In fact, Sony’s step follows a mid-cycle hardware update by rival Microsoft, which brought the Xbox One S to market last month.
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Alongside with this is the new Sony Platinum Gaming headset. The cost of the console in the United States and the UK will be $399 and £349 respectively.
Sony has just revealed its new high-end upgraded PS4 Pro model (the erstwhile PS4 Neo), which will upscale regular PS4 games to 4K resolution and provide various benefits like improved frame rate and more dynamic environments. Releasing the Pro before the new Xbox gives Sony an edge over its rival for the holiday season. Microsoft also announced plans for a bigger update, now referred to as “Project Scorpio”, slated to go to market late next year.
Sony has said the games business is set to be its biggest growth driver, helped by strong PS4 console sales, a rise in subscribers to its PlayStation network and the launch of its virtual reality headset. This will make it significantly easier for developers to make their games compatible with PS4 Pro and make use of its capabilities. A number of games you already own may have been patched to play better on the console. There will be other full 4K games coming in the future too, but for now many of them use Sony’s advanced upscaling technique – which is a little too complex to go into here – to create a smooth, high-quality image. On Uncharted 4, augmented with an HDR patch that unlocked a wider color gamut and brighter highlights, a cloudy blue sky looked just like the real thing, while underwater sun rays glimmered off sand with shocking realism.
Apparently games on the original PS4 will look richer and more detailed when played on the PS 4 Pro thanks to the inclusion of a more powerful graphics chip and faster processor.
We also know a lot of our fans watch movies, TV shows, and videos on their PS4, so we’re working with our partners who offer best-in-class streaming services to build new apps for PS4 Pro.
Both the Xbox One and PS4 were released in November 2013.
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Either way, we’ll find out more details soon – one example of a cheap Samsung TV model that comes with a version of HDR can be found here, but is it HDR that Sony will support?
