Should you pre-order the PS5 Pro?

2024-09-24

HardwarePS5 ProShould you pre-order the PS5 Pro?When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

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(Image credit: PlayStation)

PS5 Pro reveal image from PlayStation's technical showcase broadcast

As rumors about the PS5 Pro whipped up a frenzy during the summer, it seemed as though we had a winner on our hands. There was some excitement in the air, and the promise of a mid-generation refresh suggested a new phase in the PS5’s lifecycle. Then Mark Cerny’s presentation arrived.

Ever since, conversations about the upcoming PS5 Pro have focused on how outrageously expensive it is, and rightly so. Of course, there’s some attraction to PlayStation’s new upscaling tech from enthusiasts, but it wasn’t until the new 30th anniversary PlayStation collection announcement that I saw anyone being vocally excited aboutPS5 Pro pre-orders.

With all that in mind, I find myself in a tricky situation. I’ve always been a fan of PlayStation, but I don’t know if I’m excited enough to set up camp on launch day to grab myself a new console. If you’re in a similar position and don’t know if thePS5 Prois for you, I’m going to set out the biggest talking points and try to help you decide what to do.

The price

(Image credit: PlayStation)

A screenshot of the PS5 Pro’s prices.

The first thing we need to consider is how much money you’ll need to splash down for an upgraded PS5. $699.99 / £699.99 is no small sum, particularly if you’re an existing PS5 owner who parted with $500 or more for a regular PS5 at launch.

I completely understand, and agree, that the PS5 Pro is too expensive. Based on previous launches, its price leap from the regular PS5 is higher than expected. I’m not sure if that price leap is justified, either, especially when that new vertical stand isn’t even included!

Let’s not forget that even as computing parts advance, consoles are supposed to be the more affordable and approachable alternative, so anything over $600 seems like it’s failing in that regard. The PS5 Pro’s price blurs the line between thegaming PCrealm and consoles that are affordable for more people, so I understand the frustration.

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(Image credit: Future / Duncan Robertson)

The 2024 redesign of the Acer Predator Orion 7000 gaming PC

Verdict:If a bigger GPU and more technical gaming performance interests you, I still wouldn’t really recommend the PS5 Pro at this price. At $700, I’d suggest that you keep saving, even a hundred or two more, and check outBlack Friday gaming PC deals, which will likely get youevenbetter performance for slightly more money.

The games

(Image credit: Sony Interactive)

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Venom

I bought a PS5 at launch, and while I’ve been a lifelong PlayStation fan, this is the first generation that feels like Sony’s really losing me. It’s not that I don’t like the PS5, or that I think it’s a bad system - in some ways, it’s the best machine the brand has ever produced, and I’ve faced so few technical issues when it comes to the console’s hardware.

The reason I’ve been spending more time playing games on a PC this generation is because the games - the lifeblood of any video game console - have felt eerily lacking. Insomniac’s Spider-Men titles on PS5 have been excellent fun to zip through, but they’re over so quickly and feel like a minor advancement over 2018’s original. Demon Souls isn’t exactly my cup of tea, but it’s just one of many first-party exclusives from the PS5 era that’s a rehashing of something that came before. The Last of Us Part 1 and Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection may have their upgrades, but I didn’t buy the PS5 to be a remaster machine. Even my beloved Ratchet & Clank had a release that came and went, feeling like a flash in the pan that didn’t make my jaw drop with SSD usage like Mark Cerny promised.

(Image credit: Sony)

PlayStation State of Play

First-party exclusive games are arguably the reason that the PS4 so drastically outsold the Xbox One, and why so many people transferred over to PS5. With Mark Cerny’s PS5 Pro presentation, only older games were shown off, and even if I haven’t been a huge fan of Sony’s first-party output this generation, they’ve all played brilliantly on the regular PS5.

Verdict: The good news is that a State of Play is being held tonight, and with over 30 minutes of content to go through, I’m slightly hopeful that this is when the case will be made for the PS5 Pro’s existence. If we get updates on some fan-favorite franchises, maybe my mind will change, I’m just not convinced that the games so far on PS5 have warranted a beefier console.

Technical upgrades

In terms of raw specs, the PS5 Pro will boast beefier innards than the original model. To throw some percentages at you, the PS5 Pro will tout 45% faster rendering, 65% more compute units, and seemingly a 0% change in CPU power. From the looks of it, the PS5 Pro will use the same Zen 2 processor the normal PS5 does, which is an interesting architectural choice.

Perhaps the reason Mark Cerny’s team didn’t choose to upgrade the console’s processor or its RAM, is that PSSR will do most of its heavy lifting. This is Sony’s new AI upscaling technology which uses machine learning to output better gaming performance. This includes frame generation to up the smoothness of your experiences. We’ve seen the wonders this can produce on a PC or laptop, and it’s allowed lesser graphics cards like theRTX 4060andAMD Radeon RX 7600to be far more viable than entry-level graphics cards usually are.

Swipe to scroll horizontallyFull PS5 vs PS5 Pro spec comparisonSpecsPS5 SlimPS5 ProCPUAMD Ryzen Zen 2 (8 cores, 16 threads, 3.5GHz)AMD Ryzen Zen 2 (8 cores, 16 threads, 3.5GHz)GPUAMD Radeon RDNA 2 (10.28 teraflops, ray tracing acceleration)UnknownRAM16GB GDDR6 at 448GB/s16GB GDDR6 at 448GB/sStorage825GB SSD (5.5GB/s read)2TB SSD (5.5GB/s read)Output4K 120Hz, HDMI 2.14K 120Hz, HDMI 2.1, 8KWiFiWiFi 6WiFi 7DimensionsH: 9.6cm | W: 35.8cmH: 10.4cm | W: 35.8cmPrice$499.99 / £479.99$699.99 / £699.99

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Full PS5 vs PS5 Pro spec comparisonSpecsPS5 SlimPS5 ProCPUAMD Ryzen Zen 2 (8 cores, 16 threads, 3.5GHz)AMD Ryzen Zen 2 (8 cores, 16 threads, 3.5GHz)GPUAMD Radeon RDNA 2 (10.28 teraflops, ray tracing acceleration)UnknownRAM16GB GDDR6 at 448GB/s16GB GDDR6 at 448GB/sStorage825GB SSD (5.5GB/s read)2TB SSD (5.5GB/s read)Output4K 120Hz, HDMI 2.14K 120Hz, HDMI 2.1, 8KWiFiWiFi 6WiFi 7DimensionsH: 9.6cm | W: 35.8cmH: 10.4cm | W: 35.8cmPrice$499.99 / £479.99$699.99 / £699.99

The other upgrade to speak of is storage. The base model of the PS5 uses a 1TB SSD, while the new version will increase your allowance to 2TB. This is a nice touch for the money you pay, but it should be noted that upgrading the normal PS5’s storage with one of thebest SSDs for PS5is already possible, so it isn’t exactly a reason to upgrade.

The problem with all of these new specs isn’t that they aren’t worth the money, or that they aren’t impressive enough. I think the reason that they haven’t convinced the masses is that we haven’t seen their potential yet. Just how many frames of a difference can PSSR give us? Will the average player even notice the difference if there isn’t a Steam-like FPS counter in the corner of the screen? Will there be games coming in the future that actually need this boost in graphical power? There are a lot of questions left to answer, and if I was to invest $700, I’d want answers first.

Verdict: Based on the specs, there are some serious benefits to buying a PS5 Pro, especially thanks to PSSR, which could be a game changer for demanding titles. On the other hand, it’s harder to make a buying decision based on some controlled game demos from titles that came out over the last five years and run just fine on a base PS5.

Futureproofing

(Image credit: Future / Phil Hayton)

LG OLED G4 with blue grass screensaver displayed

This is the main reason why I think buying a PS5 Pro might actually be viable. More and more video games are being developed withNvidiaDLSS orAMDFSR in mind, and if that’s the case now, that kind of technology could become a necessity or maybe even a minimum requirement in a few years. I can definitely see the PS5 Pro being supported for longer than the PS5 thanks to that upscaling capability. If you aren’t planning to buy a PS6 at launch, a Pro-pre-order might be better for you in the long term.

A personal reason a PS5 Pro might make sense is that Mark Cerny has said that the new console will give a performance boost toPSVR 2as well, which could be huge for an already brilliant VR headset that has a 120Hz refresh rate and powerful foveated rendering capabilities. If you’re a lover of thebest VR headsetslike I am, this might be a reason to bite the bullet and grab an upgrade.

(Image credit: Future)

PSVR 2 Review Image with headset and controllers on a desk

Not only am I thinking about gaming hardware futureproofing here, but I’m thinking about displays too. More and moregaming TVsare releasing, and with refresh rates of 120Hz and even 144Hz now, having a gaming console that can make the most of it is going to make a world of difference. You might already have a display that can boost over 60Hz, but if you’re planning on getting one, I can’t describe how much of a difference higher refresh rate gaming makes.

Verdict:For futureproofing, the PS5 Pro might actually make a lot of sense. Its price may be hard to stomach now, but if you think of it as a longer-term investment, it could last you well into the next generation.

Overall, should you buy the PS5 Pro?

(Image credit: Sony)

PS5 Pro reveal from trailer

Everyone will have their own attitudes to this launch, and depending on you, your budget, your current setup, and your attitudes to what good gaming performance means, the PS5 Pro may be a point of outrage or your next hardware purchase.

Personally, I’m not sure I’ll be buying Sony’s upgraded console. It’s expensive, and has a lot left to convince me of. How much of a difference will the average user spot in terms of frame rates and graphical fidelity? Are there games coming that I’ll actually want upgraded hardware for? If those same games are coming out on PC later, should I just wait and play them further down the road on an even beefier machine?

I may need to go hands-on with the PS5 Pro to give you a more definitive answer, but I won’t be getting one until I know the performance boost is worth it.

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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS

1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

Nemesis board game models and tokens laid out on a board

1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”

2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”

Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”

3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”

Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”

4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”

5Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”

Marvel Rivals review: “So preoccupied with trying to be like Overwatch that it forgets to play to its own strengths”

1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

Shadow brandishes a gun in Sonic The Hedgehog 3

1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”

2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”

Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”

3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”

Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”

4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”

The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”

5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”

Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”

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Squid Game season 2 review: “Secures its place as one of the best shows on television right now”

2Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”

Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”

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Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”

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5Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”

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The price

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The games

Technical upgrades

Futureproofing

Overall, should you buy the PS5 Pro?

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