Sony Slices Another 300 Grams off the Weight of the PlayStation 5

Some revised Sony PlayStation 5 models have hit retailers in Australia. Antipodean gaming magazine Press Start shared spec sheets from the new Optical Disc Drive (ODD) and Digital devices. But the only differences that can be seen are the weight reductions. The Sony PlayStation 5 CFI-1202A (with ODD) and PlayStation 5 CFI-1202B (Digital) are 300g and 200g lighter than the current revisions, respectively.

Launch

CFI-1102 (2021)

CFI-1202 (2022)

ODD model (kg)

4.5

4.2

3.9

Digital model (kg)

3.9

3.6

3.4

Readers can be forgiven for experiencing Déjà vu, having read through our news thus far. A year ago we reported on the news that Sony had quietly revised the PlayStation 5 hardware to deliver 300g lighter consoles. At the time of the 2021 report, we already had a very clear answer about what Sony had done to reduce the weight. An enterprising YouTuber had opened up a device to observe that the heatsink had been reduced in size and mass. This was an obvious cost saving exercise from Sony, but only a 3 to 5 degrees Celsius higher system temperature for the new model was observed.

Surely Sony couldn’t cut another 200 or 300g from the thermal mass in 2022? Well, sadly we don’t have a definitive answer, as the source publication hasn’t acquired any new consoles from its local retailers, and admits it would be too sheepish to crack open a revised PlayStation 5 console, anyway. There may be some clue in the fact that the ODD console has been reduced in weight by 100g more than the Digital version this time around. However, checking out several bare slimline style ODDs, weighing in at around 150g, it is hardly likely that Sony could have reduced this component’s weight by such a degree.

(Image credit: Sony)

The PS5 console weight reduction news comes hot on the heels of the pricing announcements by Sony distributors worldwide. The US is lucky to swerve the spate of increases. In Australia, where these new samples have been seen, both models went up by AUD50 ($35). Are some pricier components required to shrink the console weights by 200-300g with the latest revision? Sony simply blamed “the current global economic environment and its impact on SIE’s business,” for the price rises. At least for now, neither Microsoft or Nintendo will be following Sony’s price hiking example.

We expect it won’t be very long until the truth about what Sony has done to cut the weights of the latest PS5 revisions emerges. Some may confidently speculate about this matter, but we’ll have to wait for a teardown by a reputable source before we can definitively answer the weight reduction question.