PS5
Lite coming in the second half of 2021?
Yeah, no xD. I can't think of a single platform holder who's ever released a slimline version of their console merely a year after the original model was on the market. If so, I don't think it was for any good reasons. The closest may've been the 360 since early units were affected with the RROD but I think the models which came a year or so later were just revisions, they didn't actually condense the system size or things similar to that.
I remember someone posting those N6 Oberon leaks around here a week or so back; that sounds like something which'd go into a 2022 Slim at the very earliest. But 2021 is just ridiculously early unless some of these issues we've been hearing with the launch models are more severe/common than initially thought.
Likewise, what gives with the PS5 Pro rumors? They don't sound realistic to me, at all tbh. That is going to be a VERY expensive Pro model since you are essentially doubling the size of the APU (not exactly, but close to it). At the very least, it's paying more for silicon; even if that's on the N6 process the cost savings are essentially negated and then some because of the extra silicon for doubling the GPU. Plus, they'd have to rework the memory controllers, probably add more memory or bandwidth (likely include not only a good amount of Infinity Cache but also increase the GDDR6 bandwidth a tad since that is still needing sharing with the CPU, audio, and SSD I/O), bump up the cooling, increase storage space size (that's actually probably the big complaint that seems to be had with PS5)...all of that increases costs.
And, I'm also just thinking but, doesn't going with a 72 CU design go against Cerny's own narrow & fast philosophy? Their BC is also hardware-based so that will lock them in to a 72 CU GPU (at the very least) for PS6, and node shrinks are only getting more expensive, not less. Sounds like it'd be a bit of a financial nightmare for Sony regardless of how profitable PS5 ends up being. That's why I think the PS5 Pro stuff is really just in relation to something server-related, it makes the most logistical and financial sense.
Also, you'd think Sony have to be thinking of how a seemingly really strong PS5 Pro affects future perception for a PS6; people seem to already feel a sense of diminishing returns going from the PS4 Pro (and for MS, One X) to the PS5 (and again for MS, Series X). 10th-gen consoles won't be able to rely on SSDs as a new innovation, nor probably VR, either. So some 20.5 TF, 72 CU PS5 Pro in whatever year between 2021-2024 it'd release, that just locks Sony in to a relatively big (and expensive) GPU setup for PS6 unless they completely redesign how they handle BC (or goodness forbid, just do away with it, which I don't think anyone wants). It also means they'd have to go to some ridiculous means to build a PS6 that appears worthy of being next-gen in terms of technological grunt, have to include yet even more cache, memory capacity and bandwidth (all increasing costs), etc.
Just flies in the face of the design philosophy they've favored for the past several years. I don't think that's a design philosophy Cerny would want to helm.
I'm guessing that if anything it would be a revision, not unlike the PS4 HUC-1200 "C-chassis" that slightly reduced weight, halved the number of RAM chips, and lowered power use.
If they take that approach with a PS5 Slim (also why is it called Lite and not Slim? Sony's never called other revisions Lite models but maybe the Lite is a differentiation from a more robust Slim-like revision?), wouldn't the RAM module capacities need to increase? AFAIK there are no 4 GB GDDR6 modules on the market, is there talk of any coming in 2021? I personally would like to see that.
In any case though, 2021 still feels a bit too early for any notable revisions, but if this is just a smaller thing tweaking a few bits here and there, I guess that makes more sense.
There was this talk about 6nm PS5 via a TSMC leaker. It was discussed on here a bit back. Could be related.
Nah, that sounds way too early for a 2021 model revision. That'd be more equivalent with the type of large-scale revisions the PS1 had back in its day, but trends generally aren't favoring that nowadays, and haven't for pretty much a decade.
Even if they can get a 2021 revision on N6 process and the costs come down on that component, RAM will likely still be relatively same price, same with NAND, any various miscellaneous integrated circuits sourced from other manufacturers, etc. Prices for that stuff prob won't start to budge until sometime 2022 at earliest.
