On Thursday, November 19th 2020 the PlayStation 5 launched in the UK. I had pre-ordered from Amazon some two months prior when the first wave of pre-orders went live. On the day of the PS5’s launch, I waited eagerly, and anxiously for my brand new console to arrive.
I had heard some horror stories about PS5’s being stolen in transit from our American PlayStation friends and I was worried this could happen to mine. Thankfully my PlayStation 5 console was delivered safe and sound.
I stared at the PS5 box for a couple of minutes before carefully removing the console from its packaging. It was hard to believe that the console I had been obsessing over for the last few months was actually in my possession.
I have been following and writing about PS5 news, rumours and games since PlayStation Fanatic went live about eight months ago. I was in awe when the console design finally got revealed and I now had that sumptuous looking beauty in my home, ready to set up and place underneath the TV.
Before I set up the PS5 though I did take a good look at the overall design and aesthetics of Sony’s newest gaming powerhouse. This PS5 hardware review is my thoughts on the console design and build quality.
PS5 Hardware Review – A Thing of Beauty
When the PS5 design was first revealed back in June I thought the same as many people did, the PS5 design was, well a bit odd. It was completely different looking to the more traditional console designs of a rectangular black box we have seen in the past.
But, the more you look at the PS5 console the more the design grows on you. With its white outer shells, curved design and glossy black centrepiece, the PS5 certainly doesn’t really conform to the usual ideas of what a gaming box should look like.
The more I look at the PS5 as it sits, quiet as a mouse under my TV, I can’t help but think to myself that the PS5 is one sexy looking console.
I like the contrast of the white shell against the glossy, shiny black part. I like the fact that the white plates curve slightly outward at one end. These serve the purpose of creating the V for 5 shape when stood vertically but make the PS5 look like some kind of stealth aircraft or something when placed horizontally.
Size Matters
There’s no denying that the PS5 is a big boy but if you’ve read some other articles or watched some unboxing videos you would think that you had to knock down an internal wall to get the thing in your living room. It’s not really that big though.
The PS5 is certainly bigger than the PS4 and PS4 pro but, in my mind, the PS5 beefiness serves a couple of purposes. The large size of the console is needed to make sure the PS5’s tech can fit nicely into the housing without it overheating to surface of the sun temperatures.
Since getting the PS5 it has been pretty much very quiet, that is in part to it’s cooling systems and it’s nice chunky size. There’s only been a couple of instances where I could actually hear the PS5 fan or disc drive wirring, apart from that it’s hard to tell that the PS5 is even switched on sometimes.
The PS5 sizeable body also makes it feel like it is a very sturdy piece of kit. The PS5 looks and feels well made.
The Power of PS5
As well as being stunning on the outside, the PS5 is jam-packed with powerful tech to take gaming to the next level.
Shortly after plugging in and setting up my PS5, I was introduced to the consoles new User Interface which runs very smoothly and responsively. It is a fantastic improvement over the often laggy and slow PS4 user interface.
I won’t get into the actual design of the PS5’s UI and UX here as that deserves its own article – but with the power of the PS5 processor and SSD, the UI is very fast and silky smooth.
The PS5’s technical might has been banded about in marketing and promotional material long before the console released and with good reason. The PlayStation 5 is truly a powerful machine which offers up lighting fast load times not only on PS5 games but also backwards compatible PS4 games.
The PS5’s custom GPU also makes for some really awesome looking games with Ray Tracing and higher frame rates to make gameplay a lot smoother.
It’s not just PS5 launch titles like Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Demon’s Souls that look and play better. PS4 games like Ghost of Tsushima look absolutely incredible when played on the PS5’s hardware.
PS5 – Does Play Have No Limits?
Although I am not entirely sure what Sony PS5 slogan “Play Has No Limits” actually means I dare say the only limit there is to the PlayStation 5 is actually trying to buy one.
PS5 stock right now is few and far between but apart from being able to get your hands on Sony’s newest console the PS5 looks set to dominate the six or seven years of console gaming.
Like the previous console generations, we probably won’t really see what the PS5 is truly capable of until maybe two to three years down the road. In fact, we might not even have to wait that long as there are games like Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart and Horizon Forbidden West due to launch in 2021. Not to mention the next instalment of God of War.
An Impressive Gaming Machine
The PS5 is truly impressive in every way shape and form.
With its stunning design, superb build quality and enough power for developers to create some awesome games in the future the PS5 is certain to be the gaming console of choice until the PS6 comes out.
I am very happy with my PS5 but of course, a console is nothing without great games to play on it and thankfully the PS5 already has that with an incredible launch line-up. And I’m certain there are many more exciting games to come in the future, like the ones due to release in 2021 that I mentioned above.
The PlayStation 5 is an incredible console, the only problem right now is trying to find one to buy.
