-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Tom Henderson - PS5 redesign planned for 2023 with detachable disc drive
- Thread starter kyliethicc
- Start date
They would be silly not to, I wonder if they could offer a UMD drive for PSP games also?
Then again there could be security issues, Sony don't want people connecting these drives to PC's and dumping their games, it could be using a custom interface based off USB.
Doctor Hades
Member
I kind of like the idea of having a console with a separate disc drive that still attaches to the frame as opposed to being external because if the drive develops a fault, which they invariably do due to wear and tear, then it easily be replaced (very useful if out of warranty) without having to buy brand new console.
I do think that this is an experiment by Sony to see just how many people buying the new PS5 design actually buy a disc drive as well. This would then give them a better idea of how viable a digital-only system would be going forward into the next generation. At the moment, there are two SKUs but just because someone buys the PS5 with a disc drive doesn't mean that they actually want the drive as it may be just that that was the only model they could buy. By having only one SKU with an optional disc drive then it gives Sony a much better idea of just how popular the disc drive really is. If sales of the disc drive are poor then it could give them the perfect excuse to go all digital for the PS6. I mean we all know this is going to happen eventually, whether we like it or not (I don't due to the high prices of digital games and the lack of any sense of ownership or second-hand resell value).
I am 100% digital for PC now and having bought a disc game in 10 years. I buy 95% of my games from third-party key sellers such as CDKeys.com though which makes up for the lack of second hand resale value. I rarely buy games direct from Epic or Steam etc at full price unless it something I really, really want (Final Fantasy VII Remake Integrade for example on Epic). However, while I do like being able to switch between digital games on Xbox Series X and PS5 rather than having to swap discs, I will continue to purchase boxed games with discs for the foreseeable future as long as new releases stay at £60-£70 on the console stores. I do buy the odd game when they are discounted though, usually 50% off or when they are under £20.
I do think that this is an experiment by Sony to see just how many people buying the new PS5 design actually buy a disc drive as well. This would then give them a better idea of how viable a digital-only system would be going forward into the next generation. At the moment, there are two SKUs but just because someone buys the PS5 with a disc drive doesn't mean that they actually want the drive as it may be just that that was the only model they could buy. By having only one SKU with an optional disc drive then it gives Sony a much better idea of just how popular the disc drive really is. If sales of the disc drive are poor then it could give them the perfect excuse to go all digital for the PS6. I mean we all know this is going to happen eventually, whether we like it or not (I don't due to the high prices of digital games and the lack of any sense of ownership or second-hand resell value).
I am 100% digital for PC now and having bought a disc game in 10 years. I buy 95% of my games from third-party key sellers such as CDKeys.com though which makes up for the lack of second hand resale value. I rarely buy games direct from Epic or Steam etc at full price unless it something I really, really want (Final Fantasy VII Remake Integrade for example on Epic). However, while I do like being able to switch between digital games on Xbox Series X and PS5 rather than having to swap discs, I will continue to purchase boxed games with discs for the foreseeable future as long as new releases stay at £60-£70 on the console stores. I do buy the odd game when they are discounted though, usually 50% off or when they are under £20.
Last edited:
dotnotbot
Member
Love this design, you absolutely can't touch this glossy plastic with anything or it will get scratched to oblivion and look like ass, even microfiber cloth will leave scratches. Whenever I have to touch mine I'm wearing gloves. Whoever designed this thing should get a special comfy place in hell.Unless it's this POS:
VGEsoterica
Member
MAYBE Sony should just focus on...oh I dunno....INCREASING PRODUCTION OF THEIR CURRENT HARDWARE SO PEOPLE CAN ACTUALLY BUY THEM
MasterCornholio
Member
Like going down to 6NM? I'm sure they are already taking steps to improve production.
Banjo64
cumsessed
Tempted to flip my DE come Christmas time if they’re going for £500 used. There’s currently bids exceeding £400 on eBay. I can happily wait until a slim releases to play God of War and with Starfield, Wo Long, Silksong, Tears of the Kingdom and Hogwarts coming out next year it’s not like my PS5 will see loads of action.
Last edited:
Well I suppose one could dissemble it and give it a ceramic coat, would make it slightly more shinier but the plastic surface would be durable.
RobRSG
Member
I think this one is pretty cool, sleek and slim.Unless it's this POS:
I have a white variant, I think it is perfect.
01011001
Banned
Unless it's this POS:
it might be ugly, but this will by far be the easiest system to keep alive down the line.
you have direct access to the laser to clean it, and it has the final revision of the hardware which uses the least amount of power and therefore has the least amount of heat to deal with, meaning all the components should stay pretty cool and aren't under any stress.
Tarin02543
Member
Bought a ps3 SS in July, for me the last good PlayStation with Krazy Ken DNA.
CherryFalls
Banned
It will be a sad day when physical ownership is relegated to an attachment.
That ship has already sailed. Japan had a physical to digital thing going with the PSP and PS3 when the PSP Go was first released. People were getting cheap used copies, spending ~$5 to convert and then flipping them.
But if you really want to dump games, all you need is a PSP /w CFW. Put the game in, hit select and choose UMD for USB device, connect to PC, and copy the .ISO file.
nominedomine
Banned
Pretty smart idea to be honest.
Tiago Rodrigues
Member
They are literally doing that. The current PS5 has gone through 2 or 3 revisions already. The most recent one will contribute for more production.
The console is also easier to buy now.
This week Europe is getting Fifa + PS5. In a month COD + PS5 will be available everywhere. They are not only producing more units but also making more bundles.
nightmare-slain
Gold Member
they are definitely easing people into the idea of an all digital PS6 lol. first the digital PS5 and, if this is true, a detachable disc drive 
i don't give a fuck about disc drives. they can get rid of them all they want. i only hope that the new PS5 model is smaller and less ugly.
i don't give a fuck about disc drives. they can get rid of them all they want. i only hope that the new PS5 model is smaller and less ugly.
that day is coming.
Last edited by a moderator:
Grildon Tundy
Gold Member
I bet Amazon would be willing to hear Sony, Nintendo, and/or Microsoft out. Amazon's distribution, logistics, infrastructure, and overhead are leagues better than boxstore retail's. And being the only place in the world you could get those consoles means Amazon could get lots of little profit on ALL the units...could be worth it, but we don't have the hard numbers to prove it out. Just an armchair analyst over here.
Last edited:
Daniel_Mallorca1985
Member
Last edited:
ZoukGalaxy
Member
Stop posting this horrendous thing, there is already a thread and it hurts our eyes.
That's plain HIDEOUS.
This site does ALWAYS UGLY chinese bootleg level mockup
Last edited:
adamsapple
Or is it just one of Phil's balls in my throat?
kadab
Member
Topher
Identifies as young
That thing looks absurd. Remove the drive and it would look like someone sliced into like it was a cake. Thankfully these concept mockups are never accurate.
Calverz
Member
Got one of these in my setup. Il a sucker for the psOne. I think it still looks modern too. Ps2 slim looking a little dated now imo. But yea great design.
I have doubts Tom Henderson's rumor/story is fully accurate.
Sony so far has used the disc drive as a way to increase price by 100$ even though it costs to them much less and production has been 75:25 in favour of the disc model.
Why should they give up on this by making the digital edition suddenly the default model?
I'm sure they're working on a slim model given the progresses they have made with this year's internal redesign but I'm not sure about the detachable disc drive details. Maybe it's just a peripheral to let users with the digital edition upgrade?
Sony so far has used the disc drive as a way to increase price by 100$ even though it costs to them much less and production has been 75:25 in favour of the disc model.
Why should they give up on this by making the digital edition suddenly the default model?
I'm sure they're working on a slim model given the progresses they have made with this year's internal redesign but I'm not sure about the detachable disc drive details. Maybe it's just a peripheral to let users with the digital edition upgrade?
Last edited:
Imtjnotu
Member
Stop posting this horrendous thing, there is already a thread and it hurts our eyes.
That's plain HIDEOUS.
This site does ALWAYS UGLY chinese bootleg level mockup
Trogdor1123
Gold Member
This makes zero sense. No way this is happening
vivftp
Member
Off the top of my head...
- It reduces their production line down to a single PS5 SKU instead of two, simplifying it and saving money on packaging and shipping of the PS5 itself since it'll weigh less without a drive.
- Sony makes more money from digital game purchases than physical, so they'd want to steer the market in that direction. More than half of all PlayStation game sales are already digital anyways.
- They may lose the markup on having a PS5 SKU with a disc drive, but they could easily compensate by offering the optional disc drive at a similar mark-up.
- If a PS5 Pro is due out in the next couple of years then they'll logically want to simplify their lineup. It wouldn't do to have a PS5 Digital, a PS5 disc and a PS5 Pro all on store shelves at the same time. They could streamline it down to a PS5 and PS5 Pro, and both can accept the optional disc drive attachment.
- Being able to offer the PS5 itself to all users at a lower baseline price reduces the barrier to entry into their ecosystem, which will be helpful towards their goal of 30.5 million PS5's next FY if that part of the rumor is accurate.
- On a smaller note, since they've begun pushing backwards compatibility more, the optional disc drive could be capable of reading CDs, which could enable disc BC for the PS1.
Tom Henderson definitely has sources. Most recently he leaked the existence of the DualSense Edge months before it was announced.
EDIT.
Adding one more to the above list:
- Warranty claims will be reduced on the console if none of them have built in disc drives as that's a notable potential point of failure. If Sony's paying for shipping the console either to them to back to the customer, it'll cost far less to ship a disc drive that needs to be repaired/replaced than an entire console.
Last edited:
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Odd, I think it’s most timeless looking one, personally.
DenchDeckard
Moderated wildly
You're not thinking corrently. It was only the original ps5 that cost that much...this new improved version will cost 99999 dollars! Lol
Topher
Identifies as young
Calverz
Member
I don’t know. I think it’s maybe the ridges and the exposed USB ports on the front that make it look dated to me. Whereas the psOne is cleaner looking in general. I don’t know lol
FingerBang
Member
This is actually huge. And if you think about it, it's also pretty great for us.
Most of the issues I've had with my consoles (excluding 360 and PS3 lol) had to do with CD/DVD laser failure. Imagine just being able to send that back or buy a new one directly. You get to keep your console instead of waiting for RMA.
And that should also work for the base PS5, if your disc drives dies and you're out of warranty, you get an external one and it's all good.
I wonder wether they'll do the same with the PS5 Pro though. I don't think the console is going down to 299, at best it might be 350 with the disc drive probably around $70, I guess the Pro would have to be around 550 or 600 with disc drive (or 500 without) to make sense.
vivftp
Member
Yeah, having the disc drive being something you can buy separately will really extend the viability of the consoles for years and decades to come.
I'd definitely bet on a potential PS5 Pro having no disc drive built in, and it'll simply accept the detachable disc drive accessory that the base model will introduce next year. No point in coming up with a solution to the disc drive situation just to go right back to it with the Pro.
As for price, I'm just gonna randomly guess that the base PS5 as of next September when the new model launches will be $399 USD, matching the original launch price of the PS5 digital. It's a price point they've already used, and the cost savings of the new model via redesigns will probably compensate for any global economy fluctuations to allow them to bring the price back down around the world. Offering the baseline PS5 a $399 will help with their sales push if they intend to move ~18 million of them in the last 2 quarters of next FY. I can't see them going lower than $399 simply because they don't need to. The PS5 will continue to fly off the shelves for a long while to come. A price drop lower than $399 would only potentially come when sales slow down, not while it's ramping up.
Regarding a PS5 Pro, yeah that's anyones guess what price it'd launch at. Presumably it'd come out holiday 2024, meaning the new base model would have been on the market for a year. Maybe they could do a $399/$499 sort of deal with the base/pro models, or by that point if they do lower the MSRP of the base model it could be a $349/$499 affair.
fuck_diggity_cunt_ingdon
Banned
This won’t be a popular opinion but I’d really like to see a complete redesign, I personally think the Ps5 is ugly as hell.
And every PlayStation design refresh (with the exception of the Ps2 Slim) has been worse than the original.
And every PlayStation design refresh (with the exception of the Ps2 Slim) has been worse than the original.
Last edited:
FingerBang
Member
If the rumors of the devkit being shipped already are true, I think it's going to be late 2023, which would put it in line with the release of a PS5 Pro. But the power difference here will be huge compared to the base model. Though it sounds a little too early for us, it's highly likely that this chip has been worked on since before the launch of the original PS5 and releasing it too late might be an issue.
A 2023 version of the chip would have:
Zen 4: Though it doesn't sound great as a gen on gen improvement, it's actually going to be a massive jump from Zen 2 which powers PS5 and Xbox Series.
RDNA3.5. Just like the PS4 Pro got a polaris GPU with some Vega baked in, we can expect the PS5 Pro to be similar.
Altogether, the jump in performance (even leaving the same number of CU) would be massive, 2x or more, which will be huge for enabling high-res + higher-framerate + ray tracing.
Panajev2001a
GAF's Pleasant Genius
I personally remain of the opinion that 2023 is early to expect 2-3x performance improvements at the same price point and box size… let alone the fact that not being able to receive any exclusive game we are likely to se games designed for the base consoles with the extra power just used for a slightly higher performance profile :/.
StreetsofBeige
Gold Member
If this is true for PS5 Pro, then PS6 will continue the trend and be digital only with the option of buying an optical drive. This will keep the cost of the system low and also a profit boosting for Sony as they'll sell the external drive at profits.
Video game sales are already around ~75% digital. And the trend slowly inches up every year. As long as there are discs and optical drives, it'll never be 100% like PC, but it could probably still naturally hit 80-85% before leveling out due to disc gamers.
Video game sales are already around ~75% digital. And the trend slowly inches up every year. As long as there are discs and optical drives, it'll never be 100% like PC, but it could probably still naturally hit 80-85% before leveling out due to disc gamers.
vivftp
Member
Who knows what their original plan was. The PS4 Pro came out 3 years after the PS4 did, and the Xbox One X came out 4 years after the Xbox One. Since the base PS5 was so much better relative to the base PS4 at the time, maybe they originally planned for a 4 year period before the Pro would come out. Or a Pro could've been pushed back just like everything else has. We can only guess.
Devkits going out now doesn't necessarily mean it's only a year away. These could be early first gen devkits that're kitbashed together to approximate the intended power of the mid-gen refreshes. Something to give devs a bit more time to prepare their games. PSVR2 devkits went out in early 2021, a full 2 years prior to launch, for example. Source
It's not impossible that a PS5 Pro might appear in late 2023, but if someone was willing to leak the existence of the refreshed based model launching in late 2023 to Tom Henderson I would have to wonder why they didn't also leak the Pro launching at the same time.
Calverz
Member
If I was a retailer, why would I bother stocking, market for and sell ps6 then? There would be virtually no profit for me and would effectively kill my business.
vivftp
Member
Stock the PS6 and stock the optional disc drive, or as a retailer even offer a bundle with both of them. Don't retailers still make a profit off of accessory sales and whatnot too? Either way, I would imagine we'll see Sony grow their direct to customers sales platform for PlayStation so folks can buy straight from them.
damiank
Member
Calverz
Member
For me this still looks like something you could buy in the shops.
StreetsofBeige
Gold Member
They'd scale down, but it'd be a tough call. It's not like console makers care since digital game sales are already at 75%, but I totally understand they need retail presence to get hardware sales in the first place.
Lots of stores that historically sold games and systems dont anymore, but the ones that do (Best Buy, Gamestop) have their gaming sections shrunk where they fill the gaps selling accessories and junky toys.
What they can do is simply replace the disc copies with boxes of digital codes. No different than stores selling a wall of digital money and sub plans. There will always be a market for point of purchase people as not everyone wants to do it purely digitally. If possible I've always bought a physical version of Xbox money or sub plan cards where I manually type in the code because I dont want to buy it from the Xbox store with my credit card in case it gets hacked.
Another way to possibly get back sales is charge a higher price for consoles and bundle stuff in (which is what they are often doing now).
asdasdasdbb
Member
The Pro model will be more than $499. If I had to guess I would say $699.
vivftp
Member
I can see them mirror the launch of the PS4 Pro, to a degree. The PS4 launched at $399 in 2013 and by the time 2016 came around the PS4 price had dropped and they launched the PS4 Pro at $399.
This time, they launched the PS5 with 2 models, a $399 discless one and a $499 disc one. Now we have the rumor that they'll launch a revision next year that's discless and that'll be the new base model. If the PS5 Pro isn't due until holiday 2024 then I could see a scenario where the base model is offered at $349 or $399, and the PS5 Pro is offered at $499.
There's no reality where a PS5 Pro is sold at $699.
Sony I don't think would allow that, they already don't let other retailers sell digital copies like MS does