PS5 Pro: Release date, rumors, price, what we want from Sony’s next-gen console

On November 15, 2013, Sony launched the PlayStation 4. Three years later, almost to the day, Sony launched an upgraded version known as the PlayStation 4 Pro. Meanwhile, the PlayStation 5 launched on November 12, 2020. If you do the math, that means by November this year, it will have been three years since we saw the PS5 console launch. Does that mean we can expect a Sony PS5 Pro to launch soon?

The PS4 Pro was only a slight iteration of the PS4. It used the same controller, played the same games, and had all the same features. Its main reason for existing was to allow for smoother gameplay, 4K support across various games, and a few other quality-of-life upgrades. If a PlayStation 5 Pro exists, what will it offer?

In this article, we have rounded up all the credible rumors we’ve seen so far related to a PS5 Pro. We’ve also compiled a wishlist of features we hope to see, even if we haven’t seen any evidence for them yet.

Much like the mythical Nintendo Switch Pro, Sony has not confirmed a PS5 Pro is on the way or even in the works. Believe it or not, Sony launching a “Pro” version of its home game console has only happened once. The original PlayStation, the PlayStation 2, and the PlayStation 3 never saw Pro-level models. That means we are banking a lot on the existence of the PlayStation 4 Pro in our assumption that there could be a PlayStation 5 Pro.

That being said, there is plenty of evidence to support a PS5 Pro is likely to happen. The CEO of Take-Two Interactive — the studio behind the Grand Theft Auto franchise — went on the record to say he thinks a PS5 Pro will happen. Meanwhile, leaker Tom Henderson said, “with a 100% degree of certainty,” that the PlayStation 5 Pro is “currently in development.” When leakers and gaming industry CEOs are in agreement, it seems a foregone conclusion that we’ll see a Sony PlayStation 5 Pro at some point soon.

Since Sony hasn’t confirmed the existence of a PS5 Pro, we can’t say with any certainty when it will come out. However, based on the launch cycle of the PlayStation 4 series, it’s possible we could see it this year, maybe in November. An early November 2023 launch would allow Sony to capitalize on the lucrative holiday shopping season. Also, November is when Sony has launched most of its recent consoles, so it makes sense.

That being said, Sony has launched some consoles during September, including the PlayStation 4 Slim (2016), the PlayStation 3 Super Slim (2012), and the PlayStation 3 Slim (2009). So a September 2023 launch of the Sony PlayStation 5 Pro isn’t out of the question, either.

However, there is a scuttlebutt that we might need to wait until 2024 to see the PS5 Pro. One leaker, in a since-deleted tweet, said that the PS5 Pro and a second-gen Nintendo Switch would likely launch around the same time. Nintendo has confirmed that it will not launch new Switch hardware in 2023, which would mean 2024 launches for the new Sony and Nintendo consoles.

It’s also possible a PS5 Slim could be in the works. If it is, we would almost certainly see that before we see a PS5 Pro, as that’s the order in which Sony launched the PS4 series.

To summarize, we’d expect the PlayStation 5 Pro to launch in the fall of either 2023 or 2024. We’ll know more about a possible 2023 launch in the coming summer, as leaks would ramp up significantly by then if a launch was imminent.

As mentioned earlier, the star feature of the PlayStation 4 Pro was 4K support. As it stands today, the PlayStation 5 already supports 4K on a huge selection of titles. Technically, it even supports 8K. However, 8K support is limited to just one game — and it’s not a very popular one. It’s possible the PlayStation 5 Pro could support 8K natively on more titles or even 8K upscaling on games that don’t have that resolution natively.

This would necessitate an upgrade in hardware. The PS5 runs on a custom processor based on an AMD Zen 2 build combined with a custom RDNA 2 GPU. One theory, originating from RedGamingTech on YouTube, is that the new PlayStation could have a new Ryzen APU, which would also be customized significantly.

A hardware upgrade like this could make the Sony PlayStation 5 Pro capable of smoother refresh rates and better graphics processing. Many PlayStation games give you the option of prioritizing graphics or performance. It’s possible Sony could lean into this more, with the PS5 Pro capable of rock-solid 120fps gameplay at higher resolutions or rock-solid 4K graphics at variable refresh rates.

Another thing that could see improvement is ray tracing. The PlayStation 5 supports ray tracing, but it requires the system to work pretty hard and requires some performance trade-offs. A Pro-level model could theoretically support ray tracing more efficiently and on more titles.

The important thing to remember, though, is that this will not be a PS6. The PS5 Pro would be a better iteration of the current console, not some wild leap forward. Only the most demanding gamers would feel the need to upgrade from a PlayStation 5, but it could be the nudge needed for people still using a PS4.

The PlayStation 5 has two versions: a disc-less model that costs $399 and a disc-based variant for $499. One would assume that a Pro-level model would need to be more expensive than these two. However, that might not be the case.

For context, the PlayStation 4 cost $399 when it launched in 2013. In September 2016, the PlayStation 4 Slim landed, and it only cost $299. In November 2016, the PlayStation 4 Pro launched at $399. Therefore, there is a precedent that Sony could drop the price of the regular PlayStation 5 and launch the Pro model at either the $399 or $499 price we see today. It’s even possible that we’d see a “Slim” model of the PlayStation 5 land shortly before the Pro model, if Sony sticks to its last-gen strategy.

Either way, we hope PlayStation 5 Pro doesn’t cost more than $500. The last time Sony went over that mark with the upgraded 60GB PlayStation 3, it was not well-received, to say the least. With inflation rates soaring, we could see it hit ~$550, but fingers crossed that doesn’t happen.

Better thermals

The PlayStation 5 doesn’t sound like a jet engine when it’s operating at a heavy load. This is a welcome change from the PS4, PS4 Slim, and even PS4 Pro, which all had crazy-loud fan noise. However, the downside to quieter fans is higher temperatures, and the PlayStation 5 can get pretty toasty under heavy load.

It would be great to see the Sony PlayStation 5 Pro have a better grip on thermals. Even if it ran a few degrees cooler at heavy loads, that would be nice. This would likely require some redesign of the internals and possibly even a new type of case. Still, a classy redesign could add to the appeal of upgrading to the Pro model, so that would be a win-win.

More storage

There has been a lot of discussion about the limited storage space on the PlayStation 5. The SSD it comes with has around 800GB of available space, which seems like it would be plenty. The problem, though, is that all PS5 games must be fully loaded into that storage — even if you put in a game disc. This causes that storage to fill up pretty rapidly, especially considering that the PS5 versions of F1: 2021, Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut, WWE 2K23, and Metro Exodus all have filesize larger than 100GB each. A limit of eight games installed at any one time just isn’t a lot.

That’s why we hope the PlayStation 5 Pro comes with more storage. Thankfully, it’s fairly easy to upgrade a PS5’s SSD if Sony skips this and sticks to the normal PS5 capacity, but it would be nice if folks who fork out for the Pro model don’t need to do that.

Quick-swapping of games

If you are playing a game and put the PS5 into rest mode, when you come back, you can pick up right where you left off. This feature is excellent, especially for folks with kids or busy social lives. It’s always been a pain to hold off on doing something because you need to get an in-game save point.

The problem, though, is that you can only do this for one game at a time. It would be nice if the PlayStation 5 Pro enabled this feature for multiple games. That way, you could stop playing one game, jump into another, and then go back and forth between the two without losing your spots. We’re not sure why you can’t do this already — possibly there’s insufficient RAM? — but we hope Sony finds a way to do this with the PS5 Pro.

Have any Sony PlayStation 5 Pro leaks to share with us? Send us a tip, and we’ll check it out.