With two
new PS5 consoles to choose fromYou'd be forgiven for thinking Sony's next-gen black and white machines were exactly the same. However, there are two clear differences: the price and the lack of a disc drive in the digital edition of PS5. If you're looking to jump into the next generation of gaming with Sony,
should you go for the standard PlayStation 5 or keep some notes with the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition?
The PS5 continues to be a hot property as demand far outstrips supply. We're looking into where to buy a PS5 to help you spot Sony's next-gen system when retailers are restocking. It's a tough, almost philosophical decision that takes into account the arguments about ownership of your entertainment media, not to mention what you can reasonably afford to spend while living in an unprecedented global financial recession. Don't worry though – we've got all the details you need to make the right choice for you and your wallet. Next,
we compare the PS5 to the PS5 Digital Edition in all areas, from the price to the specifications.
PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition - Price and release dates
Let's start by removing the unconditional numbers. How much do the two systems cost? If you go for the standard PS5, the one that still eats shiny Blu-ray discs for breakfast, it will set you back €499.99 / €449.99 / €749.95AU. The PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (with identical specs aside from removing the disc drive) costs €399.99 / €359.99 / €599.95AU. Both versions of the console are available worldwide and
the PS5 will launch on November 12 in select territories and November 19 for the rest of the world. There's a significant saving of €100/€90 if you go the all-digital route, but there are a few things to consider here. First, you'll lose the console that converts to a 4K Blu-ray disc player which is an added bonus for home theater fans. Considering that standalone 4K Blu-ray players cost several hundred dollars and/or pounds, that's a huge savings. Second, those who own a disc player will be able to take advantage of the ability to trade, lend, borrow, and trade physical disc sets with their friends and business stores. Over the life of a console, this could translate into significant second-hand savings. So what you can save now with the digital console may cost you a few years, because you'll be paying whatever prices Sony and the game publishers decide to set. This is before we consider the true joy of owning something physical.
(Image credit: Kayane)
PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition: specifications
Here are the
Full official PS5 specs straight from Sony, including differences for the two editions where indicated. The two PS5 models are identical in terms of performance, a big difference from the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, which are much further apart in price. The only difference is that the more expensive PS5 console will have an Ultra HD Blu-ray drive; otherwise it uses the same custom processor and has the same 825GB SSD. CPU: x86-64-AMD Ryzen Zen 2, 8 cores/16 threads, variable frequency, up to 3,5 GHz. GPU: AMD Radeon™ RDNA 2-based graphics engine, ray tracing acceleration, variable frequency, up to 2,23, 10,3GHz (6TFLOPS). System memory: 16 GB / 448 GB / s GDDR66 bandwidth. Optical drive (base unit only): Ultra HD Blu-ray (100G/10G) ~ 25xCAVBD-ROM (50G/8G) ~ 25xCAVBD-R/RE (50G/8G) ~ 3.2xCAVDVD ~ 825xCLV. SSD: 5,5 GB, 5 GB/s read bandwidth (raw). PS100 game disc: Ultra HD Blu-ray, up to 4GB/disc Video output: HDMI OUT port, compatible with 120K 8Hz TVs, 2.1K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.3). Audio: Tempest 5D Audio Tech. Dimensions: PS390: approx. 104mm x 260mm x 5mm (width x height x depth) (excludes largest projection, excludes base). PS390 Digital Edition: Approx. 92mm x 260mm x 5mm (width x height x depth) (excludes largest projection, excludes base). Weight: PS4,5: 5kg. PS3,9 Digital Edition: 5kg Power: PS350: 5W PS340 Digital Edition: 10W Input/Output: USB Type-A port (Hi-Speed USB) USB Type-A port (2Gbps Super Speed USB) x10, USB Type-C port (Super Speed USB 10 Gbps). Network: Ethernet (100BASE-T, 1000BASE-TX, 802.11BASE-T) IEEE 5.1 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 825. As mentioned, the SSD included with both consoles is the same, giving users 5.5GB of storage with 9GB/s raw throughput (and up to 667,2GB/s of compressed data). However, you only get 5 GB of usable storage, so space is at a premium. There is a slight difference in weight and dimensions between the PS5 and its digital edition, but other than that, they are the same. The PS2 is powered by the third generation AMD Ryzen chipset with eight cores and the manufacturer's new Zen 36 architecture and Navi graphics. Visually, the GPU has 2.23 compute units running at 10.28GHz and offering 5 TFLOPs, while the PS16 packs 6GB of GDDR448 RAM with 3GB/s of bandwidth. The console can do ray tracing, that is, advanced lighting that was once the only area of expensive PC graphics cards. Expect some whimsical highlights in the games you love as a result of this addition. 5D audio is also a big part of the PS3 offering, no matter which console edition you own: Immersive XNUMXD audio is powered by the Tempest Engine, which translates sound sources by the hundreds to create lifelike sound.
The PS5 can support up to 8K resolution (but not until a firmware update arrives), which many gamers won't need on their 1080p TVs. Whether games will run natively at 8K is more of a question mark (we're assuming only titles with less graphics will), but it means the console stands the test of time. You decide to buy a better TV in the future. Also, the PS5 supports 120Hz refresh rates, allowing you to enjoy smoother games if they offer a higher frame rate if you have an HDMI 2.1 compatible TV. Most games don't maximize these possibilities in the short term, in fact Spider-Man: Miles Morales offers a 60fps performance mode, which reverses visual effects to achieve a higher frame rate than the usual 30fps. from the PS4. Both consoles include a single PS5 DualSense wireless controller, featuring adaptive triggers and haptic feedback that help elevate the sense of realism in your games. Both consoles can also play PS4 games (though not all physical copies you own will work on the PS5 Digital Edition), and you can buy an external hard drive for extra storage to play those older titles. SSD space. for PS5 software. However, you still can't store or play PS5 games from external hard drives or SSDs.
(Image credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment)
PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition games: they'll be the same
Fortunately, this is the easy part. Aside from the fact that one will play games from discs and the other exclusively from the console's internal storage system,
the PS5 and the PS5 Digital Edition play exactly the same, exactly the same, PS5 games. the way. With identical internal specs, you'll be able to enjoy 4K gaming at fast refresh rates on both the PS5 and its digital-only counterpart, and you won't expect to see any gameplay differences between the two. Sony already has some great exclusive titles to play on both machines, including Horizon: Forbidden West, God of War: Ragnarok, Final Fantasy 16, the Demon's Souls remake, and Miles Morales Enhanced Spider-Man for PS5. This is before you factor in third-party titles like Cyberpunk 2077, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla, and Resident Evil 8: Village. Where things get a bit fuzzier is on the backward compatibility front. Yes, the digital console edition will play PS4 titles, but it obviously won't be able to play your existing collection on disc. Instead, you'll likely have to buy them again, digitally. Sony is taking the sting out a bit with the introduction of its PlayStation Plus Collection perk for PS Plus subscribers. Going forward, the cost of PS5 owners' subscription will also include access to free downloads of the top 20 PS4 games, including God of War, Uncharted 4, and Bloodborne, among others. That's a nice bonus and an instant PS5 game library for newcomers to the console family. But that doesn't do much to cover the hundreds of PS4 titles available on disc for PS5 Digital Edition owners.
(Image credit: Sony)
Verdict
It's hard to make a call on financial matters - if you're an avid gamer without the cash to make the move to the top-tier PS5, definitely go for this digital console. Next-gen gaming will be fun on this entry-level model too and it's great that performance is consistent in both cases. But our instinct remains that if you can afford it, choose
the standard disc-type PS5 console. This will get you access to the joys of 4K Blu-ray viewing (they look better than Netflix's 4K streams, honestly!), not to mention the potential money you'll save over the years by trading disc games with your friends and in exchange stores. One more thing to consider as well is the gray area of digital property, be it music, movies, or even games. While we haven't seen the fine print on the PS5 in this regard yet, it's common that when it comes to digital media, you don't actually own title in perpetuity. If, in 2035 or some other date, Sony decided to turn off digital storefront distribution for the PS5... where are you going to re-download your games then? Yes, the online elements of modern games mean that fixes are frequent and sometimes may be necessary before a game will work. But if Sony's servers are phased out due to unforeseeable circumstances, it's not as comforting to have a digital-only game collection compared to a physical collection. And in the rare event that your records stop working: at least you've got a nice case with box artwork to remember... The best deals right now for the Sony PlayStation 5 DualSense Sony Wireless Controller - PlayStation 5 -