Another day, another rumor but the latest is hinting at something nobody wants, a next-gen console that will cost over $1,000 thanks to the current memory and storage component shortage. As should be expected, rumors and speculation for the PlayStation 6 will continue to be all over the map until it finally sees the light of day, something not expected until late 2027 or early 2028. In the meantime we’re left with tidbits regarding its specs but if the latest is to believed then folks on a budget really need to start setting aside gaming funds for its arrival. According to well known industry information leaker KeplerL2 on the NeoGAF forums, a couple of crucial (no pun intended) components are so close to the $1K mark its going to make it almost impossible for Sony to launch the console for under that mark. Per KeplerL2, “RAM + NAND alone is over $680”.
Now while Sony’s business model has typically seen its consoles sold at a loss for the manufacturer who makes its money back through video game sales and other services, its debateable how much it can subsidize the next model to reduce costs to below $1,000. We know that Sony has continued its agreement with AMD for another custom processor but how much that inhouse cost will be is unknown but if this latest rumor of over $680 for storage and memory components alone is accurate, that means only $320 left on the table until the price reaches the $1,000 mark and a high performance processor will likely eat a good chunk of that. Sony will undoubetly work with AMD to secure high volume discounts but even then there’s still the rest of PlayStation 6 to consider. Modern consoles very much resemble building a PC and from cooling to power supplies, motherboards and chasis, there are plenty of other components besire DDR/NAND which are included in their costs.
One positive to consider for prospective PlayStation 6 customers is that through its continued collaboration with AMD, the next console is expected to be backwards compatible with PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 games. However, it’s unknown how this will playout if Sony doesn’t include an optical drive with the next model but perhaps it too will be an optional purchase as offered for the current digital only model.
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