Today finally saw the announcements of what PlayStation and virtual reality (VR) fans had all been buzzing about the past few months, and we were all left wondering if that really was it. The PlayStation Pro is what we expected the Neo to be, but it looks as though it had an over-sized silhouette. So, the only way to truly process what we have been told is to have a side-by-side comparison to really see what is happening.
Before we jump to any assumptions, let’s compare the specifications of the original PlayStation 4 to the PlayStation 4 Pro that really matter in VR.
| Original PlayStation 4 | PlayStation Pro | What is the difference? | |
| Processor | Low power x86-64 AMD “Jaguar”, 8 cores | x86-64 AMD “Jaguar”, 8 cores | Pretty much the same, but more powerful. |
| Graphics | 1.84 TFLOPS, AMD next-generation Radeon™ based graphics engine | 4.20 TFLOPS, AMD Radeon™ based graphics engine | An incredible increase in graphics, enabling 4K |
| Memory | GDDR5 8GB | GDDR5 8GB | None |
| Storage Size | 500GB | 1TB | Double the storage |
Okay, now let’s go back to jumping on those same assumptions. The first question that comes to mind is why didn’t they just call it PlayStation 4K or HD? All that is different at all is the quality of the graphics, and the storage size, so there is a little confusion around as to why there would be such a big fuss surrounding it. Of course, the improves graphics isn’t something that we should argue about necessarily as it will benefit gamers tremendously, but considering the hype of the PlayStation Neo it does seem a little disproportionate.
Although VR had a relatively small mention, with perhaps a sentence or two telling us what it could do for VR, this all still makes a difference. Yes, the original PlayStation 4 is able to handle VR, but with the addition of better graphics and a slightly faster processor, it will serve as a machine that can better handle what is expected of it with more ease.
Yes, there could have been more to the new model, and yes, it is only a step up to what the Xbox One Scorpio has achieved (as Xbox cheekily pointed out in its tweet during the PlayStation Meeting), but today was more about making a point for players of both of the extremes. The “Slim”, which had been leaked for ages and is similar to what PlayStation has already done for the PlayStation 3, and the Pro, which is ultimately aimed at the types of gamers who want only the best experience.