What Will Sony’s PlayStation 5 Hardware Refresh Look Like?

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

A major Xbox leak has revealed the existence of a mid-gen refresh for Microsoft’s newest console and this probably means Sony at least has a design document for a new PlayStation 5 refresh lying around its offices somewhere.

Despite seeming like the latest generation of gaming just arrived thanks to the time-warping effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and unprecedented console shortages, we’re already three years into the life of the PS5. Think back to the PlayStation 4 where the base model was released in 2013 and, three years later, both a PS4 Slim and a PS4 Pro were announced in 2016. This means we’re about due for some new PlayStations.

Rumor on the street is that Sony is indeed readying some kind of PS5 Slim model, one with a detachable disc drive that could retail separately. And so far there are no real credible reports for what a PS5 Pro could entail. That said, here’s what I’d like to see for a mid-cycle PS5.

Bring On Modular Consoles

The one big rumor around the PS5 Slim, or whatever it ends up being called, is that the disc drive will not be included with the system. Instead, it will be sold separately and connected if needed.

While the idea of buying a digital-only console to replace my disc-based system is a non-starter for me, I love the idea of modular hardware, whether it’s game consoles, phones, laptops, whatever! And I’m not just talking about boring stuff like batteries and disc drives. I want Sony to create some bonkers attachments for the PS5 Slim. Maybe custom stands to display official collector’s edition figures like the upcoming 19-inches of Venom statue in Spider-Man 2. Or, a screen projector to turn your PS5 into a device you can set up anywhere to game from.

Are these unrealistic ideas? Sure, but unlike Xbox, there hasn’t been a major Sony leak for us to analyze so as far as I’m concerned the only thing holding back Sony from creating the ultimate, impractical, modular game system is their imagination.

Slimmer, but Not Boring

Here’s my big fear with any PlayStation 5 Slim – that Sony decides to make it boring. I love that my PS5 looks like something you might accidentally buy from Ikea. The curved, white face plates and aggressive, almost obnoxious size make it feel like an actual, premium sculpture that just happens to play games. Comments from friends and on the internet hint that some may wait for a Slim model, when Sony relents and creates a console in a more practical form factor. Cowards.

The worst possible outcome would be a plain, white square of a system, and historically Sony’s slim models have always been the more boring of the two systems. The only exception that comes to mind is the PS3 Slim, which reigned in the excess of its base predecessor in a delightfully elegant console (let’s not talk about the PS3 Super Slim). But for every PS3 Slim there’s something like the PS4 Slim, which literally just lopped off a layer off the top of the PS4 Pro and called it a day

Going by past PlayStation Slim designs, Sony typically saves space by removing some aesthetic elements of the current version of the console. And if that’s the case I imagine a smaller version of the PS5 will probably do away with the face plates that flare out, currently preventing you from putting it into one of the regular-sized (read: lame) partitions in your media center.

Here’s another idea: Sony should make it smaller overall, but let you customize it in more ways. Imagine if it was a cube – I mean, Nintendo already proved it was the most perfect shape for a console – but with face plates on all sides, to mix and match colors and designs. If they’re already going modular for the hardware, it’s only fair to make it more customizable. No? Fine, enjoy your smaller console that can fit into tighter spaces.

What About a Pro?

A slim upgrade is not really for existing PS5 owners, it’s for the folks who didn’t buy the console the first time around and convince them to give the hardware a shot now that it’s smaller and maybe even a little bit cheaper.

But what about a Pro? Sony and Xbox both introduced hardware upgrades last generation with the Xbox One X and the PlayStation 4 Pro, which offered 4K gaming (to varying degrees), a pretty notable enhancement that is now standard with the current-gen consoles. Was 4K gaming necessary in 2016? Yes and no, as the advent of 4K TVs caught console-makers by surprise I think. But for everyone else 4K was not a killer feature and that’s sort of why I think pro upgrades are on the whole kind of useless.

For now, my 4K, ray-tracing, SSD-powered console will simply have to do

Improvements to ray-tracing, framerate, and even maybe 8K resolution could all be nice to have down the line, but with 8K TVs retailing at 2,000 USD for the foreseeable future, the 8K revolution will not be catching Sony and Microsoft on the backfoot this time. If there is a Pro PS5 version coming out, I hope folks enjoy it. But for now, my 4K, ray-tracing, SSD-powered console will simply have to do, I say with the heaviest of sighs.

Ultimately, the console life cycle continues and whether we’re ready for it or not, new mid-gen refreshes are on the horizon. But so long as Sony is brave, I’m sure we’ll get the modular, bold, slim console of my — I mean, our — dreams.

Matt T.M. Kim is IGN’s Senior Features Editor. You can reach him @lawoftd.