PlayStation 5 release date, specs, price: Why it’s not for all gamers

Sony decided to ditch this year’s E3 but around the same time. But the company still gained a good command in the gaming news headlines as talk about its next-generation console — unofficially dubbed the PlayStation 5 — continue to escalate. However, the company has also indicated recently that its next flagship gaming platform may not be for everyone.

The PlayStation 5 is no longer a secret. Many details about its hardware specs and features are already out in the wild, and it all indicates that Sony seriously intends to live up to the “next-generation console” label.

PlayStation 5 specs: Console for hardcore gamers

After lead system architect Mark Cerny’s interview with Wired got published, it became even clearer that Sony is going all out in building the PlayStation 5 rig. It will be equipped with custom CPU and GPU from AMD’s Ryzen and Radeon Navi architectures, respectively. Its processing chip is designed to make 3D audio possible while the graphics card will bring ray tracing technology in the gaming industry.

With these powerful components, an 8K resolution should not be a problem. But Sony is most excited about having a solid-state drive on the PlayStation 5. Cerny also noted that the SSD they will be using is different, or for that matter, much faster than those found on personal computers. Sony has yet to release the complete specs of the console, but it is clearly designed to appeal to hardcore gamers. And in a report by the Wall Street Journal, Sony CEO and President Kenichiro Yoshida did refer to the PlayStation 5 as a “niche product” or, by definition, a commodity that will be primarily marketed to a particular group of consumers.

PlayStation 5 price, release date: What to expect

The upcoming console’s price and release date are clearly some of the details that Sony wants to keep under wraps for now. But based on the gaming platform’s history and analyst predictions, fans can have a little idea what to expect on this aspect of PlayStation 5.

A leak from late 2018 suggested that the PlayStation 5 could be priced at $499. Given the specs that were confirmed recently, it might be hard to believe that the next-gen console is going to be just a hundred bucks higher than the cost of PS4 Pro. But fans might also not like the other widely rumored price tag that is $800.

Meanwhile, Cerny also made it very clear that PlayStation 5 will not arrive in 2019. So the common belief now is that the console will be released in 2020, which was also mentioned in the said leak. It would make sense to place PlayStation 5 in stores ahead of Christmas next year especially since Xbox’s Project Scarlett counterpart is already confirmed for that release date window.