PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition: which PlayStation 5 console should you choose?

PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition: which PlayStation v console should yous choose?

(Paradigm credit: Sony)

The PS5 is the newest games console from Sony. It's also one of the all-time gaming consoles y'all can get your hands on today – it shares the acme spot with Microsoft's Xbox Series X.

There are two different versions of the PlayStation 5 to choose from, which can make figuring out which one is the best choice for you confusing. There'due south the PS5 and there's the PS5 Digital Edition. So which i practise you need?

For most people, the PS5 volition seem like the obvious choice. This is the model with a 4K Blu-ray drive and, in every fashion, it'southward a solid upgrade over whichever console you currently have.

But permit's non dismiss the PS5 Digital Edition. If you want to salve some money you might adopt the PS5 Digital Edition. This model is unlike to the PS5 in that information technology's completely disc-less and you can simply buy games for it digitally. This makes information technology cheaper, too.

Then, the question of which ane is correct for you lot will depend on your upkeep, your playing preferences, and how you feel virtually physically owning your games over owning them digitally. We've created this guide to help you decide which PlayStation 5 you lot should buy.

Just before you get excited about getting your hands on your adjacent dream panel, let'south talk about the problems with both versions of the PS5: they're hard to find. Unfortunately, due to chip shortages, pandemic-related delays and many other reasons, both PS5 models are low in stock almost everywhere.

Stock issues bated, the big question is: is the PS5 Digital Edition right for you? Does anyone truly need a 4K Blu-Ray drive in today's digital earth? Or is it always going to be a improve pick to pay more for a disc bulldoze?

We've covered everything y'all demand to brand the right decision for you. In this guide, we've compared the PS5 to the PS5 Digital Edition in every fundamental surface area, from price to specs.

US-only: PS5 restock tracker
Our PlayStation 5 verdict is in: read our PS5 review
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PS5 Digital Edition vs Xbox Series Southward: which digital-only console is right for you?

The PS5 continues to exist hot property every bit demand far outweighs supply. Nosotros're searching where to buy a PS5 to assistance you runway downward Sony's side by side-gen arrangement when retailers replenish their stock.

PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition - prices and release dates

Allow's get the hardcore numbers out of the style first. How much do the two systems cost?

If you go for the standard PS5, the one that still eats up shiny Blu-ray discs for breakfast, information technology'll cost you $499.99 / £449.99 / AU$749.95.

The PlayStation v Digital Edition (with its identical specs bated from the removal of the disc drive) comes in at $399.99 / £359.99 / AU$599.95.

Both versions of the console are available worldwide, with the PS5 released on Nov 12 in select territories, and Nov 19 for the rest of the world.

There'due south a significant saving of $100 / £90 to be made if y'all go the all-digital route, then. Merely in that location are a few things to consider hither.

Firstly, yous'll be losing out on the panel doubling up every bit a 4K Blu-ray disc histrion, which is a squeamish added bonus for home cinema fans. Because standalone 4K Blu-ray players price several hundred dollars and/or pounds themselves, that'south a considerable chunk of cash saved.

Secondly, those with a disc bulldoze will be able to accept reward of being able to swap, loan, borrow, and trade physical disc-based games with their friends and exchange stores. Over the course of a console's lifespan, that could add up to considerable second-paw savings.

So what you may salve now with the digital console may cost you lot over the course of a few years, since you lot'll exist paying whatsoever prices Sony and game publishers decide to set. That's earlier taking into consideration the bodily joy of owning a physical thing.

PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition: specs

Here are the full official PS5 specs straight from Sony, including differences for both editions where noted. The ii PS5 models are identical in terms of performance, a big difference compared to the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, which are much farther apart in cost. The only difference is that the more than expensive PS5 panel volition accept an Ultra Hard disk drive Blu-ray disc bulldoze – otherwise they use the aforementioned custom processor, and feature the same 825GB SSD.

CPU: x86-64-AMD Ryzen Zen ii, 8 Cores / xvi Threads, variable frequency, upward to 3.5 GHz

GPU: AMD Radeon™ RDNA 2-based graphics engine, Ray Tracing Dispatch, variable frequency, up to 2.23 GHz (10.3 TFLOPS)

Arrangement Retentivity: GDDR6 16GB/448GB/southward Bandwidth

Optical drive (base unit just): Ultra HD Blu-ray (66G/100G) ~10xCAVBD-ROM (25G/50G) ~8xCAVBD-R/RE (25G/50G) ~8xCAVDVD ~3.2xCLV

SSD: 825GB, v.5GB/s Read Bandwidth (Raw)

PS5 Game Disc: Ultra HD Blu-ray, upwardly to 100GB/disc

Video out: HDMI OUT port, support of 4K 120Hz TVs, 8K TVs, VRR (specified past HDMI ver.two.i)

Sound: Tempest 3D AudioTech

Dimensions: PS5: Approx. 390mm x 104mm ten 260mm (width x acme x depth)(excludes largest projection, excludes Base)

PS5 Digital Edition: Approx. 390mm ten 92mm x 260mm (width x top ten depth)(excludes largest projection, excludes Base)

Weight: PS5: 4.5kg

PS5 Digital Edition: 3.9kg

Power: PS5: 350W

PS5 Digital Edition: 340W

Input/output: USB Blazon-A port (Hi-Speed USB)USB Type-A port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps) x2, USB Type-C port (Super-Speed USB 10Gbps)

Networking: Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)IEEE 802.11 a/b/m/n/ac/ax, Bluetooth 5.1

Equally mentioned, the solid state drive included with both consoles is the same, offer users 825GB of storage with a raw 5.5GB/due south throughput (and up to 9GB/s worth of compressed data). You lot merely get 667.2GB of usable storage, though, so infinite is at a premium. In that location'due south a minor difference in weight and dimensions between the PS5 and its Digital Edition, but other than that they're identical.

The PS5 runs off the third-generation AMD Ryzen chipset, with eight cores and the manufacturer's new Zen 2 compages and Navi graphics. On the visual side, the GPU features 36 compute units running at ii.23GHz and offering x.28TFLOPs, while the PS5 packs 16GB of GDDR6 RAM with a bandwidth of 448GB/s. The console can pull off ray tracing – that is, avant-garde lighting that used to exist the sole domain of pricey PC graphics cards. Await fancy reflections in the games you dearest as a result of this addition.

3D audio is also a large role of the PS5's offer, no matter which edition of the console you own – immersive 3D sound is powered by the Tempest Engine, which translates sound sources into the hundreds to create realistic sound.

The PS5 can support up to 8K resolution (though not until a firmware update arrives), which many players won't need on their 1080p TVs. Whether all games will run natively in 8K is more than of a question mark (we assume only the least graphically intensive titles volition), just it means the console is future-proofed if you decide to buy a nicer Television set down the line. In addition, the PS5 supports 120Hz refresh rates, assuasive you to enjoy smoother games if they offer a higher framerate if you have a HDMI 2.1 compliant Television.

Most games won't max out these possibilities in the short term – indeed, Spider-Man: Miles Morales offers a 60fps operation style, which dials back visual effects to hitting a higher framerate than the PS4'due south usual 30fps.

Both consoles include a single wireless PS5 DualSense controller, which features adaptive triggers and haptic feedback that helps elevate the feeling of realism in your games.

Both consoles tin can likewise play PS4 games (although any physical copies y'all own won't work on the PS5 Digital Edition), and you lot'll be able to buy an external HDD for additional storage to play these older titles and then you conserve the SSD space for PS5 software. Yous can't store or play PS5 games from any external hard drives or SSDs however, withal.

(Image credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment)

PS5 vs PS5 Digital Edition games: they'll be the aforementioned

This, thankfully, is the like shooting fish in a barrel bit. Aside from the fact that one volition play games from discs and the other exclusively from the panel'southward internal storage system, the PS5 and PS5 Digital Edition play exactly the same PS5 games, in exactly the aforementioned style.

With identical internal specs, you can relish 4K gaming at fast refresh rates on both the PS5 and its digital-only counterpart, so expect to come across no difference in gameplay between the two.

Sony'south lined up some slap-up exclusive titles to play on both machines at the time of launch, including Horizon: Forbidden Due west, God of War: Ragnarok, Final Fantasy 16, the Demon'southward Souls remake and the Miles Morales-enhanced Spider-Human for PS5. That'south earlier taking into account tertiary party titles similar Cyberpunk 2077, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla and Resident Evil 8: Village.

Where things get a little murkier is in the backwards compatibility front. Yes, the digital edition of the console will play PS4 titles – but information technology patently won't be able to play your existing, disc-based collection.

Instead, you'll accept to buy them again, digitally. Sony is taking the sting out of that fact slightly with the introduction of its PlayStation Plus Collection perk for PS Plus subscribers, though. Going frontwards, the cost of the subscription of PS5 owners volition also include admission to free downloads of 20 top PS4 games, including God of War, Uncharted iv, and Bloodborne, among others. It's a nice perk, and an instant PS5 library of games for newcomers to the console family. Merely it doesn't exercise much to cover the hundreds of PS4 titles out there on discs for PS5 Digital Edition owners.

Verdict

It's difficult for us to make a call on fiscal matters. Merely if you lot're an avid gamer without the cash to make the big leap to the top-tier PS5, by all means go for the digital console. Adjacent-gen gaming is sure to be a please on that entry level model, besides, and information technology'south great that functioning will be consistent across both.

But our gut feeling remains that, should you be able to beget it, you lot should opt for the standard, disc-based PS5 console. It'll open you up to access the joys of 4K Blu-ray viewing (they await better than 4K Netflix streams, honest!), non to mention the potential money you'll save over the years in trading disc-based games with your friends and at exchange shops.

One last affair to consider, likewise, is the greyness area that is digital ownership – be that of music, films, or indeed games. When information technology comes to digital media, y'all don't actually own a title in perpetuity. Should, in the year 2035 or some other distant date, Sony decide to switch off the PS5's digital storefront distribution… where then will you re-download your games from?

Yep, the online elements of modern games means that patches come up frequently, and can sometimes be required before a game will even work. Merely if Sony's servers always go taken out due to unpredictable circumstances, it's not quite every bit reassuring to have a solely digital games drove compared to a physical one.

And in the rare issue that your discs ever stop working: at least you lot've got a nice case with box art to reminisce with...

PS5 vs Xbox Series Ten: which next-gen console should you lot purchase?

You might likewise desire to cheque out the capabilities of HDMI on PS5.

Samuel is a PR Manager at game developer Borderland. Formerly TechRadar's Senior Entertainment Editor, he's an expert in Marvel, Star Wars, Netflix shows and general streaming stuff. Before his stint at TechRadar, he spent half dozen years at PC Gamer.