The PlayStation 5 Pro, an updated version of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s best-selling console that is expected to deliver several improvements over its existing counterparts, including faster GPU rendering and greater ray-tracing performance, may cost anywhere from $600 to $650, according to new price predictions that have been shared by industry analysts. The base and digital editions of the PS5 Slim, which Sony launched in November 2023, are currently listed for $499.99 and $449.99 on PlayStation Direct.
From a report:
- “[Kantan Games’ Dr. Serkan] Toto in particular said he has ‘no doubt’ a PS5 Pro is coming. And everyone agreed that a PS5 Pro would obviously be priced higher than the current PS5.”
- “…production and shipping costs are not declining in-line with previous generations, especially for components such as SSDs…[and] console platform holders are struggling to maintain gross profit margins across the board.”
- “Toto doesn’t believe there will be a price cut on the PS5 base model. ‘We can expect the PS5 Pro to cost $600 to $650 in the US,’ he said.”
- “Now, I am curious what Sony will do in the Japanese market where the current model costs 79,980 yen. For that price, you can get two Switches and almost an additional Switch Lite here. Will they dare to offer the PS5 Pro for 100,000 yen or even more?”
Some pricing trends for the PS5 in Japan:
After its launch in 2020, the cost of a PS5 (Disc) has increased by a total of 60% and the PS5 (Digital) has increased by a total of 82.5% in Japan.
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) August 28, 2024
Sony cites a challenging external environment, including fluctuations in the global economy, for the reason behind the three… pic.twitter.com/uDT32SjkIp
A peek at what the PS5 Pro will supposedly look like:
Additional thoughts from Newzoo’s Michael Wagner:
While we do not collect revenue on hardware, when the PS4 Pro version came to market, we saw a decrease in the cost of the base model. If a PS5 Pro is on the horizon, we have no reason to believe Sony will change their pricing strategy for this generation.
Wagner believes that the PS5 Pro “may not move the needle for this generation in the same way that a price decrease in the base model may,” and while GTA 6 might be a hardware sales driver, it might not be as significant as some would expect.
“We have also shown that many players are playing more mature titles that do not require hardware upgrades (Fortnite, Minecraft, etc.). Due to this, it will be interesting to see how Sony positions a Pro version to drive console sales for players who are not already interested in the base model.”