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The PlayStation 5 Slim might have just been spotted in the wild for the first time – or at least, its outer shell might have been.
A newly-surfaced video shows someone handling a new-look PS5 that has some clear differences compared to existing models, and it corroborates long-term rumours about how the PS5 Slim will stack up.
The video shows a new case design that does leave the console a little smaller than the original PS5, even with a disc drive, but has totally different cover plates that are both divided by a gap.
This looks like it basically divides the console into quarters on the outside, with one of those quarters having space for a disc drive or not, depending on which version you go for.
That might solve a small problem for Sony by allowing it to build every base PS5 the same way, with users choosing whether to swap in a disc drive or not, rather than having to produce two different versions as it currently does.
This lines up with leaks from months ago about a removable disc drive coming for the PS5 and finally gives a bit of clarification as to just what that odd-sounding feature could look like.
Of course, there’s still the looming likelihood of a PS5 Pro with beefed-up specs on the horizon, so Sony will still likely have to make two different consoles at the same time again in the near future.
Sony hasn’t commented officially and likely won’t do so, since it hasn’t announced any form of hardware revision as incoming for the PS5, but this lines up with expectations that Microsoft disclosed as part of its recent FTC hearings that the new version would arrive later in 2023.
Microsoft also estimated a $399 price tag attached, which would be a welcome cut compared to current pricing. All of this is backed up by the fact that the last few weeks have seen the first consistent deals on PS5 consoles across retailers and regions – Sony is clearly cooking something up.
Sony PlayStation 5
$449 $500 Save $51
The PS5 is still discounted at a heap of retailers – it’s a great option if you can’t wait.
While we know more concretely that its streaming handheld Project Q is on the way, though, the PS5 Slim is still merely rumoured. This leak, though, is extremely persuasive and we’d assume that we’re therefore not far off some official news at all.