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  • Time Expenditure
  • Cost
  • Features
  • Regular PlayStation 5 Vs PlayStation 5 Slim

Console revisions have been a staple of the industry for a long time. From the top-loading NES to the three different models of Sega Genesis, hardware manufacturers strive to improve their products - whether it's by making them smaller or more powerful - to appeal to audiences that may have skipped the original iteration.

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Every PlayStation has been redesigned at least once, and the PlayStation 5 received its first revision in November 2023 with the introduction of the PlayStation 5 Slim. The console has all the bells and whistles from the original unit, with a few extra incentives like more internal storage. If you already own a PlayStation 5 and want to upgrade or are just looking into getting the console for the first time, we'll help you decide whether the PlayStation 5 Slim is worth it.

Updated on April 12, 2024, by Kyle Chamaillard: We've decided to revisit this article to include even more information about the PlayStation 5 Slim to help you decide if the console is worth your money.

Review

While TheGamer does not have an official review of the PlayStation 5 Slim on the site, staff have kept their eyes on the unit and covered its launch with a few features, including Lead Features Editor Jade King. In her piece "PS5 Slim's Lack Of Fanfare Speaks Volumes About This Generation," she wrote about everything surrounding the announcement of the revision and the current state of traditional console updates.

"Given how garishly large and white the original model is, it’s been a long time coming, but you’d think we’d be talking about it."

Sony used to hold massive press conferences to announce the latest PlayStation 4 model, and it always felt like a big deal. Now, they simply post a tweet announcing the unit with a link to a blog post with more information. "...it’s a surprisingly conservative revision for a console that has been on the market for close to three years now. Sony hasn’t made a big deal out of it, for better and for worse."

One of King's observations involves how little the average consumer relies on their hardware these days to play the games they want to play. With the boom of live-service titles and a lack of exclusives, many just want to own a console where they can play games like Fortnite and annual sports titles like Madden.

All games which tend to penetrate the mainstream are either live service, annual instalments, or the sort of blockbusters which now take half a decade to make. This isn’t the sort of timeline suited to selling millions of consoles, especially new, more powerful revisions when those who purchased the original still don’t feel like they’ve gotten their money’s worth given the lack of exclusive games that were once a normality.

This feels like a new normal for Sony, as they quietly announced the PlayStation 5 Slim and have said that it is going to be the new standard as they discontinue manufacturing the original model. While companies like Nintendo keep three different variations of the Nintendo Switch on store shelves, Sony is providing a single unit with your only choice being whether you want it to have a disc drive or not.

King concludes her feature with an understanding that this is just the way console revisions happen these days. "Sony doesn’t expect us, nor does it really want us to get excited about the PS5 Slim, because it only exists because it looks better, is presumably cheaper to make, and we’ve reached the natural point during a generation where significant console revisions start to be entertained."

Time Expenditure

The amount of time you can spend with a PlayStation 5 Slim is limitless. The console comes pre-packaged with Astro's Playroom, a three to five-hour adventure designed to highlight the unique features of the DualSense controller. While you play through that, you can begin installing a plethora of free-to-play games that can keep you busy for hundreds of hours without even spending a dime.

Since launching toward the end of 2020, the PlayStation 5 has received a handful of exclusives you can only experience on the console. From ambitious RPGs like Final Fantasy 16 to jaw-dropping remakes like Demon's Souls, it should take you anywhere between 300 and 400 hours to complete every exclusive game on the platform.

Beyond the free-to-play games and exclusives, you can still access hundreds of games that launch on multiple platforms such as Baldur's Gate 3, Lies of P, and more. Ultimately, there should never be a moment when you have nothing to play on the PlayStation 5 Slim.

Cost

If you decide to purchase a PlayStation 5 Slim, you will have a couple of choices to decide between. The first one is whether you want a disc drive attached to your console for physical game discs and movies. The model that comes with a disc drive will cost you $499.99 while the alternative costs $449.99. If you purchase the digital-based model, you can purchase an attachable disc drive for $79.99.

Purchasing either version of the Slim model often comes with a digital voucher for a full game like Spider-Man 2 or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. If you want to own one of these titles and a new PlayStation 5, one of the Slim bundles should be a perfect match for you.

Close

If you want to play online multiplayer games or just want access to a variety of older PlayStation games, you might want to look into subscribing to PlayStation Plus. There are three different tiers to the service, and depending on what you're looking for, each one has benefits that are worth looking into.

Features

Aside from the size difference, there are a few other differences between the original PlayStation 5 and the Slim model. While both units offer the same amount of power, the Slim version does have higher internal storage. The original version only contained 825GB of storage, while the latter model comes with a full 1TB.

PlayStation 5 Slim Specs

External dimensions (excluding projecting parts)

Approx. 358 × 96 × 216 mm(width × height × depth)

Mass

Approx. 3.2 kg

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 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)

System Memory

  • GDDR6 16GB
  • 448GB/s Bandwidth

SSD

  • 1TB
  • 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw)

PS5 Game Disc

Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc

BD/DVD drive

Disc Drive port equipped with Disc Drive

Video Out

Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1)

Audio

“Tempest” 3D AudioTech

Input/Output Front of Console

  • USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)
  • USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB)

Input/Output Back of Console

USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2

Networking

Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax

PlayStation 5 Slim Digital-Only Specs

External dimensions (excluding projecting parts)

Approx. 358 × 80 × 216 mm(width × height × depth)

Mass

Approx. 2.6 kg

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 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)

System Memory

  • GDDR6 16GB
  • 448GB/s Bandwidth

SSD

  • 1TB
  • 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw)

PS5 Game Disc

Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc

BD/DVD drive

Disc Drive port

Video Out

Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1)

Audio

“Tempest” 3D AudioTech

Input/Output Front of Console

  • USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)
  • USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB)

Input/Output Back of Console

USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2

Networking

Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax

Regular PlayStation 5 Vs PlayStation 5 Slim

If you're deciding between purchasing a regular PlayStation 5 or the Slim model, this chart will show you the differences between the two disc-based consoles. Aside from size and storage, they are mostly the same, but seeing the features side by side should make your decision easier.

Features

Regular PlayStation 5

PlayStation 5 Slim

External dimensions (excluding projecting parts)

Approx. 390 x 104 x 260 mm (width × height × depth)

Approx. 358 × 96 × 216 mm (width × height × depth)

Mass

Approx. 4.5kg

Approx. 3.2 kg

CPU

  • x86-64-AMD Ryzen™ “Zen 2”
  • 8 Cores / 16 Threads
  • Variable frequency, up to 3.5 GHz
  • 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 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)
  • AMD Radeon™ RDNA 2-based graphics engine
  • Ray Tracing Acceleration
  • Variable frequency, up to 2.23 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)

System Memory

  • GDDR6 16GB
  • 448GB/s Bandwidth
  • GDDR6 16GB
  • 448GB/s Bandwidth

SSD

  • 825GB
  • 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw)
  • 1TB
  • 5.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw)

PS5 Game Disc

Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc

Ultra HD Blu-ray™, up to 100GB/disc

BD/DVD drive

Disc Drive port equipped with Disc Drive

Disc Drive port equipped with Disc Drive

Video Out

Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1)

Support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified by HDMI ver.2.1)

Audio

“Tempest” 3D AudioTech

“Tempest” 3D AudioTech

Input/Output Front of Console

  • USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)
  • USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB)
  • USB Type-C® port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)
  • USB Type-C® port (Hi-Speed USB)

Input/Output Back of Console

USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2

USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2

Networking

Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax

Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)Wi-fi: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax

For a further, in-depth analysis of how the two compare with each other, you can check out our full comparison here!

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