Sony Unveils New Slimmer PS5 Model

Sony has announced a new PS5 model will be hitting stores in time for the holiday season. The new model comes in both a disc and digital version like the original but will be smaller and lighter. Although Sony isn’t calling the new model the PS5 Slim, it is essentially a PS5 Slim.

Announced over on the PlayStation Blog, the new slimmer PS5 models have been reduced in volume by 30%. The weight of the new slim PS5s has also been reduced by 18% and 24% compared to the original consoles.

It isn’t just the size and weight that have changed on the new PS5 slim models. The new design features four separate cover panels as opposed to two on the original PS5. The top panel has a glossy look while the bottom panel keeps its matte finish.

The separate top and bottom cover panels also give a nice angled groove between the two panels.

One long-rumoured feature that has turned out to be true is that a new PS5 console will have a detachable disc drive. The new PS5 slim digital edition will indeed feature what Sony calls an “attachable Ultra-HD Blu Ray disc drive”. The attachable disc drive will be sold separately for $79.99/£99.99/€119.99.

This means that if you buy the new PS5 slim digital version and decide later that you would rather buy physical games, because let’s face it, physical games are much better than digital, then you can buy the attachable disc drive.

Another big improvement that the slimmer PS5 models bring over the original is a 1 TB hard drive. The original PS5’s internal hard drive only had a capacity of 825GB of which 667GB was actually useable to store games. A Sony spokesperson confirmed to IGN that the new slim models will still support expandable storage.

PS5 Slim Release Date and Pricing

The new PS5 slim models will become available from November but it looks like it will only be available in the US first, with other countries following in the coming months.

Sony ahs also announced the price of the new PS5 slim consoles:

• U.S.
  • PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive – 499.99 USD
  • PS5 Digital Edition – 449.99 USD
• Europe
  • PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive – 549.99 EUR
  • PS5 Digital Edition – 449.99 EUR
• U.K.
  • PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive – 479.99 GBP
  • PS5 Digital Edition – 389.99 GBP
• Japan
  • PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive – 66,980 JPY (includes tax)
  • PS5 Digital Edition – 59,980 JPY (includes tax)

The only downside to the new PS5 slim consoles is it looks like you will have to buy a stand separately if you want to put your console in the vertical position.

Sony has said that a new vertical stand that is compatible with all PS5 models will be sold separately for 29.99 USD | 29.99 EURO | 24.99 GBP.

Same Power, Smaller Size

The new PS5 slim models will have the exact same power and specs, with the exception of the 1 TB hard drive. It’s basically the same amazing console built into a smaller body. Here are the specs from Sony of the new PS5 slim and PS5 skim digital edition models.

PS5 Slim Specifications

PS5 Slim Digital Edition Specifications