‘PlayStation 5’ Release Date, Specs: Is the Next-Gen Console Worth Waiting for?

The PlayStation 5 is set to go toe to toe against the PC platform as Sony has developed the next-gen console with jaw-dropping technology. Following the massive revelation by PS5 lead architect Mark Cerny, the gaming community has been abuzz with excitement about the future of the gaming market.

As such, those who have been on the fence to buy a new console stopped dead on their tracks when the hardware of the PlayStation was revealed in April. So the question is: should you wait for the PlayStation 5 to come out before getting into the console ecosystem?

The answer is a definite yes. As a brief rundown, here are the specs of the PlayStation 5. The next-gen console has been outfitted with a solid-state drive that would drastically decrease a game’s loading time. Its GPU will be a custom variant from Radeon’s Navi series that will provide ray tracing technology.

For the layman, ray tracing tech is a method in which a simulated environment mimics how light bounces off of objects in the real world. The technique is often used in Hollywood special effects and has never made its way into the console platform until now. Ray tracing will allow the PlayStation 5 the ability to render realistic graphics that will increase a gamer’s immersion in a given title.

Another exciting spec of the next-gen console is backward compatibility. With this addition, the PlayStation 5 will be able to play games that have been made for its predecessors, allowing people to revisit classic titles in their library. An eight-core CPU on AMD’s third-gen Ryzen series, support on an 8k resolution, 3D audio, and a possible true wireless VR experience will also be making their way into the next-gen console.

Regarding its price, Sony analyst Hideki Yasuda predicts it will cost $499 as Sony doesn’t want to commit the same blunder it did with the PlayStation 3. With the PlayStation 5 having the abovementioned specs and a competitive price to boot, it’s best to wait for its release if you’re someone who’s looking to join the console community. While nothing has been revealed just yet, most of the speculations are pointing that the next-gen console will come out in the fall of 2020.