The new addition to the PlayStation 5 family almost doubles the performance of the PS5.
Sony and Mark Cerny streamed a small 9-minute technical presentation today, talking about the newest console model, the PlayStation 5 Pro. The main talking point was the performance of the Pro in comparison to the regular PS5.
Cerny talked about the three main components, which make the new PlayStation 5 Pro so powerful:
- Upgraded GPU: With PS5 Pro, we are upgrading to a GPU that has 67% more Compute Units than the current PS5 console and 28% faster memory. Overall, this enables up to 45% faster rendering for gameplay, making the experience much smoother.
- Advanced Ray Tracing: We’ve added even more powerful ray tracing that provides more dynamic reflection and refraction of light. This allows the rays to be cast at double, and at times triple, the speeds of the current PS5 console.
- AI-Driven Upscaling: We’re also introducing PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution, an AI-driven upscaling that uses a machine learning-based technology to provide super sharp image clarity by adding an extraordinary amount of detail.
According to Cerny, developers wanted to get more out of their games on the PS5. Main reason behind creation of the new hardware was to blur the lines between fidelity and performance modes. So far most fidelity modes in games capped the framerate at 30FPS, which is hard to accept nowadays. The PlayStation 5 Pro will bring the steady 60FPS and great graphics performance, basically eliminating the need for fidelity and performance modes in games. At least on paper.
Sony presented a few games running at 60FPS with upscaled resolution, such as The Last of Us Part II, Marvel’s Spider Man 2, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart and more. All of them holding a steady 60FPS with high resolution and better graphical performance.
The bump in performance seems to be quite sugnificant, which is awesome. Is it worth the upgrade, though? Maybe the new comers can decide to buy the new Pro hardware, but for anyone rocking the original or the Slim version, I would suggest skipping it. Not worth the money IMO.
So, about the pricing. The new console will start at a steep $699 USD (£699.99 GBP and €799.99 EUR). And that’s for the digital version. Pretty rough if you ask me. Sony seems to be testing how much they can squeeze out of their customers. Especially since the Dualsense controller got a $5 price hike yesterday. Not a cool move. Oh, and the vertical stand for the PS5 Pro is sold separately too…
The players wishing to use the PS5 Pro with a disc drive, will have to purchase it separately, which adds even more to the pirce tag. I guess it’s time to get used to digital only consoles in the coming years.
PlayStation 5 Pro will launch on November 7, 2024, with preorders starting on September 26, 2024.
