PlayStation 5 officially released in November of 2020, but many fans are still waiting to get their hands on the console. Even a year after its launch, it is still not possible to find a PS5 in stores. This past November, Sony reduced PS5 supply targets from 16 million units to around 14.8 million for the fiscal year.
Electronic industries all around the world are facing an unprecedented semiconductor shortage and as a result, Sony has not been able to keep up with the high demand for the PS5. The fact that many people are working from their homes has perhaps led to an increased demand. While the PS4 was supply constrained for the first few months, it was not that difficult to find after a year or so. Now, a new report suggests that Sony has decided to make more PS4s in order to satisfy customer needs.
According to Bloomberg, who have an excellent track record, Sony told its assembly partners that it will continue to manufacture PS4 consoles due to PS5 supply issues. Bloomberg states that Sony had previously planned on discontinuing the PS4 at the end of 2021, but decided to delay this decision in order to ease the pressure on PS5’s production process. It also mentions that the PS4 uses less advanced chips and is relatively simpler to make.
PS5’s demand has continued to remain high throughout the console's first year. Every time a PS5 is in stock, it is sold out almost immediately. While some customers are decideding to spend more than the maximum retail price and buying it from scalpers, others are waiting for retailers to notify them whenever the console is available.
PS4 is one of the best-selling consoles of all time, and will likely remain in demand until PS5 is more easily available. While Sony naturally wants customers to upgrade to a PS5 as soon as possible, it is just not possible to do so in the current scenario.
PS5 is not the only next-generation console that is supply constrained, as Xbox Series X is also facing similar issues for the same reasons. Despite that, Phil Spencer stated in an interview that Xbox Series X/S is the fastest selling Xbox console of all time. While Series S is more readily available on store shelves, Series X is almost always sold out. It doesn’t seem likely that supply will be able to meet demand in 2022, so it is a great idea for Sony to continue to manufacture PS4s.
Source: Bloomberg
