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The PS5 Pro Is Not Pro Enough

Did The PS5 Pro Fail As A Pro Device?

  • Yes

    Votes: 130 49.6%

  • Depends On The Game

    Votes: 64 24.4%

  • No

    Votes: 68 26.0%
  • Total voters
    262
F

FalconPunch

Member
Slightly a year after the PS5 Pro launched, I think it's safe to say that it has failed to meet the expectations people have as a pro device. To break it down, let's look at the chart below:


PS4PS4 ProImprovement vs PS4Xbox OneXbox One XImprovement vs Xbox OnePS5PS5 ProImprovement vs PS5
Bandwidth176 GB/s217.6 GB/s24% Greater68.3 GB/s326 GB/s4.7x Greater448 GB/s576 GB/s29% Greater
CPU Clocks1.6 GHz2.13 GHz33% Greater1.75 GHz2.3 GHz31% Greater3.5 GHz3.85 GHz10% Greater
CPU Cores88-88-88-
Compute Units18 CUs36 CUs2X Greater12403.3X Greater36 CUs60 CUs67% Greater
GPU Clock Speed800mhz911mhz14% Greater853 mhz1172 mhz37% Greater2.23 GHz2.175 GHz5% Less
TeraFlops1.8 TFs4.2 TFs2.3X Greater1.3 TFs6 TFs4.6x Greater10.28 TFs16.7 TFs62% Greater
Raytracing------??Rumored 2-4x Faster
Ram8GB8GB + 1GB DDR313% Greater8 GB12 GB50% Greater16GB16GB + 2GB DDR513% Greater
Storage500GB1TB2x Greater500GB1TB2x Greater825 GB2TB2.4X Greater
Price$399$399No Difference$500$500No Difference$500$70040% Greater


Before we delve into the chart, let's discuss the PS4 Pro. The ps4 was favorably received due to it's increase in performance and it's price. It offered a notable jump from the PS4 at the same price.

The ps4 pro boosted the resolution from 900p-1080p on the base ps4 to 1440p-2160p on the ps4 pro. There wasn't too much attention paid to increasing the individual graphics settings but that did occur in some games.

The main complaint about the ps4 pro was that it primarily boosted resolution and did very little for frame rates. While valid, that complaint was due primarily to the anemic Jaguar cpus. A higher frequency didn't yield significantly more performance.

Looking at the Xbox One X, it was even better received than the PS4 Pro. It boosted resolutions from 720p-1080p on the Xbox One to 1800p-2160p on the Xbox One X.


When we compare the PS5 pro to the previous pro consoles, in all but Raytracing and Storage, it's basically a worse hardware improvement than previous pro consoles. The GPU fails to hit the 2x compute unit mark provided by the PS4 pro talk less of the Xbox One X.

The CPU frequency increase is worse than previous pro consoles as is the TFs, GPU clock speed, etc. So far, we have not seen large increases in resolution similar the PS4 Pro or Xbox One X. We have seen some frame rate improvements in cpu limited games however, we're seeing no more than a 10% improvement there.

Technologies like PSSR and Improved RT were supposed to increase the value proposition. However, outside of a handful of games, both of these features have failed to deliver.

Price is the biggest issue with the ps5 pro. a 40% increase in price over the base ps5 while being a complete downgrade from the PS4 Pro. To make matters worse, it doesn't even come with a disk drive.


What is a point of a pro console if you can't learn from the previous pro iteration? Charging a price premium for such a downgrade is a real head scratcher. Unfortunately for those looking forward to the PS6, it appears that Playstation is on track to offer a worse value proposition once again.

The rumored PS6 is supposed to have a marginal improvement in memory bandwidth, compute units, smaller chip, smaller tdp, while boasting a nice increase in price. Rumors do suggest that improved RT, ML capabilities and architectural improvements will make the PS6 a significant boost over the ps5 pro.

However, we have heard these exact rumors before in the lead up to the ps5 pro and we can see the results. AMD often misses their GPU performance targets so it would not be surprising to see that happen again with RDNA 5.

I'm on Team PS5 pro is a failure right now. Maybe that will change as the gen progresses but I don't see it. How does Gaf feel about the PS5 Pro so far?
 
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I'm happy with my purchase at the end of the day, and given the rumored delays I think it's really going to come into it's own here toward the end of gen. Especially once the PSSR2 update drops. Hopefully we'll get better support from devs once the PSSR is better.
 
The machine isn't the problem, it's because even the base model doesn't show all the shenanigans that should show, so why bother with beefier hardware?

This Pro should be released like next year or even ahead
 
Im quite happy with the ps5 pro. It is a good console and offers enough improvements in day to day gaming to justify the price (for me)
Could it be better? Yes
Should it be better? Yes
If the pro is worth it is a deeply personal question
 
big-trouble-if-i-speak.gif
 
I don't have one but based on many posts I've read here on NeoGAF it's not a good upgrade over the PS5.
I keep an eye out for used ps5 for cheap but it seems there isn't any downside to ps5 pro either.

In other words, is there any instance where running the ps5 pro version performs worse?
 
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The main problem with the PS5 Pro is it's lack of memory bandwidth. So most games become bottlenecked by that, not by compute or RT.
PSSR underdelivered, but hopefully PSSR2, using FSR4 Int8, will be a much better upscaler.

The PS4 and PS4 Pro had a major advantage. They weren't hit by a major chip crisis.
The PS5 and the PS5 Pro were hit by several crisis already. Covid, which increased consumer demand and was made worse by scalpers.
Then the mining boom, which made a ton of wafers go to make GPUs and ASICS. Leaving much less for consumer devices, including consoles.
And then hit by the chip crisis due to TSMC over dominance in the market, so they are constantly increasing prices. And now the DRAM crisis. And the Nand Flash crisis. And even copper.
 
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INC said:
how many games are worth being pro tho, is the question
Click to expand...

I think games like RE9, Crimson Desert and Saros will be among the first this year to push the hardware I think. Especially Crimson Desert.

Come to think of it, maybe that's why Crimson Desert has been showing more of the playstation button prompts when they showcase the game, specifically when they advertise captured on the Pro. Good selling points I would think.
 
winjer said:
The main problem with the PS5 Pro is it's lack of memory bandwidth. So most games become bottlenecked by that, not by compute or RT.
PSSR underdelivered, but hopefully PSSR2, using FSR4 Int8, will be a much better upscaler.

The PS4 and PS4 Pro had a major advantage. They weren't hit by a major chip crisis.
The PS5 and the PS5 Pro were hit by several crisis already. Covid, which increased consumer demand and was made worse by scalpers.
Then the mining boom, which made a ton of wafers go to make GPUs and ASICS. Leaving much less for consumer devices, including consoles.
And now hit by the chip crisis due to TSMC over dominance in the market, so they are constantly increasing prices. And now the DRAM crisis. And the Nand Flash crisis. And even copper.
Click to expand...
PSSR is shit, let's face it
 
FalconPunch said:
How does Gaf feel about the PS5 Pro so far?
Click to expand...
When a game has on the normal PS5 two different graphic modi, to favour resolution or frames, is the Pro capable of to run both (or it's more like a third modi with high resolution and frames).
Is that enough, when the 40 fps mode of a few games is already a good compromise?
Not for me, especially for that price.
 
doesn't make any sense at all. just like the PS4 Pro.

they are just taking fanboys for a ride. if people wanted higher performance they'd get a PC. yeah that's not really a choice now but RAM prices are affecting everything now so PS5 Pro makes even less sense now as well.

should've just got a PS5 standard model. that'll more than do until whenever the PS6 comes out.
 
I'd say it depends a lot on the game.
While PSSR has been a mixed bag, it's clear that the extra GPU power is very handy in games where it is used to bump up base resolution.
I'd say its definitely fulfills its selling point "60 fps at the same graphics" selling point Cerny made in the reveal.
Of course, it can't really measure up to Nvidia cards like 5070 and up, DLSS is too good in comparison.
But's that's a more expensive class of product too.
 
Tomorrow said:
doesn't make any sense at all. just like the PS4 Pro.

they are just taking fanboys for a ride. if people wanted higher performance they'd get a PC. yeah that's not really a choice now but RAM prices are affecting everything now so PS5 Pro makes even less sense now as well.

should've just got a PS5 standard model. that'll more than do until whenever the PS6 comes out.
Click to expand...
The whole "just get a PC" argument is pretty dumb when talking about Playstation
 
I think it's good. Expensive for sure, but good. And to some extent the price makes sense because this is a niche, premium device for a small number of players who really want the best visuals.

I'd say that on average the results are at least as compelling as the PS4 Pro. It basically does the same job: makes games that look rough on a 4K screen look decent, and sometimes a bit more than decent.

And PSSR is wildly underrated. DF have done everyone a huge disservice with their coverage of it. It's not just better than something like FSR2, it's MILES better.
 
Sorry guys it was totally worth it, especially now that the PS6 has been delayed and the fucking thing is getting a giant software upgrade this year. On top of that the price has stayed the same(for me) while PC prices have skyrocketed. It is also the only relevant next gen platform since Xbox shat the bed increasing its relative value. Truth is the thing has appreciated greatly since launch, and that's not even spin, lol. Reread this paragraph.

It was the correct move to purchase on launch and my gen will be hitting 60fps while yours hits 52 with drops. It's a huge fucking win.

Consider that the base PS5 isn't much cheaper really if you didn't already own one and it was clearly the right move to buy.

The quality has been remembered long after the price is forgotten. Enjoy 52 fps with drops and butt ugly IQ I guess if you think there is no difference. The second best time to buy is now.
 
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HeisenbergFX4 said:
The whole "just get a PC" argument is pretty dumb when talking about Playstation
Click to expand...
For me, the ps4 pro kept me from investing a lot into my PC at the time. I had an LCD 4k tv so 30fps still looked fine and it offered a huge boost in resolution and image quality.

With the PS5 pro, I expected a huge boost in image quality with an increase in RT features. However, it's usually a pick one improvement type of case. In AC Shadows for example, you got RT at 60fps but the image quality wasn't ideal.

In some games, it has worse IQ than the base ps5 due to PSSR and in other games like Avowed for example, the image quality increase is barely perceptible despite having a gpu with up to 60%+ more TFs and compute units.

Sony serious screwed up with the Pro's architecture and I personally believe it's a memory bandwidth issue. If I'm right, Cerny is about to make the exact same mistake with the PS6.
 
I think it's worse than the ps4 pro for sure.

But, sadly it will be the best way to play Sonys games day one until they come to pc so I just hope the future games are better supported than death stranding 2 which is why I bought the pro.
 
It's a failure because of third party support, IMO. The Sony published upgrades are generally good, but nearly everything else is either minimal or absent compared to PS5/XSX.
 
I wouldn't even pay what I payed for the PS5 at launch for the pro. It truly has no appeal whatsoever to me. If games even took advantage of the base PS5 and the devs put some effort into optimizing, yeah then maybe 🤷‍♂️
 
I'll tell you what it is after buying one: way too noisy. Such a disappointment after the whisper quiet operation of my Series X.
 
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Shtof said:
I'd say it depends a lot on the game.
While PSSR has been a mixed bag, it's clear that the extra GPU power is very handy in games where it is used to bump up base resolution.
I'd say its definitely fulfills its selling point "60 fps at the same graphics" selling point Cerny made in the reveal.
Of course, it can't really measure up to Nvidia cards like 5070 and up, DLSS is too good in comparison.
But's that's a more expensive class of product too.
Click to expand...

Lot depends on developers putting the effort into it. I think the most significant mistake Sony made with this was pricing it so high that it did not achieve an install base for many developers to believe it is worthy. Not saying the technical weaknesses that others are talking about are not factors, but there is a pretty large gap between the best implementations of the technology and the worst.
 
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It can do what Cerny said it could do, but I don't think enough devs are utilizing it properly. However you really can see the difference in a lot of games.

I also think you need a modern tv to really take advantage of it, it was no great shakes when I used it on my older tv but when I upgraded to a new Samsung OLED it shined.
 
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