Tag: Hardware
News Like It or Not, This Is Why PS5 Pro Doesn't Have a Disc Drive
Digital ratio increases again on PS5
Update: Games Industry.biz’s Chris Dring has added to the US data points below with trends in Europe. While the methodology is not identical to the one employed by Mat Piscatella and excludes some countries like the UK, he reports that around 68% of “AA and AAA” PS5 game sales were digital in Europe this...
News PS5 30th Anniversary Orders Screwed Up by Argos in the UK
Mass cancellation occurs
As beautiful as PS5’s range of 30th anniversary hardware is, limited edition items such as this inevitably always lead to anxiety. Last week, Sony made the PS5 Slim Digital Edition console available to third-party retailers, which resulted in an influx of pre-orders. Unfortunately, UK retailer Argos has screwed them up...
News One Year On, Plucky PS Portal's Sales Remain Strong
PlayStation's best-selling accessory in 2024
While many PlayStation faithful (ourselves included) were initially sceptical of the plucky PS Portal, it has become a strong seller for Sony. The PS5 streaming handheld has reportedly managed to edge out the Midnight Black DualSense, making it the best-selling accessory (in dollar sales) in the U.S. for...
News PS5 May Soon Be Unchallenged by Xbox in Some Regions
Microsoft could be pulling its consoles from some countries
As the sales of Xbox Series X|S continue to collapse, it’s beginning to look like PS5 may have a free run at some markets as Microsoft effectively exits them. While it’s still an evolving story with many mixed messages, it sounds like the Redmond firm will cease shipping consoles to...
News PS5 Pro Prompts Sony's Disc Drive to Rocket Up the Charts
Physical fever
PS5 fans want physical media, and Sony is giving them a means to use it. In the aftermath of the PS5 Pro’s announcement, we reported how the Japanese giant’s universal Disc Drive accessory was selling out, and now we have data in the UK of just how well it performed. According to a sweeping analysis of September 2024’s hardware...
News PS5 Pro Will Reportedly Boost PS4 Games, and Reduce PSVR2 Motion Sickness
Miracle machine
While future games sound interesting in theory, we already have plenty of older games in our backlog. Oddly, that might be another reason to pick up Sony's shiny mid-gen refresh, the PS5 Pro. PlayStation product manager Toshimasa Aoki has indicated that a specific setting will enhance certain PS4 games and that the extra, boosted...
News PlayStation Fans Gleefully Snitch on 30th Anniversary PS5 Pro Scalpers
For the players
In a strangely cathartic piece of news, annoyed and disgruntled PlayStation fans who were unable to secure preorders for the undeniably gorgeous 30th Anniversary PS5 Pro bundle have been mass-reporting the scalpers who did. Many of these sordid trades happen on eBay, and the retailer has reportedly been unusually responsive in taking...
News 'PS5 Pro Is a Really Good Investment,' Argue Tech Experts After Hands-On
But it's for a specific type of player
Tech experts Digital Foundry have finally gotten hands-on time with the PS5 Pro, and their verdict is overwhelmingly positive – especially if you’re the type of player who appreciates blistering frame rates, high fidelity visuals, and ray tracing. In an exhaustive hour-long analysis, which you can watch in...
News Scalpers Want $10k to Try to Buy You a 30th Anniversary PS5 Pro
That's bold
Scalpers are taking things to a new level. Usually, limited edition items like the upcoming 30th Anniversary PS5 Pro bundle will command a premium purely due to their scarcity – but some plucky swindlers are taking to auction sites to sell their services attempting to buy one of the 12,300 units for you. They want $10,000 for the...
News A Massive 75% of UK Game Sales Were Digital Last Month
Up 10% from the previous August
Despite major publishers swearing never to go all-digital, physical game sales continue to slow as more and more people seemingly choose convenience over collection. A massive 75% of all game sales in the UK last month, 1.74 million, were digital, up 10% year-over-year since last August. This occurrence was noted by...
Rumour PS6 Could Span a Console and Handheld Device
Sony allegedly has two chips in-development
It seems like we’re slowly reaching that point in the generation where PS6 speculation starts to pick up pace. Earlier this week a report from Reuters revealed Sony had explored a potential relationship with Intel to manufacture the chip for its next-gen console, but ultimately opted for AMD once again...
News PS5's Building Insurmountable Lead Over Rival, Outselling Xbox Almost 3:1
Game over
The buttoned-up folks over at the Wall Street Journal recently published a report on the current state of console gaming (thanks PSLS) and, perhaps unsurprisingly, the PS5 has a commanding lead over its main rival, the Xbox Series X|S. The situation looks completely insurmountable for Microsoft at this point and unlikely to change,...
News Jaw-Dropping 30th Anniversary PS5 Pro Console and Accessories Will Bankrupt You
Start saving
Just when you thought you were out, Sony goes and pulls you right back in. The platform holder has announced a series of absolutely jaw-dropping 30th anniversary consoles and accessories, including a PS5 Pro, PS5 Digital Edition, DualSense Edge controller, DualSense controller, and PS Portal. Pre-orders will open on 26th September, so...
News Despite Price Point, Analyst Firm Expects PS5 Pro to Sell Like PS4 Pro
Does 13 million units by 2029 seem doable?
With today's bombshell reveal of the PS5 Pro at $700/£700, many of the PlayStation faithful feel that the asking price is too high, especially in these uncertain times. Despite the sticker shock, Ampere Analysis is projecting that it expects sales of the plucky Pro to reach a similar level as the PS4 Pro...
Gallery PS5 Pro Is Looking Sleek in These Official Shots
Go faster stripes
As you'll know doubt have seen, the PS5 Pro is official after months of rumours and speculation. Not only do we have information about the souped-up console's enhanced hardware and its price, but Sony has done us the good grace of showing us what the thing looks like. It teased the PS5 Pro's design a few days ago, and now we have a...
News PS5 Is Selling Twice As Fast As PS4 in China
On the move
While there’s a lot of doom and gloom surrounding consoles lately, largely due to flattening growth and spiralling costs, it’s perhaps worth remembering that there are still plenty of success stories that can be attributed to the PS5. One of which pertains to the Chinese market, where Sony’s system is selling two times faster than...
News PS5 Pro Is Seemingly Starting to Appear in Source Code
Pro tip
More speculation about the imminent arrival of the PS5 Pro is circulating on social media, where it appears the source code for No Man’s Sky’s newest update includes a reference to the supercharged hardware. Eagle-eyed data miners spotted references to a graphics profile named ‘Trinity’, which is the rumoured codename of the new...
News Sony Wants Non-PS5 Owners to Use Its Accessories
Beyond boundaries
While it’s generally been a smaller story within the overall PlayStation narrative this generation, there’s no doubt Sony has quietly increased its focus on accessories for the PS5. The mix of products available is really good, spanning the official pro controller DualSense Edge, the streaming handheld PS Portal, and various...
News PS5 Sales Reach 59.3 Million as Sony Falls Just Short of Fiscal Year Forecast
Happy new (financial) year
The PS5 is doing fantastically overall, although the console's results for the final quarter of Sony's fiscal year 2023 means it's fallen slightly behind the company's already-lowered forecast. The machine managed to ship 4.5 million units in the three-month period ending 31st March, 2024, bringing its total for FY23 to...
News Sony Sings PS Portal's Praises with Accolades Trailer
"...Feels fantastic..."
PlayStation's plucky little PS5 remote option, the PS Portal, continues to be a pleasant surprise for everyone involved, Sony included. The initially iffy-sounding device has proven to be wildly popular, and PlayStation has released an accolades trailer to remind us of the fact, featuring glowing quotes from some of the most...
News Google Engineers Responsibly Report PS Portal Exploit, Ending Potential PSP Emulation
Inevitably
In February, we brought you word of a group of Google engineers who, apparently just for fun, managed to hack Sony's streaming PS Portal to run emulated PSP games offline. Being courageous White Hat types, the group "responsibly reported" the issues to Sony. The exploit was quietly fixed in patch 2.0.6, which also seems to have improved...
News PS Portal Update Appears to Have Quietly Improved Video Quality
Read between the lines of the patch notes
PS Portal owners may have noted that system update 2.0.6 is now available, requiring the usual restart rigamarole. The patch notes for the update are incredibly sparse but potentially quite profound, reading simply: "We've improved system software performance and stability." In the hours since, players have...
News Devs Allegedly Pondering the Point of Sony's PS5 Pro Upgrade
"Many feel they're not making the most out of PS5 yet"
There have been two big stories on the ground at GDC this year: Xbox’s flatlining brand and the purpose of the PS5 Pro. Speaking as part of a podcast, GamesIndustry.biz’s well-connected reporter Christopher Dring noted that he didn’t meet a “single person” at the show that understood...
News PS Portal Is Proving Everyone's Predictions Wrong
A whole new world
Prior to its release, few predicted PS Portal would be successful. Many were baffled by Sony’s decision to release the Remote Play handheld, which streams gameplay directly from a PS5. But as the months wear on, it’s becoming increasingly obvious that Sony’s added a permanent fixture to its hardware portfolio, with the device...
News PS5 Pro's Proprietary DLSS-Esque Upscaler Sounds Superb
4Kin' get in
The days of developers pushing for native resolutions feel like they’re coming to an end. The reality is that it’s a waste of resources, especially as upscalers like DLSS (or Deep Learning Super Sampling, to give it its full name) get better and better. It’s no surprise Sony is exploring similar technology with PS5 Pro, and it...
News PS5 Pro's Rumoured Spectral Super Resolution Tech Could Be Transformative
A long-term play
According to all rumours and reports, Sony is working on its own reconstruction technology similar to DLSS, or Deep Learning Super Sampling. The feature, named PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution according to Insider Gaming, seems like a long-term play by the platform holder, with the first iteration planned for the PS5 Pro...
News Temporary PS5 Price Cuts Target Europe As Sony Makes Final Push for Goal
We go again
Sony may have revised its PS5 sales estimate for the current financial year, which will end on 31st March. But unsurprisingly it still wants to sell as many systems as possible, which means it’s going to make one last push for that all-important 21 million units target it’s been eyeing. And how does it intend to do that? One last...
News Google Engineers Hack PS Portal to Run Emulated PSP Games
Finally
PlayStation's plucky little handheld streaming solution, the PS Portal, has already been hacked, taking a couple of Google employees about a month of effort. Their work is not intended to be released for general consumption anytime in the "near future", but the hack is "all software-based", meaning no hardware exploitation is required. Andy...
News Upgraded PS5 Pro Planning to Be the Best Place to Play GTA 6
System expected in the second half of the year
Murmurs of an upgraded PS5 Pro have been rumbling for some time now, and analysts are certain it’ll arrive some time later this year. The souped-up system is being billed as the best place to play the hotly anticipated GTA 6, which is scheduled to release some time next year. It’s expected the new...
News PS5 Is Entering the 'Latter Half of Its Life Cycle', Says Sony
Manufacturer expecting a gradual decline in hardware sales
We don’t know about you, but it feels like the PS5 has barely broken a sweat yet. Despite being over three years old, the system’s lifespan has been hugely impacted by the pandemic, which has seen its first-party software cadence slow to a crawl and its early years massively affected by...
News Sony Slashes PS5 Forecast to 21 Million for Fiscal Year
A decrease of four million units
As reported earlier today, Sony shipped 8.2 million PS5 consoles during the three-month period ending 31st December, 2023 – a very good number which contributed to record-breaking revenue, but not enough to help it reach its forecast of 25 million units for the current financial year. Thus far, it?
Rumour A New PlayStation Handheld Console Reportedly in the Works
We wish
Following the PlayStation Vita's relatively poor commercial performance, it's never really seemed likely that Sony would return to the handheld space. In a world where smartphones are already everywhere and development budgets and timescales are ballooning, a dedicated handheld console seems like the last thing Sony would focus on. However,...
News PS5 Had Sony's Best Year in Japan for Almost 20 Years
Hardware strong, software not
Sony managed to sell an enormous 2.6 million PS5 consoles in Japan last year, representing a colossal 124 per cent increase year-over-year. Of course, the dramatic upswing was to be expected following the dismal hardware shortages that plagued the platform in the post-pandemic period. This result, however, represents...
News Believe It or Not, PS4 Sales Rocketed in the UK Last Year
That's not a typo
There’s still life in the ol’ PS4 it seems, as sales of Sony’s last-gen console increased by a face-melting 633 per cent year-over-year in 2023 in the UK. This number is obviously heavily influenced by the sheer scarcity of the system the year prior, as the tail of the console was dramatically cut short due to the chip...
News Sony Hit with French Fine for Allegedly Manipulating PS4 Controller Market
Sacrebleu!
France's antitrust regulator, Autorité de la Concurrence, has handed Japanese tech giant Sony a fine of 13.5 million Euros ($14.8 million) after finding it used its dominant position to corner the market, specifically in the realm of third-party PS4 controller manufacture. Competition Policy International/Pymnts (thanks PSLS) reported...
News Sony Officially Confirms PS5 Has Passed the 50 Million Units Milestone
On pace with PS4
PS5 has officially sold 50 million units. That number is accurate as of 9th December, 2023 – and reflects consoles sold directly to consumers, not shipped to retailers. It means the system took 161 weeks to achieve the milestone, just one week more than it took the PS4 to reach the same feat. Obviously, the new-gen system has...
Rumour PS5 Pro Targeting September 2024, Will Have Proprietary Upscaling Tech
The machine of tomorrow
Things are starting to heat up in the PS5 Pro rumour mill. Giant Bomb's Jeff Grubb, who's been a relatively reliable source of information in the past, has made further comments on Sony's unannounced mid-step console, suggesting it's currently scheduled to arrive in about nine months' time. In the above video, Grubb comments...
News PS5 Accounted for Almost Half of All Console Sales in the UK Last Month
A big Black Friday
Fuelled by some aggressive marketing and tempting price promotions, PS5 accounted for almost half of all consoles sold in the UK during November. The system – which was massively supply constrained during previous holidays – improved a whopping 126 per cent year-on-year and 149 per cent month-on-month, driving overall hardware...
News We Predict a Riot! PS5 Down to $350 in Black Friday Doorbuster
Form an orderly queue
<products id="25654"> An original model, disc-based PS5 console will cost you just $349.99 from Target today – while stocks last, of course. Presumably in a last-ditch effort to clear out any remaining stock, the US-based retailer will flog Sony’s new-gen format at a dramatically decreased price this Black Friday –...
News New PS5 Slim Model Available to Pre-Order Now in Europe, Release Date Revealed
Small and mighty
PS5's new-look design is already available to buy in North America, and it'll soon launch in Europe as well. The slim model, as even Sony itself is calling it now, has been made available to pre-order from its PlayStation Direct web store and a variety of retailers, so you can now secure yourself this refreshed console before it's...
News Steam Store Update Adds Specific DualSense, DualShock Controller Support
Further entwined
PC is now a central pillar of Sony's PlayStation strategy, becoming more relevant daily. Evidence suggests that some PC Trophy support is in the offing, which is to say nothing of the lucrative new revenue streams the firm has found on platforms like Steam and, more recently, GOG. Further pro
News Sony Says PS Portal Wasn't Designed to Make a Profit
It's all about engagement
The PlayStation Portal is Sony's popular new handheld remote-play machine, which is currently dividing enthusiast opinion. Apparently, the device was never designed as a profit-making product. Instead, the firm says, the goal of the brave little device is to increase PS5 engagement. Speaking to Japanese outlet
News PS5 Is Now Above PS4 in USA, While Its New-Gen Rival Flounders
Xbox Series X|S is struggling
After the severe disruption of the post-pandemic semi-conductor shortage, enormous credit must be levelled at Sony for rebounding in such an impressive way. According to lifetime Circana sales data shared by analyst Mat Piscatella, the PS5 is now nine per cent above the PS4 launch aligned, accurate as of 28th October,...
News Yes, You Can Attach the New PS5's Detachable Disc Drive to Another Console
Sony's feeling flexible
Swapping disc drives with the new PS5 is easy, and while you will need an Internet connection in order to verify the hardware, you’ll easily be able to swap between different devices. This is demonstrated in the video embedded above, as YouTuber TronicsFix registers a single disc drive with various consoles, and then swaps...
News Sony Takes Control of UK as PS5 Climbs to 51% Market Share
More than double Xbox over last six months
As has been reflected in other parts of Europe – like in France, where Sony currently is beating Xbox Series X|S by a ratio of 90 per cent – the PS5 has gained 51 per cent market share in the UK over the past six months. By comparison, Nintendo has just 25 per cent market share, while Microsoft has...
News People Are Beginning to Play Around with PS5's Remote Play Handheld
Stream like you mean it
While the PS Portal is technically Sony’s first portable since the PS Vita, the Japanese giant is treating it as more of an accessory for the PS5, like the DualSense Edge or upcoming Pulse headphones. That’s because the device can’t operate independently of the new-gen console, requiring an advanced, streamlined version...
News PS5's Install Base Closes on 50 Million As Sony Gets Increasingly Aggressive
As manufacturer strives for record year
Sony is making up for lost time. With the PS5 heavily affected by post-pandemic stock shortages, the Japanese giant is trying to catch up to the PS4’s sales – and overtake them. It’s a feat it’ll likely achieve over the holidays, as a 4.9 million units quarter has put it just one million units behind...
News PS5 Slim 'Not That Much Smaller', According to This Teardown Video
Size matters
As the PS5 redesign, already colloquially known as Slim, started to proliferate through the supply chain, it was only a matter of time before one would be seized and torn asunder. Content creators have been given units, and we can finally get a good look at PlayStation's latest gadget, which, on the surface, doesn't look that much...
News The First Photos of the PS5 Slim Are Circulating Online
It's definitely smaller
Colloquially (but technically not officially) known as the PS5 Slim, here’s your first photographic proof that the new console model is smaller than its predecessor. As the revised unit begins to proliferate throughout the retail chain, consumers are getting their mitts on the console, leading to comparison photos like...
Hands On Genki ShadowCast 2 Pro - A Seriously Powerful Capture Card
Perfect for your PS5
Via its growing stable of products, hardware maker Human Things is slowly but surely changing the landscape of gaming tech. It all began with the Genki wireless USB adapter for Switch, which was supplanted by the Waveform wireless earbuds. Then, the firm expanded into the realm of Switch docks with the
