PS5 Pro review: solid performance for hardcore gamers

PS5 Pro

Sony’s president, Hiroki Totoki, says the PS5 Pro’s price has not hurt sales. The Pro version is aimed at hardcore users. Even with comments about the $700 / £700 / €800 price, Totoki thinks it has not put off buyers.

The PS5 Pro is easier to find in stores than the PS5 was in 2020. There seems to be less demand for the high-end model. This may be due to different market conditions.

Scalpers who made money selling PS5s at high prices are having a hard time selling PS5 Pros for a profit. Many have listings on eBay for £680 to £700. Auction prices range from £510 to £670 but likely won’t go above the £700 retail price.

The PS5 Pro’s external disc drive, sold separately for $79.99 / £99.99, is hard to find and targeted by scalpers. Major stores are sold out. eBay UK sellers list the drive for £150 to £250.

While the PS5 Pro is available for those who want the best, the disc drive is scarce like the PS5 was at launch. The PS5 Pro is the most powerful console out now. Enhanced games look great and run smoother thanks to better hardware and upscaling tech.

But a faster PS5 being faster is no surprise.

Strong upgrades for demanding gamers

At $700, you must really want the best to make the Pro worth it.

The Pro doesn’t include everything for the price. It has a standard controller but no vertical stand. An extra $80 gets you a Blu-ray drive to install yourself.

The sleek design has fins to cool the robust parts. It’s not much bigger or louder than the PS5. The Pro runs about 35 to 40°C from the rear, similar to the base PS5.

The PS5 Slim takes up less space, matches the Xbox Series X storage, and is easy to upgrade. The DualSense controller still delivers great experiences. The Pro has a 2TB SSD, twice as big as the original.

The GPU is 16.7 TFLOPs vs. 10.3 TFLOPs before. Sony says it has 67% more compute units and 28% faster memory for up to 45% better performance.

This supports AI upscaling for near-4K images. The Pro lets developers push limits, especially with ray tracing. Games like Spider-Man 2 and Horizon Forbidden West have new graphics modes and better frame rates.

The Pro has good upgrades but may only appeal to those who want the very best gaming experience.

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