Sony's new PlayStation 5 Pro official: 45% faster, 2-3x faster in RT, launches Nov 7 for $699

PS5 lead system architect Mark Cerny has officially confirmed the beefed-up PlayStation 5 Pro console, which is exactly what the leaks said: 45% faster in rendering, up to 2-3x faster in RT, and it features AI-based upscaling tech called PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution).

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The new PS5 Pro will be launching on November 7, 2024 and priced at $699.99 with a similar, but slimmed-down look of the PS5. Inside, there's up to 45% faster rendering, 2-3x performance improvements in ray tracing, and some heavy performance upgrades thanks to PSSR on the PS5 Pro.

Sony offers two rendering modes on the standard PS5: Fidelity Mode (30FPS) and Performance Mode (60FPS). The higher fidelity mode renders at a higher resolution and graphics quality, but drops down into the 30FPS mark which isn't good to play with. Performance Mode drops the rendering resolution and detail quality, but increases the performance to 60FPS. Cerny notes that PS5 gamers are choosing Performance Mode around 3/4 of the time.

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This all changes on the new PS5 Pro console.

Removing that decision, or narrowing that divide is one of the key targets for the new PS5 Pro. Sony wants to provide gamers with the high-quality graphics of Fidelity Mode, but with the smoother performance of Performance Mode on the new PS5 Pro.

• Read more: PS5 Pro journey was only 19 months from prototype to release, no missed deadline says insider
• Read more: Here's how and where to watch Sony's unveiling event for the PlayStation 5 Pro
• Read more: Sony expected to unveil beefed-up PlayStation 5 Pro console TOMORROW at technical presentation
• Read more: Sony rumored to have 'locked down marketing rights' to GTA 6 on the PS5, and PS5 Pro
• Read more: PlayStation 5 Pro dev kit leaks: 2TB SSD, beefed-up PS5 Pro only uses around 200W power

Sony has substantially improved the PS5 Pro over the standard PS5 in three different ways, which is something the company calls "The Big 3": a large GPU, advanced ray tracing, and AI-driven upscaling. The new PS5 Pro console features a much bigger GPU with 67% more Compute Units, and boosted the GDDR6 memory speeds it uses by 28%.

The result?

Rendering on the PS5 Pro that is up to an incredible 45% faster than the standard PS5, while second, are the advanced ray tracing abilities of the new PS5 Pro. Sony made major upgrades to ray tracing, with 2-3x the RT performance over the standard PS5 for the new PS5 Pro, while PSSR (PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution) is the PS5 Pro's answer to NVIDIA's magic DLSS upscaling technology.

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Sony's upgraded PS5 Pro will be the platform of choice for GTA 6 in 2025, something I said back in late 2023 rings true with the new rumors: "Can you imagine the biggest game of all time, running on the most powerful console of all time -- the PS5 Pro -- at 4K 60FPS or even 8K 30FPS? That would be incredible to see, and something PC gamers would lust after... and can't have. I'm sure that Rockstar will have GTA 6 on the PC maybe a year after the PS5 Pro gets its time in the limelight (profits, ya'll)".

See that "profits, ya'll" comment... yeah, those "locked down marketing rights" would've cost the Japanese giant a pretty penny, but it'll be worth it for the PS5 and PS5 Pro as the console that Rockstar recommends for GTA 6.

• Read more: Jeff Grubb says Sony will launch the PS5 Pro this year, geared up for GTA 6 in 2025
• Read more: PlayStation 5 Pro was an 'open secret' at Gamescom 2024 with game developers
• Read more: PS5 lead system architect: surprised by RT, 60FPS, PC ports are super easy
• Read more: Sony confirms PS5 Pro by filing copyright strike against leakers video on PS5 Pro
• Read more: PlayStation 5 Pro 'PS5 Pro Enhanced' label: upscale to 4K, constant 60FPS games
• Read more: PlayStation 5 Pro's new PSSR to radically improve image quality
• Read more: PlayStation 5 Pro features next-gen RDNA 4 RT engine, allows 2-3x faster RT
• Read more: PS5 Pro console features PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR)
• Read more: PS5 Pro rumor: 45% faster than standard PS5, 2-3x faster in ray tracing

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A recap of what to expect from the PlayStation 5 Pro console from recent rumors:

• PS5 Pro runs cool and quiet, around 200W of power: The PS5 Pro has recently been rumored to use around 200W of power, the same power connector as the standard PS5, and it runs cooler thanks to tweaks from AMD and TSMC's improved process node on the Viola SoC inside of the PS5 Pro.
• 45% faster than standard PS5: The new codenamed Trinity SoC is a beefed-up semi-custom design from AMD with a larger GPU and faster GDDR6 memory. The higher clock speeds on the GPU and some RDNA 4 tech are going to provide a huge upgrade in performance over the regular PS5.
• 2-3x faster in ray tracing than standard PS5: An increase of 45% in performance over the standard PS5 is impressive, but the new RDNA 4 GPU tricks inside of the PS5 Pro will reportedly provide an insane 2-3x performance increase on new "PS5 Pro Enhanced" games on a PlayStation 5 Pro console.
• AI-powered PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution (PSSR) upscaling tech: The new PS5 Pro console will have some AI technology (of course) which will power an exciting new AI upscaling technology: PlayStation Spectral Super Resolution -- or PSSR -- which means we're going to see some of the best graphics we've seen out of a console yet with the PS5 Pro.
• PS5 Pro Enhanced label for games: Sony will have a new "PS5 Pro Enhanced" label for games, which will see games using PSSR to upscale the resolution to 4K, a constant 60FPS, and then add or increase ray tracing effects and performance.