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Sony announces new, slimmer PS4 and more powerful PS4 Pro with 4K and HDR support

New PlayStation consoles are coming in September and November, joining next month's PlayStation VR headset.

Dan Ackerman Editorial Director / Computers and Gaming
Dan Ackerman leads CNET's coverage of computers and gaming hardware. A New York native and former radio DJ, he's also a regular TV talking head and the author of "The Tetris Effect" (Hachette/PublicAffairs), a non-fiction gaming and business history book that has earned rave reviews from the New York Times, Fortune, LA Review of Books, and many other publications. "Upends the standard Silicon Valley, Steve Jobs/Mark Zuckerberg technology-creation myth... the story shines." -- The New York Times
Expertise I've been testing and reviewing computer and gaming hardware for over 20 years, covering every console launch since the Dreamcast and every MacBook...ever. Credentials
  • Author of the award-winning, NY Times-reviewed nonfiction book The Tetris Effect; Longtime consumer technology expert for CBS Mornings
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Sony has announced a new, slimmer version of the PlayStation 4 game console. With the same name, PS4, the new unit will replace the existing PS4 model, and cost $299, or £249 in the UK (that converts to about AU$390). It will be released September 15.

A second console, called PS4 Pro, will also be launching in the future, with an emphasis on 4K video output. It's coming November 10, at $399, or £349 in the UK (converts to about AU$520).

Sony says the same discs and downloads will work on both PS4 consoles, just with different features enabled for the two different-but-related platforms.

PS4 (slim version)

The slim version of the current PlayStation 4 console keeps the same name as the current model, which it replaces. Based on the many leaked photos and video we've seen, we're previously called it the PS4 Slim. This comes on the heels of the Xbox One S, itself a slim version of Microsoft's Xbox One. It's worth noting that both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 eventually begat slim versions after a couple of years. In fact, Sony also did slimmer versions of the PlayStation 2 and even the original model.

sony-playstation-4-slim-100.jpg

On the left, the slim new PS4. On the right, the PS4 Pro.

 Sarah Tew/CNET

The new Ps4, and existing PS4 consoles will all support HDR video (but not 4K) via a software update, coming soon.

Read more about the new, slim PS4 model here.

PS4 Pro

The PS4 Pro, formerly known by the code name Neo, is an upgraded version of the current PS4 console. It includes new, more powerful AMD graphics hardware that can support both HDR video and 4K-resolution output. Both video and games will support 4K and HDR, and the system will intelligently detect if your television is capable of either.

sony-playstation-4-pro-106.jpg

The PlayStation 4 Pro.

 Sarah Tew/CNET

Besides new games designed with both PS4 and PS4 Pro support in mind, several older games are getting updated to support 4K and HDR, which Sony calls "forward compatibility." The Netflix app for PS4 will support 4K and HDR programming on PS4 Pro. A future PS4 YouTube app will also support 4K content.

Read more about the PS4 Pro here.