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Digital Foundry: PS4K / Neo spec leak is genuine, dev kits on their way to devs

chadskin

Member
Sony is now openly sharing this specification with developers and while Giant Bomb beat us to the punch, we have access to the same documentation. There is no doubt - this is real. This is the new, more powerful PlayStation 4.

The release window is unclear, but the schedule for hardware roll-out to developers is black and white: development kits prototype are on their way to studios now. A test kit (debug station, if you like) housed within a non-final chassis - which Sony is asking developers not to show - follows shortly. A second-gen test kit, again not based on the actual retail shell, goes out in June. Sony gives more intensive Neo briefings at its DevCon event in in May, while code submission for Neo-compatible titles begins in August.

Well, according to Sony's own documents, there is a focus on delivering 4K gaming content, though upscaling to UHD resolution is likely. Owners of 1080p screens can expect benefits too, explicitly stated as:

Higher frame-rates
More stable frame-rates
Improved graphics fidelity
Additional graphics features

There's also no indication at all that any of the functionality found in PlayStation VR's external processing box will make its way into the Neo hardware, nor is there any mention at all that Neo will benefit PSVR, though we would expect that the same base/Neo spec differentiation will apply to those titles just as they would to any PS4 game.

On top of that, while the documentation says that the hard drive will remain the same (Sony has several in circulation, so we assume it means 2.5-inch laptop drives generally) there are no indications of any changes to the Blu-ray drive. This is surprising, as we would have assumed that Sony would take this opportunity to support the new UHD 4K movie standard, supporting standard 50GB discs along with 66GB and 100GB variants. For now it seems that developers are set to stick with 50GB of storage.

Developers have the ability to add Neo support to their existing PlayStation 4 titles coming out in September via a day one patch, while dual base/Neo supported titles are expected to arrive from October onwards. Sony isn't telling developers when the unit will actually launch and states that it's perfectly OK with Neo-compatible titles shipping before the actual hardware. Either the platform holder is playing its cards close to its chest or else the firm itself simply isn't clear when it plans to launch the kit.

Much more: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-sonys-plan-for-playstation-4k-neo-revealed

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zsynqx

Member
When I last reported on this new hardware, I wasn't quite sure why Sony was making it, bearing in mind its current domination of the console sector. Even with access to a treasure trove of Neo information, I'm still not sure.

Pretty much
 

RoKKeR

Member
God damn, the floodgates are truly open now.

Question is, will Sony sit on this all the way up to E3? Or will we see something announced beforehand?
 

Javin98

Banned
I still can't decide if I should be excited for this. 60FPS or significantly improved visual fidelity over the regular PS4 versions will probably make me jump on board, but if it's just higher resolution for better 4K upscaling and more stable frame rates, I don't think I'm interested. Either way, I hope Sony offers a good trade in deal.
 

Ricky_R

Member
I was hoping this wasn't true since it will be difficult for me to play on the PS4 knowing there's a better performing PS console available which will (supposedly) run PS4 games better.

Sorry denial, but there's no room for you here anymore.
 

thuway

Member
Bearing in mind the technological and financial limitations inherent in designing a new console in partnership with AMD, it's pretty much the best we could have hoped for.

There you have it. It's a damn fine upgrade.
 

Zabka

Member
So that weak CPU is confirmed now? LOL, you should have invested in a better CPU Sony.

Their main concern seems to be improving image quality/resolution so keeping the CPU the same and beefing up the GPU is the cheapest way of doing it.

Not surprised 4K Blu-ray isn't mentioned in the dev kit. Even if it's in there it won't be used by games.
 

The Lamp

Member
From what I understand, there will not be two SKUs of PS4 games, there will be one PS4 game you buy and it will inherently include a standard and Neo mode?

That's perfectly fine IMO.
 

nib95

Banned
Fudge sake. More money to spend on gaming and more money I inadvertently have to spend on my wife to make up for it. Wish they'd just wait another two years and do a proper jump to the PS5....
 

Asd202

Member
From what I understand, there will not be two SKUs of PS4 games, there will be one PS4 game you buy and it will inherently include a standard and Neo mode?

That's perfectly fine IMO.

Yeah.

Fudge sake. More money to spend on gaming and more money I inadvertently have to spend on my wife to make up for it. Wish they'd just wait another two years and do a proper jump to the PS5....

They may very well release PS5 two years later...
 

RowdyReverb

Member
Very curious to see how the impacts sales of the PS4 now that this is becoming a more legitimate rumor.
They'd have to discount the PS4 by at least $100, which would probably be great for PS4 sales. We could see some very economical OG XB1/PS4 units on shelves this holiday. I'm curious how the NX will be priced to compete
 

Any and every multiplat game and multiple dev presentations at GDC and siggraph? Jaguar is slow and devs know it.

LODs and shadow settings in multiplatform games show this quite well.

Like the DF article states, I am not sure what this device accomplishes. Not enough for 4K perfect scale, not enough for a perfect scale to 60fps (CPU).
 

Javin98

Banned
Fudge sake. More money to spend on gaming and more money I inadvertently have to spend on my wife to make up for it. Wish they'd just wait another two years and do a proper jump to the PS5....
Trust me, I'm not a big fan of this myself. Being a teenager, it's often hard to convince your parents to buy you something new. Which is why I hope there is a nice trade in deal.
 

gamz

Member
This

That being said, I'm a bit sad that Sony didn't opt for a better CPU (instead of just overclocking their pre-existing one), but oh well.

I think they'll keep the PS4 at the current price and the new one at a higher price. Pretty much the Apple model. I don't think they have to drop the price of the PS4 yet.
 

NBtoaster

Member
Sony has opened up more memory for Neo titles too. Quite why this extra RAM can't be given to games running in Base mode isn't revealed but Sony states that Neo titles will have access to 5.5GB of memory, with 512MB "only available" for Neo mode.

So current PS4 games have been using just 5GB all along.
 
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