As consoles proceed further into their lifespans, manufacturers streamline the process of making them. This, combined with advances in chip design, leads to the appearance of smaller, or at the very least lighter, models of those consoles.
Sony is getting an early start in this it seems, as it has announced that moving forward the PlayStation 4 will be a little lighter, and more energy efficient to boot. Granted, we’re not looking at PlayStation 2 Slim levels of downsizing here: Sony says the weight will be reduced by 10 percent and power consumption will be down by 8 percent compared to current PS4 models.
This new PS4 will be available in black and white color options, and the system’s hard drive bay cover will now come in a matte finish, which Sony says gives the system “a more casual look.”
The spec sheet included in the announcement only shows a 500GB hard drive, but another reveal from Sony today shows that is about to change. The 1TB PS4 Ultimate Player Edition was announced today on the PlayStation Blog. For now, this version of the PS4 will only be available in “select Europe and PAL territories.”
The announcement of the lighter PS4 says that the new versions of the console will start appearing in Japan toward the end of this month, followed by North America, Europe, and other Asian countries and regions. The 1TB PS4 Ultimate Player Edition announcement has it launching on July 15, so while the full specs haven’t been announced, this will likely use the new design as well.
While the PlayStation Blog doesn’t mention that the 1TB model will be coming to the U.S., Sony did register a 1TB PlayStation 4 model with the FCC earlier this month. This filing also shows the same weight and dimensions of the smaller PS4 announced by Sony today.
One thing that hasn’t gotten smaller is the price. The spec sheet in Sony’s announcement shows a U.S. price of $399 — the same as the current model. Pricing information for the 1TB PS4 Ultimate Player Edition has not been made available yet — the PlayStation Blog post simply says to “check with your local retailer.”
