PS4 Pro review
PS4 Pro review
Sony’s souped-up PS4 Pro is amazing for 4K TV owners
Our Verdict
Buying a PS4 Pro is an easy decision for newcomers to the world of PlayStation, PlayStation VR neophytes and 4K HDR TV owners. For everyone else, though, there’s a chance the Pro’s benefits aren’t worth the extra cost.For
- First 4K HDR Sony console
- Larger 1TB hard drive
- 30+ Pro Mode games at launch
Against
- No 4K Blu-ray player
- Pro Mode support isn’t universal
Sony PlayStation 4 Pro deals
Compare Deals
Amazon Deals
Original review continues below...
The PS4 Pro is a massive change from the consoles we've seen before.
Whereas traditionally each new piece of hardware (excluding hardware refreshes like the PS4 slim) represented a clean break with the previous console, the PS4 Pro is a much smaller step.
Instead it maintains exactly the same library of games as the existing PS4. All PS4 games work on the PS4 Pro, and all of the game's that are released for the PS4 Pro will continue to work on the existing PS4.
So it's not exactly a PS5, but it's a significant upgrade over the existing PS4. Chief amongst the upgraded specs is support for new technologies like 4K and HDR which will allow you to make use of the newest generation of TV hardware.
The downside is that not all of it will be native 4K, but Sony has also baked in a number of clever upscaling technologies to the new console to act as a stopgap.
But is it worth the upgrade? The answer to that question will depend entirely on what kind of TV you own.
- Need a 4K TV to go with your PS4 Pro? Check out the best 4K TVs
If you have purchased the PlayStation 4 already, you’ll need to ask yourself a few questions before buying Sony’s new wares: Will you buy a 4K TV sometime in the next few years? How about PlayStation VR? How important do you find higher framerates and 500GB of extra storage? The answer to those questions might be ‘no,’ ‘no’ and ‘not very,’ and if that’s the case then Sony’s high horsepower system might not make the most sense for you, especially if you’re upgrading from an original PS4.
Also, like the Xbox One S that launched a few months back, the Pro’s launch is a good time to reevaluate Sony’s PS4 platform, now approaching its third birthday.
The platform has more games than it did three years ago, obviously, but new systems have also emerged: PlayStation Vue, PlayStation Now, PlayStation Music and, most importantly, PlayStation VR. We’ll take the time later to talk about how these systems shape the platform and help make the PlayStation 4 a great place to game.
Finally, at the end of the review, we’ll talk about your best course of action going forward, even if that means picking up an original PS4 instead of a Pro.
For now, though, scroll down to see the design of the PS4 Pro.
Design
- Slightly bigger than standard PS4
- Additional 3.1 USB port on the rear
- Upgraded Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
Compared to the original PS4’s 27.5 x 30 x 5.3 cm package, the PS4 Pro will take up a bit more shelf space – 29.5 x 32.7 x 5.5 cm (W x L x H), to be exact. Because it’s both wider and taller than the original PS4, you’ll probably have to put the original on top of the Pro if you plan on keeping both. Along the same lines, it’s a fair bit heavier, too. However, unless you constantly move your console from one house to the next, we can't the extra weight will be a massive headache.
The system is encased in a matte black shell, similar to the one used on the PS4 Slim released last month, however this time around you won’t find rounded corners along the edges. The PS4 Pro is sharp in every sense of the word.
On the front of the console, you might notice that there are no touch-capacitive buttons. Sony’s decided to ditch the accident prone pads for a more traditional button that sits beneath the disc tray. The button is made from a sort of cheap plastic, which is scary, but it does the job just the same. The same is true for the eject button which sits in the same spot on the right side of the front face.
One final point here: While the exterior is nice, Sony has spent more time working on the inside of the console. Inside you’ll find a larger 1TB hard drive, which is 500GB more than you’ll find on the original PS4 or the base model of the PS4 Slim. There’s also an improved Wi-Fi antenna that uses dual-band 802.11ac wireless and Bluetooth 4.0 instead of 802.11 b/g/n and Bluetooth 2.1.
While the swapping out of a Wi-Fi antenna may not seem like a big deal, it helps the PS4 Pro download games faster. A 160MB game (Pac-Man 256) downloaded in under a minute on a 15Mbps connection – something that should have always been the case, but wasn’t, on the original PS4.
PS4 Pro controller
- Minor changes made
- Can be used in wired or wireless modes
- Light bar added to front of controller
Advertisement
The controller that ships with the new PS4 Pro is the same one that will ship with all PlayStation 4 Slim systems going forward.
It is, essentially, a very small iteration on the DualShock 4 you’ve been using for years. There’s a light bar built into the touchpad – a nice feature when you don’t want to turn the controller over in your hand to find out what player you are – but more importantly the triggers have been tweaked and it feels a bit lighter in the hand.
Plus, as we pointed out in the PlayStation 4 Slim review, the controller can also switch seamlessly between Bluetooth and wired mode when it’s connected to the system via USB cable. While that might not sound like it’s a huge addition, for a pro gamer, that can be the difference between a win (and a pot of e-Sports prize money) or a loss.
Commentaires
Enregistrer un commentaire