PlayStation Meeting 2016: Introducing PS4 Pro and the Slimmer, Lighter PS4

518 0
PlayStation Meeting 2016: Introducing PS4 Pro and the Slimmer, Lighter PS4

More than three and a half years ago, I stood on stage in New York to unveil PlayStation 4, which captured our vision for the future of gaming. That vision placed the gamer at the center of the PlayStation ecosystem and empowered developers to create transformative experiences. This afternoon I returned to New York for another PlayStation Meeting to discuss the evolution of the PlayStation 4 platform and introduce PS4 Pro. This new high-end PS4 will sit alongside the new slimmer, lighter PS4, which we officially unveiled today.

The new standard PS4 is starting to ship to retailers now and will be available by September 15 for a suggested retail price of $299.99 USD ($379.99 CAD), representing great value for gamers who haven’t joined the PS4 community just yet. Our engineering and design teams collaborated to consolidate PS4’s high-performance technology into a smaller, more energy efficient form factor. When comparing the new PS4 model to the current model, we’ve reduced volume by 30 percent, weight by 16 percent, and power consumption by 28 percent. Despite the sleek design, the new model packs all of the same powerful components that have made PS4 the best place to play.

With PlayStation 4 Pro our goal is to deliver innovation in the form of cutting-edge visuals and graphics while in the midst of the PS4’s lifecycle. PS4 Pro, which launches November 10, 2016, for a suggested retail price of $399.99 USD ($499.99 CAD), enhances PS4 games by supporting the latest in imaging technology through 4K resolution and High Dynamic Range (HDR), as well as smoother frame rates. Games that already look extraordinary on PS4 will look richer and more detailed, thanks to the more powerful GPU and faster CPU at the heart of PS4 Pro.

With more pixels, 4K’s higher resolution delivers graphics that are sharper and have greater detail than ever imagined. HDR enables visuals to look much closer to the way your eyes see the real world.

Some developers are updating previously launched PS4 games to add PS4 Pro support, while other developers are building PS4 Pro support into upcoming releases. At launch, you’ll be able to download patches for games – such as Uncharted 4 – which are enhanced when playing on the new console. Future releases that will have PS4 Pro enhancements built-in include Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Mass Effect: Andromeda and Days Gone.

However, even if you own an HDTV that does not support either 4K or HDR, PS4 Pro still provides a number of benefits. All games will run in 1080p resolution, and some will even run in a higher or more stable framerate. If you’re a gamer that wants to be at the forefront of innovation, PS4 Pro is for you.

We also know a lot of our fans watch movies, TV shows, and videos on their PS4, so we’re working with our partners who offer best-in-class streaming services to build new apps for PS4 Pro. Netflix will launch a new app at the launch of PS4 Pro that supports 4K. YouTube is also developing a new 4K-compatible app for PS4 Pro.

But it’s important to note that the choice is yours. Whether you’re playing on PS4 Pro, the new slimmer and lighter PS4, or the PS4 system you bought at launch in 2013, you’ll have access to the same amazing games with the same features and same vibrant community that make PlayStation the best place to play. There won’t be any gameplay features exclusive to PS4 Pro or the standard PS4. In fact, we believe the impact of HDR on gaming and entertainment is so promising that all PlayStation 4 systems – back to the very first console sold in 2013 – are now HDR capable.

It is incredibly important for us, and our developer partners, to maintain one PS4 audience. All PS4 systems are also ready to deliver on the promise of virtual reality with the upcoming launch of PlayStation VR. Whichever system you choose, we’ll continue to give you the exclusive franchises, blockbuster third-party titles, and unique games from creative developers that you’ve come to expect from PlayStation.

I want to take a moment to thank everyone in the PlayStation Nation for the incredibly passionate support around PS4. From day one with PS4, we’ve been driven to create a system tuned to the needs of gamers. PS4 Pro builds on that goal even further, and we can’t wait for you to try it.

Comments are closed.

518 Comments

  • Hahahahah. There isnt realIy much difference……..? I hope this things bombs to be honest. When Sony is winning they become an awful company. Underdog Sony is best Sony. Terrible conference and terrible product. I just hope Microsoft can size this oportunity and make the market competetive enough to make Sony give the consumers more benefits like on last gen (free online, sharing account with family)

  • Does someone knows if the PS4 will be able to reproduce Dolby Atmos or DTS X?

    thanks

  • Well all good an that but not much diffrence an wont b buying the new 1 i jst want cross play to all platforms an b able to get kodi on my ps4?????

  • All the focus during your “PS Meeting” on 4K this, 4K that, and this stupid thing doesn’t even have a 4k bluray player in it?

    What a joke Sony.

    • Bad decisions all around for Sony this year. I hope theres enough backlash to make them less greedy. Then again when does a bussiness ever do that?

  • The omission of a 4k Blu-ray player is baffling. On one hand, Sony says “4k is the future! You want your games in 4k, right? Then buy this!”. Then they turn around and say “oh but don’t watch movies in 4k on discs, no one wants that”.

  • Good conference. I’m on the fence to be completely honest. It would be nice to see more comparisons between the 4 and the 4 Pro. Every game is playable in 1080p, but not every game can perform are 60 fps?

  • As someone who doesn’t have interest in upgrading to 4K… yet (I maybe will sometime in the next year or two), I may not invest in the PS4 Pro. Maybe I will once I do upgrade to 4K, but as of now, I probably won’t.

  • As someone who’s been strongly against the PS4 Neo/Pro for many months now, I’m somewhat relieved that the announced Pro just isn’t anywhere near what it could’ve been. I’m okay if the Pro only offers better visuals for 4k display owners, but I bought a launch PS4 with the implied understanding (30+ years of consistent console generations) that any PS4 games played on a standard console would be the best possible definitive experience for the life of this generation. I bought my console primarily to play KH3, a game that was officially announced several years ago, which still doesn’t have a release date – and I will be mad as hell if that game looks even the slightest bit better on the Pro at 1080, or if the standard PS4 version suffers in any way, in comparison.

    Sony would’ve been much better off to have announced a stronger 6TF+ PS5 with PS4 backward compatibility for release in 2017/18 to compete against the upcoming Scorpio (including the mandated improved “Neo” modes for developers to implement – but for PS5 only, thus still easing cross-gen transitions in advance). Having a slightly upgraded half-gen console is just very bad idea, imo.

  • Really no 4k blu ray support? I was really hoping this would be an included feature and was going to buy one on day one so I could start building up more 4k content. That is pretty disappointing. :(

  • I wish they added an HDMI pass through like Xbox One has for the easy transition and PIP.

  • I don’t own a ps4 and was thinking in getting the neo but now that I know it doesn’t has a 4k blu-ray player I might think twice.

    If you didn’t own a ps4 wich one would you get? ps4 pro, slim or the original? I’m more of a PC gamer but the ps exclusives make me want a ps4.

    • I would say get the slim. if the power consumption is truly decreased a significant amount, that would be my recommendation. i love my original, but it’s a power hog

    • I also love the original (cuh-1000 and cuh-1100), in my opinion the best looking of all but I heard it makes alot of noise and that some have overheat problems, and that was the problem I had with my 60gb original ps3, alot of noise and ended up dying from overheating.
      But the original ps4 looks so good ….. xD

  • Good thing i watch everything digital so i dont need to whine about blu ray, i also buy my gaming console to mainly GAME so ill be buying day 1

  • Hungry for more details. Disappointed that the PS Blog does not have them.

  • 2TB hard drive would’ve been nice, but I’ll buy it at 1TB and upgrade it myself if I have to.

  • No 4k Blu Ray support for discs so how would I play my uhd movies? Don’t see a 400 dollar purchase for me if that is the case.

  • I can see why the lack of a 4k Blu Ray would be a deal breaker for some. Considering that I’ve been all digital for a while now this really doesn’t bother me in the slightest. I’ll definitely be picking up the Pro come the holidays.

  • So, I guess this runs upscaled 4K not native 4K?
    Why does this thing even exist? At the risk of playing armchair CEO, Sony would have been far better off announcing Playstation 4 next July, with a Holiday 2018 launch, similar to what Microsoft did with Scorpio. This time next year, Playstation is going to have a flagship console that is severely underpowered and a competitor that (from what we’ve seen) has a new console that is actually a legitimate leap forward.
    I fear Sony blinked first in the race to make a more powerful system. The sad thing is, with almost twice the sales of XBox this generation, they didn’t need to do anything.

  • Is the Slim PS4 SATA III compatible for faster SSD upgrade ? The original PS4 was only SATA II. Is it the case for the PS4 Pro ? Is it SATA III ?

  • So I’m having trouble figuring out why I would want this. The Pro model solves problems nobody is having. What does this mean for people who have a regular PS4 with no 4K TV and/or a stable enough internet connection for 4K streaming? I’m not clear on if games will really get a boost in framerates or not. Will the PSVR be better on Pro than the regular PS4? None of these things were focused on, if not mentioned at all, and focused on a niche market that’s still 4K.

    And the games. How will games benefit, other than looking prettier and possibly maybe have a better framerate, probably? Will games simply look better or will developers also have access to the hardware for improvements in AI or Pro exclusive features?

    • I feel the same way, I have a 4K tv, but I have an Amazon Fire TV to watch 4K Netflix, Amazon and YouTube, not sure if $400 is enough to justify having games look slightly better.

    • ” Will the PSVR be better on Pro than the regular PS4? None of these things were focused on, if not mentioned at all,” Ummm that was answered and the answer was yes

  • I care about playing the old games. I don’t understand why they won’t make them where we can play old games like PlayStation one and after. If they do that I would be a happy gamer.

    • So buy the old PlayStation systems from GameStop, eBay, or any other game store that carries them. I don’t understand why those classic games must be played from a PS4.

    • Hi:
      I agree with you, Man. SONY MUST do this PS4 Pro with Backwards Compatibility. I miss the PS2 and the PLAYSTATION 3.
      Red 5.

  • No 4K UHD Blu-ray, no buy. HUGE disappointment.

  • Will it support UHD (4K) Blu-rays?

  • Will the ps4 pro support wireless n wifi connection or still just b and g?

  • I was really expecting there to be a UHD Blu-Ray player in the Pro. That’s pretty disappointing, and I’ll be picking up an Xbox One S now since it’s the same price or cheaper than other UHD players. :/

  • I’m very torn on this one. I have a 60 inch Vizio M Series TV. It is 4K but not HDR, and in another room I have a 47 inch 1080P tv that I bought back in 2009. I have a PS4 and currently loving it. I like the idea of getting a PS4 Pro but I am not seeing the real desire to buy it at this point. I love Sony but almost feel like I don’t need to buy another PS4.

  • No 4k Blu ray player = no purchase. I was so pumped for this too

  • Will I be able to transfer save data of games from my current ps4 to a ps4 pro?

  • Most people cant even get a internet connection that will even stream 4k a minimum of 25 mb/s that’s a really big disappointment of no 4k blu-ray player

  • Anybody know if the ps4 pro will support gigabit Internet?

  • 2 Major Unanswered Questions (Unless I Missed Them)

    1: Harddrive Size?
    2: There was talk of a ‘new’ PS4 to Support PSVR last year, is this the one that will be compatible with itor is there going to be yet another one coming out at a later date u.u

  • Can’t wait! Don’t care about the whole no ultra blue-ray play

  • I’m shocked this thing doesn’t have a UHD drive. Absolutely shocked. I picked up a 75″ Sony X940D (LOVE the TV), and was holding off getting a player until the Neo (now Pro) was announced, and now I’m a bit unsure of which direction to go. Very bummed.

  • Sony, could you please tell me why should i buy this console, first of all, PS+ service is really bad compared to the service given before PS4 launch… A bunch of indie games, you also sell unfinished games with a lot of issues such as 7 days to die, no man’s sky, etc.. Not the metion the game you sold that had stolen assets..

    I have PS 1, PS2, PS3 and PS4 and boy, I do regret buying the PS4 I use it to play FF VII and watch netflix… The way I see it, you got two options you either step up your game, push big companies such as EA to release finished and working games, step up your game with PS+ or you can go the same path you are going right now and start loosing clients, as in today I no longer have Ps+ nor I will pay for it unless you begin to give better IGC and better sales and as for buying a new console from you, I rather buy a freaking xbox one.

    You guys need to start L-I-S-T-E-N-I-N-G to your clients, at the end they are the ones paying for your bill and your stakeholders.

    • You are correct. I had PS2. Have PLAYSTATION 3, PS Vita and PS4. Easily the WORST Console with the worst games is the PS4 right now.

  • So am I to assume you can’t change the HDD? I’d like to bring my 3tb internal drive along

  • So im confused about the ps4 slim, what will be the price for the ps4 slim??

  • I want them to announce the hard drive bandwidth increase. finally solid state would make sense.

  • Wow! I was so excited to get this until they said it’s not going to have a 4K Bluray player in it. So not only is it less powerful than Scorpio, but the disc drive is going to be a generation behind it. This is a huge and bizarre misstep by Sony. I can’t even begin to understand how they wouldn’t expect lost sales due to this. I know they’ve lost mine.

  • I’m curious if the lack of 4K UHF Blu-ray support has anything to do with console compatibility parity.

    During the short press event, they mentioned the importance of community.

    Yes, the quality of games/features may be more pronounced on the PS4 Pro, but every disc that is compatible with it is also compatible with the slim and Original.

    Also, I would argue it could be more confusing when people by these 4K discs, and the PS4 says it supports it, but only the newer model…

    • …(Continued)

      As far as games go, cause this is merely a form of media distribution, I guarantee that if X1 decides to use these discs, they will have issues. Sorry, this X1 Disc isn’t compatible with your older X1… Only S and Scorpio. So…Unless they are really stupid, that will never happen.

      This only matters for those who buy 4K Blu-ray Discs. I have to ask, who are they people? Seriously, I’m not saying it shouldn’t have it, but is it really the deciding factor to buying the unit. I get that it would make it more future proof, but 4K TVs aren’t even the standard yet. If you want 4K Blu-ray Discs, wait for the next generation in which they’ll be utilized for games.

      That’s why I have a PS4. For games. Everything else is just sprinkles. I’m not upset that it came without it.

      Of course, maybe some people out there only wanted a 4K UHD Blu-ray player. The gaming capabilities are just their sprinkles…Sad.

    • But this console is made to appeal to those who are interested in 4K gaming. Don’t you think it’s logical that those same people would also be interested in watching movies in 4K?

      I can see the scene in Best Buy now:
      Customer: “So I just bought a 4k TV and I want a gaming console that can take advantage of it. I hear that the Ps4 pro is the new 4k ps4 correct?”

      BB associate: “That’s right. If you have a 4k TV, you’ll definitely want to go with the Pro over the base model.”

      Customer: “Great. I’ll take the ps4 pro. And I have to buy special 4k blu-ray movies right?”

      BB associate: Oh.. This console only plays 4k games. It doesn’t support 4k blu-ray. For that, you’ll need to buy a separate 4k blu-ray player. Or.. you could go with the Xbox One S which does both and costs $100 less.”

      Need I go on…

    • Also, if they included a 4k Blu-ray drive, it would still run the exact same discs the way it does now. There’s no need for games to be on special 4k blu-ray discs because the way that modern consoles work is that all games are installed on the storage drive regardless of whether they’re downloaded or from a physical disc, unlike movies which are read directly from the disc. The games then run directly from the storage drive. So the consumer confusion you alluded to would be nonexistent; both consoles play the same games and if you have a 4k capable console, you buy movies that say 4k on the package. And even for the few people that would mistakenly assume that they can play 4k BRs on their standard ps4/xb1, and buy a 4k BR, they all come with standard BR discs as well.

      This mistake could potentially cause PlayStation to lose the edge they’ve had over the competition this generation, and as a PS fan, that would be a real shame to witness..

    • @ xDD90x

      I think you missed my point. It’s of course not a requirement for media to be on Ultra HD BR discs, but the option isn’t even available. As far as the media is concerned, there’s no substantial stake in 4K BR at this time. IMO, I believe that it’s not that significant…right now. By the time it is relevant, I feel the next generation will be close to launching. Again, I’d happier if it had it, but it’s not a reason against getting the unit. I got it for games. UHD BR is not for games right now. Though I understand why that would seem confusing to consumers. Though I feel the same confusion would happen for Xbox Scorpio/S vs Original Xbox.

  • Can’t believe there’s No 4K UHD Bluray support for the ps4 pro! no longer looking forward to this being released now! Well done Sony What a joke.

  • I seriously hope Nyko makes a new external adapter for teh PS4 Pro so I can sue my 4tb in it like I have in my current Ps4, because 1tb wont cut it for me. Or at the very least make your HDD expansion bay bigger to support 3.5in HDDs or 1.5mm 2.5” HDDs

  • No Sony you just screw it up, Please you Better launch a firmware to improve the resolution on the actual Ps4 and I guess I need a new Tv 4k First

  • How much is it for Canada?

  • Why wouldn’t you include a 4k Blu-ray drive on a 4k console? Come on Sony, I’ve been waiting patiently for this announcement but now I feel let down. Without a 4k Blu-ray drive and Xbox Scorpio on the horizon, what incentive do I have now to pick PS4 Pro? I won’t be wasting my money on a supposed 4k console that doesn’t play 4k discs.

  • I shudder at the thought, but no 4k blu-ray means I will have to buy an Xbone S. Sad day indeed.

  • Shouldve just sent out an email press release. This wasnt worthy of a stage conference. Playstation again comes up short on its potential.

  • Cant believe there is no 4k Blu ray support. Would have purchased day one, but will probably hold off now. :|

  • No 4K Blu Ray movie support really? Xbox One S can.

  • Stupid… One of the biggest reason I was waiting for this was for the 4K UHD Blu-Ray drive. I’m sorry Sony, but if Microsoft Xbox is able to play 4K UHD Blu-Ray then they also may have a much higher chance for sales…. I just don’t understand why you would go on and on about the 4K HDR when it’s only compatible for games and not 4K Blu-Ray…. Yes, I understand you guys are working with Netflix and YouTube to help cover that gap but this gap seems bigger than just “Netflix and YouTube 4k”…..
    I’m pretty disappointed…. :(

  • For the company who was almost directly responsible for solidifying blu-ray as the definitive HD video format for physical media, the omission of 4k blu-ray support in the PS4 Pro is shocking to say the least. I was never really on board for a mid cycle upgrade anyway, but today’s presentation definitely caused me to reconsider. That is until I heard this disappointing news. Now, I’m back to being perfectly content with my current PS4, and will hold out on upgrading until the PS5 launches.

    • The way consoles are going there won’t be a PS5, the PS4 is going to just “Progress” into another console like Microsoft done with their Xbox One systems.

  • I own Xbox and Playstation, I mean i even own a Wii U but I see no reason to drop $400 on this console unless it does something different than the PS4. The way this seems it that it only upscales, it has no 4K UHD Movie support so I can’t pop in a BD movie and play the 4K version like I can on my Xbox One S. It seems to me that this would be a waste of money. Unless some has some good trade in offer, I sadly have to say that this isn’t a console I’ll pick up, I’ll just wait until the Scorpio Launches and put the $400 from this console towards it.

Please enter your date of birth.

Date of birth fields