The Technodrome Forums - PS5 To Launch In 2019, Will Be "Another Half Step," Analyst Predicts

https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ps.../1100-6451610/

Quote:

Sony may have only released the PlayStation 4 Pro at the end of last year, but more hardware could come as soon as 2019, according to one analyst. Wedbush Securities' Michael Pachter has told GamingBolt that he expects the PlayStation 5 to launch in 2019, and that it will be a "half step," similar to how, in Pachter's view, the PS4 Pro was a "half step" over the base PS4.

"The PS4 Pro is better [from a technical perspective] than the PS4, so I think that's a half step towards the PS5," he said. "I think the PS5 will be another half step."

He added: "My expectation that is that it's not coming out in 2018. That [it will be] 2019 or 2020 but probably 2019. Sony is probably timing it better because they are going to bring out a 4K-capable device when the 4K TV market reaches 50% in the USA and 35% in the rest of the world.

"I think Sony has probably got the next console cycle nailed down already. I think they already know what they got to do."

By contrast, Microsoft will launch its native 4K-capable console, the Xbox One X, this November. It is unclear when the next Xbox after that is scheduled to launch.

Pachter went on to speculate about what kind of console the PS5 might be, and whether it will be backwards compatible: "The PlayStation 5… how much faster can it be? It will surely support 4K. Will it support 240 frames per second? Great. Will it play games that were made for the PS4 Pro? That's the question. I think it will. So I think they will build a console that will backwards compatible with the PS4 Pro. So I think it will be perceived by the consumers to be a half step and I think Shawn [Layden, president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment America] is telling the truth when he says it will be a full-fledged console."

Just a few months ago a different analyst--Macquarie Capital Securities' Damian Thong--reportedly said he "expected Sony to release its next-generation PlayStation by the second half of 2018." It's worth noting that analyst predictions don't always pan out, and these aren't necessarily based on inside scoops.