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Sony’s PS5 Pro Is Proving an Unexpected Point About Blu-rays

Since the PS5 Pro’s reveal, Sony’s disc drive add-on has sold out pretty much everywhere.

Sony PS5 Pro attachementSony

By Tucker Bowe

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Even in this digital age, the appeal of physical media isn’t going anywhere. We’re reminded of this fact over and over again, from the continued renaissance of vinyl (and, more recently, CDs and even cassette tapes) to photographers’ enduring passion for film.

The latest example, admittedly, comes from an unexpected source: the newest PlayStation console.

This week, Sony announced the PlayStation 5 Pro, a mid-generation console that builds off Sony’s current PS5. It’s considerably more powerful and forty percent more expensive, coming in at a whopping $700.

But it’s missing one thing, a built-in disc drive, prompting prospective buyers to purchase Sony’s detachable disc drive accessory, the PS5 Disc Drive, in droves.

Hot commodity

As spotted by IGN and What Hi-Fi? after the PS5 Pro announcement, the PS5 Disc Drive was quickly being shown as “sold out” on most major retailer sites, including Amazon, Best Buy, Target and Best Buy.

The PS5 Disc Drive was initially designed for the digital versions of the PS5 and PS5 Slim, in the off-chance that owners had post-purchasing regret and wanted the ability to play physical games as well as play DVD and Blu-rays.

Now that upcoming PS5 Pro doesn’t have a built-in disc drive — unlike previous consoles, there’s only all-digital models of the console — the detachable disc drive just became significantly more enticing for everyone else, too.

Not just for games

Obviously, Sony’s upcoming high-end console will appeal to the most serious gamers. It plays the same games as current PS5 consoles but thanks to a more powerful GPU, the games will look better and run smoother.

However, serious gamers like to have a library of physical games for both PS5 and PS4 as they don’t want to take up all their consoles’ storage. Remember, games these days are huge.

The ability to play Blu-rays (and DVDs) is a huge draw, too. Blu-rays deliver a better-looking 4K experience (thanks to significantly higher bitrates) compared to watching the same content from a streaming service. They often sound better, too.

So, if you’re a serious gaming and/or a home theater enthusiast — the two are often cut from the same cloth — you’re going to want Sony’s upcoming console and its disc-playing attachment.

And the limited availability of the PS5 Disc Drive seemingly proves that.

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