Sony finally unveiled the $700 Pro version of its PlayStation 5 console on Sept. 10, promising significant boosts in graphics and gameplay. That might seem like a hefty cost, but note that if you want a disc drive, it’s $80 extra. CNET editor Scott Stein visited Sony’s PlayStation headquarters to play the all-new PS5 Pro and ask Sony executives what makes this midcycle upgrade different.
In short, Stein reports that the upgraded console‘s graphics look great, but that it’s not for everyone. Though the graphics and play are more crisp and fluid, he’s unsure if the subtle upgrades will be worth the price for many gamers.
Read more: Exclusive Hands-On: I Played Sony’s All-New PS5 Pro
“It’s a big, graphically boosted piece of hardware that can keep up with ever-changing PCs, and in some ways maybe exceed them,” Stein says. “It’s all about making big TV gaming a happier experience.”
Watch this: My Exclusive PlayStation 5 Pro Demo: What $700 Gets You, and Why It Matters
What’s new about the PS5 Pro?
Sony published a blog post detailing the improvements.
The PS5 Pro features a graphics processing unit that has 67% more compute units than the GPU in the current PS5 console, Sony said. And the PS5 Pro also has 28% faster memory. Expect faster gameplay rendering and an overall smoother play experience.
There’s also something called advanced ray tracing, a more powerful way to reflect and refract light, which allows the rays to be cast at double, and at times triple, the speeds of the current PS5 console.
One of the key changes coming with the PS5 Pro is a technology called upscaling, which uses artificial intelligence to create images with more detail and lighting effects, without as much need for raw performance.
The new console also includes PS5 Pro Game Boost, which may stabilize or improve the performance of more than 8,500 backward compatible PS4 games playable on the PS5 Pro. Enhanced Image Quality is also available to improve the resolution on select PS4 games. The new console will launch with the latest wireless technology, Wi-Fi 7, in territories supporting this standard, and it’ll also support VRR and 8K gaming.
When will the PS5 Pro launch, and for how much?
As you might expect, the PS5 Pro is coming in time for holiday gift purchases. You can preorder the PS5 Pro for $700 beginning on Sept. 26, and it’ll be available at stores and directly from PlayStation.com on Nov. 7.
The console will include a 2TB SSD, a DualSense wireless controller and a copy of Astro’s Playroom preinstalled. It’s a discless console, meaning you have to purchase and download games from Sony or its partners, with the option to purchase the currently available disc drive for the PS5 separately.
Read more: Sony’s PlayStation 5 Is Entering the “Latter Stage of Its Life Cycle”: What That Means
Wait, no disc drive included?
That’s right: The $700 cost of the new console doesn’t include a disc drive. Needless to say, that’s irking some gamers, who point out that if they’re already paying $700 for the new console, they shouldn’t have to pay another $80 just to play the games they may already own.
The disc drive was already available. Sony released it as an option with its PS5 Slim in November — although buyers could also purchase a PS5 Slim that came with a disc drive, which they can’t do with the PS5 Pro.
Buyers may have rushed to scoop up the existing disc drives, as gamers were complaining on social media that it quickly became hard to find. When CNET checked on Sept. 11, just two days after the PS5 Pro announcement, some online stores had it, others didn’t.
Amazon: We found one refurbished version on Amazon, but no new offerings.
PlayStation store: The disc drive was in stock at the PlayStation store when we checked.
GameStop: The disc drive was available to be shipped from GameStop, and also listed as in stock at the two closest stores I checked.
Target: The disc drive was available to be shipped from Target, but it was listed as out of stock or simply not sold at my local Target stores.
Walmart: As with Target, the disc drive was available to be shipped from Walmart but listed as not available at my local stores.
Best Buy: The disc drive was not available at Best Buy, either new or in an open box return, when I checked.
Some Reddit users speculated that scalpers had scooped up the drives to resell at a profit. Others argued that regular gamers were buying up the drives to avoid being forced to discard their physical games and buy them in digital format.
You can play PS5 games and use its accessories
The PS5 Pro is compatible with current PS5 accessories, including PlayStation VR2, PlayStation Portal, DualSense Edge, Access controller, Pulse Elite and Pulse Explore.
Several PS5 games will be patched with free software updates to take advantage of the PS5 Pro’s features. These games will feature a PS5 Pro Enhanced label and include Alan Wake 2, Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, Demon’s Souls, Dragon’s Dogma 2, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Gran Turismo 7, Hogwarts Legacy, Horizon Forbidden West, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, The Crew Motorfest, The First Descendant, and The Last of Us Part II Remastered.
Sony currently sells the PS5 for a starting price of $449 for the model without a disc drive.
What happens to the PS5 now?
When Sony announced that its PS5 was entering the “latter stage of its life cycle,” earlier this year, the company didn’t explain how its approach to the device would change, other than making the cryptic promise to “put more emphasis on the balance between profitability and sales.”
Rumors suggest Sony won’t be dropping prices much but will instead focus on convincing existing PS5 owners to trade up to a PS5 Pro, or get non-PlayStation owners to buy a PS5.
One way Sony will make its case is by offering many years of backward compatibility. The PS5 can play “an overwhelming majority” of PS4 games, no matter if they were bought on disc or digital, and we now know that the same is true for PS5 games on the PS5 Pro. And though we don’t yet know if the inevitable PS6 will offer the same capability, it’s likely Sony will want to keep that feature.
Sony kept making and selling PS4 consoles more than a year past the PS5’s launch in the fall of 2020.
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