStation Direct in the U.S. It will also be up for preorder with retailers in countries that don’t have access to Direct. The console will be available to preorder from other retailers Oct. 10.
The console will come with a controller, but unfortunately for all us disc fiends, you won’t have the option to buy a version with the disc drive. Instead, you’ll need to shell out another $80 for the optical drive that’s already compatible with the slim PS5. You also need to buy a vertical stand separately, just like the slim.
It is a slightly taller console than the 2023 edition of Sony’s console. Still, it should be compatible with any fin replacements you might have. The new console still comes with Astro’s Playroom preinstalled, just like the first PS5 did when Sony launched it in 2020.
What Other Benefits Does the Pro Have Against the Base PS5?
The console will have 2 TB of storage, the same as the Xbox Series X Galaxy Edition, though the PS5 Pro is a far more interesting lateral move than Microsoft’s console refresh. The new console is supposed to support PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, Sony’s own AI upscaling tech that can produce higher framerates by upscaling from a lower resolution.
PSSR is potentially a game changer—literally—for console graphics. We’ve had plenty of experience with upscaling on the PC, and it manages to makes games far more playable for lower-end systems. A separate system called Game Boost should also offer stabilized performance and enhance the image quality of some past games. Game Boost should work on PS5 and a stated 8,500+ PlayStation 4 titles.
There are a few more games launching this year that will get the PS5 Pro Enhanced label on them when you buy them. The upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Shadows will be one of the first new titles to have the updates. Previous games like Alan Wake 2, The Last of US Part II Remastered, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will all get versions with the Pro upgrades.
The news on the PlayStation 5 Pro is ongoing, and we will update the story as more information becomes available.
