PlayStation 4 Gets a Pre-Launch Hardware Teardown

Post by Dan @ 09:39am 08/11/13 | 22 Comments

Ordinarily tech enthusiasts have to wait until after a product launch to tear a device open and take a look at its inner workings, but the folks at Sony are apparently so proud of their upcoming PlayStation 4 console that they've pre-empted the usual process with an inside-look of their own.

In a video published by Wired, Sony Engineering Director Yasuhiro Ootori dons the white gloves and pulls apart the new console piece by piece, and identifies and describes the function of each component.

Ootori-san reminds us that the 2.5" 500GB harddrive will be user-replaceable with a faster or larger capacity model, and that the power supply is built into the chassis, eshewing the need for a large external power brick.

Check it out below. The PlayStation 4 launches in Australia on November 29 2013, shortly after its November 15 North American debut.

playstation 4 sony playstation

Latest Comments

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Eorl
Posted 10:15am 08/11/13

Gotta admit, Sony has a some kind of packing god when it comes to their console designs. Wish it would come in different colours though, need a white or red one.

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ravn0s
Posted 01:12pm 08/11/13

very impressed with the engineering gone into this especially when compared to the xbone.

this console is already so thin, i'm not sure how they're going to do a slim model.

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paveway
Posted 01:32pm 08/11/13

lol xbone

looks like someone whipped down to umart and bought some parts and threw it together over a few beers

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ThunderBunny
Posted 02:09pm 08/11/13

the components on the M/B are spread out quite a bit. It could be half that size if they wanted it to be.

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dais
Posted 02:16pm 08/11/13

Way to tell all the modders exactly how to open it. Very impressive design though, I like how the PSU is inside it.

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ph33x
Posted 02:23pm 08/11/13

the components on the M/B are spread out quite a bit. It could be half that size if they wanted it to be.

Yeah, a mini ITX system is smaller and can be much faster.

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TDog
Posted 02:30pm 08/11/13

Love the typical japanese game battle music in the background.

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Mantorok
Posted 02:47pm 08/11/13

...I like how the PSU is inside it.

I'd prefer the external brick. It removes a source of heat, and you can just hide it behind your entertainment unit. Another bonus is if the power supply dies, you can just get a replacement shipped to you instead of having to send your entire console away to be repaired.

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Noah
Posted 03:15pm 08/11/13

Yeah, a mini ITX system is smaller and can be much faster.

This.

How would a decent mini ITX rig compare in price to the ps4?

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ph33x
Posted 03:33pm 08/11/13

This. How would a decent mini ITX rig compare in price to the ps4?

It would probably cost more. There's a few levels to fight the gaming tech war on.

Cost/Performance = PS4 wins.

Exclusives = Apparent PS4 win (even though I don't like any console exclusive besides Mario and Gran Turismo)

Performance/Performance = PC always wins.

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Mantorok
Posted 03:45pm 08/11/13

Consoles will always win on cost/performance as long as console manufacturers continue to sell the hardware at a loss.

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nings
Posted 04:41pm 08/11/13

Consoles will always win on cost/performance as long as console manufacturers continue to sell the hardware at a loss.

This, plus the use of inferior hardware to reduce that loss. Consoles also benefit from dev's having half a decade or more to milk the s*** out of the performance offered by that hardware.

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trillion
Posted 04:47pm 08/11/13

sure you can compare them to a mini-itx system, but you'd be missing the point of why proprietary console systems are engineered the way they are to begin with

and they seem to be

- to supposedly protect the IP and capital rights of the team or independent publishing to the platform through user account management and other server-side firmware/account integrity checks
- by integrating non-transferable media checksums into installation licensing and runtime checks
- to squeeze as much longevity and performance out of the graphically intensive hardware for the life of the hardware expectancy out in consumer land as possible

it seems to be the sole reason why game publishing is fragmented into various collective publishing platforms due to developer angst

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Tollaz0r!
Posted 05:01pm 08/11/13

Way to tell all the modders exactly how to open it. Very impressive design though, I like how the PSU is inside it.

Stopping moders from opening the box is a non-issue. It is what they do to the hardware/software that they care about. I'm eager to watch the hax0r wars for the two new systems too how long it takes to bust the system wide open, if at all.

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mongie
Posted 05:17pm 08/11/13

Consoles will always win on cost/performance as long as console manufacturers continue to sell the hardware at a loss.

This is true at the beginning of the console's life, but the hardware quickly becomes cheaper, and they begin to make money from the initial purchase...

Sony would be making a much smaller loss (if they're making a loss at all) this time around than they did last time - the PS3 was super expensive to make because it had a BDROM drive... now they're a dime a dozen, and the only really expensive part of the PS4 is the CPU/Memory.

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nings
Posted 05:57pm 08/11/13

CPU/GPU=Integrated graphics, oh noes.

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ctd
Posted 06:07pm 08/11/13

Nothing here excites me.
http://imgur.com/AMvCO38

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Eorl
Posted 06:16pm 08/11/13

The other big thing with consoles is that because of the closed off system it allows devs to focus on one set of technical specifications instead of a billion different ones. Of course PC hardware becomes superior after a few years, it will take roughly 2x the specs of the PS4 or Xbox One to actually compete just because of the ability to "code to the metal" and as Nings said devs have ages to milk all the performance they can get.

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dais
Posted 06:24pm 08/11/13

Yeah I have to agree ctd. The game lineup for Xbone appeals to me greatly whereas PS4 has nothing on the horizon. Even Metal Gear Solid is coming to both consoles.

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ravn0s
Posted 07:12pm 08/11/13

Nothing here excites me.

same. i'm hoping some of sony's first party developers will be announcing their games soon.

apparently there's going to be a huge game reveal event on launch day and there should be some announcements during the VGA's.

last edited by ravn0s at 19:12:52 08/Nov/13

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ctd
Posted 08:21pm 08/11/13

Yeah I have to agree ctd. The game lineup for Xbone appeals to me greatly whereas PS4 has nothing on the horizon. Even Metal Gear Solid is coming to both consoles.

Ummmm they are both s***e

The only reasons to buy a console are Naughty Dog and MGS exclusives imo

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Eorl
Posted 08:39pm 08/11/13

Ummmm they are both s***e

The only reasons to buy a console are Naughty Dog and MGS exclusives imo

I'm grabbing Knack and Killzone on launch. Knack actually looks like a lot of fun, very much like Bandicoot while Killzone looks to be a refreshing FPS change. I'm really hoping I can plug a mouse/keyboard in though...

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