Sony Unveils the $700 PS5 Pro: Enhanced GPU, Ray Tracing, and AI Upscaling

After months of anticipation, Sony has officially revealed the PS5 Pro during a special technical briefing. Mark Cerny, lead architect of the PS5, highlighted that the new console is packed with significant upgrades, boasting three primary improvements: a more powerful GPU, advanced ray tracing capabilities, and AI-enhanced upscaling.

Scheduled for release on November 7th at a price point of $699.99, the PS5 Pro sports a design reminiscent of the PS5 Slim, as recent leaks hinted. The console features three sleek stripes along its side and does not come equipped with a disc drive. However, players can purchase a 4K Blu-ray disc drive separately, along with customizable console covers.

“We've built the most powerful console yet,” said Cerny. The upgraded hardware will result in 45% faster rendering performance and improve game detail and frame rates. One of the main goals of the PS5 Pro is to eliminate the need for players to choose between performance and visual fidelity modes. “Players are choosing performance about 75% of the time,” Cerny added.

The PS5 Pro boasts a GPU upgrade with 67% more compute units than the standard PS5, coupled with 28% faster memory. This combination enables 45% faster game rendering and enhanced frame rates without sacrificing visual quality.

Ray-traced games will also benefit from this power boost. Sony claims developers can increase ray-casting speeds by up to three times compared to the PS5. Additionally, the PS5 Pro introduces Sony's new AI-powered PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) technology, an upscaling technique similar to Nvidia’s DLSS, enhancing both frame rates and image quality.

Cerny showcased various titles on the PS5 Pro, including The Last of Us Part II running at 60fps with greater detail. Other games like Spider-Man 2 and Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart will also benefit from the PS5 Pro’s ability to deliver fidelity-quality graphics at high frame rates.

The PS5 Pro will also feature a "Game Boost" option, enhancing over 8,500 backward-compatible PS4 games with improved performance and resolution. Select PS4 games will benefit from higher resolution outputs thanks to this new feature.

Connectivity upgrades include support for Wi-Fi 7, VRR, and 8K resolutions. The console also comes with a larger 2TB solid-state drive, an additional USB-C port, and an extra SSD slot for future expansion.

Developers are working on updates to optimize existing games for the PS5 Pro, with 50 PS5 Pro Enhanced titles ready by launch, including Alan Wake 2, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Gran Turismo 7, and more.

Pre-orders begin on September 26th, ahead of its November 7th release.