In the gaming industry, it’s not uncommon for consoles to release with several versions either at the beginning of the cycle, or later in its lifespan. Now that gaming has become as huge and mainstream as, say, smartphones, rumors are speculating that the PS5 will take a hint from the major cell phone companies and release two versions of the console at different price points, and with different features, to reach a wider audience. One version of the PS5 will be a core setup with only the most basic of features and capabilities. The other version will offer a more robust setup for hardcore gamers. For both versions of the console, an option will also be present to make the option portable via a virtual reality headset similar to the upcoming PlayStation VR. Join me as we look at the two widely different versions of the PS5 and how VR will replace the traditional handheld system like the 3DS or the PlayStation Vita. PS5 Version One: The Core Experience The PlayStation 4 is already outselling the Xbox One by 2:1. It’s clear that there are a healthy amount of gamers who love the PlayStation brand. The problem is that past consoles have come out as price points upwards of $600. When the PS4 released at $400, the average gamer saw a next generation console within reach. Meanwhile, the Xbox One comes out at $500 and, well, we all know how that ended. Even so, it still sold, just not quite as well as PS4. Turning our perspective for a moment, let’s take a look at the smartphone industry. There’s never a single version of a phone. At launch there may be one, but soon they’ll introduce another, and another. In the case of the iPhone, there’s almost always two versions at launch. So, let’s fast forward to 2020. The PS5 is coming out and Sony is offering two options to reach the most gamers possible. The first is one called the The Core Experience. This version of the console contains all of the hardware needed to run the games (and connect to the cloud). It will have a massive hard drive upwards of 5 Terabytes or more. This is just the storage space for standard hard drives. What’s more likely is that the Pro version of the PS5 will feature a Solid State Drive (SSD) that is quickly outpacing the hard drive technology we have. Nobuo Hayasaka, a managing executive director at Toshiba and chief engineer of its Semiconductor & Storage Company spoke at the SEMI Members Day in Tokyo on August 20, 2015. During this time, he made the bold comment that SSD drives would reach a capacity of 128 terabytes in 2018. By the time the PS5 releases in 2020, this type of storage could be included in a more premium system package. The console will come with the new controller and all of the equipment needed to play your games in 4K resolution. It will probably retail … Read More