A redesigned PS5 model was spotted out in the wild for the first time last week. A teardown of the console's tweaked design has not only revealed it's slightly lighter, but that the new series of consoles actually use slightly less power to run.
YouTuber Austin Evans is the person responsible for confirming what exactly is different, and potentially better, about the new PS5 (via The Verge). Evans forked out for a 1200 series PS5 from Australia, the only place the latest model appears to be available at the moment, and took the console apart to see what has changed inside. Don't worry, Evans knows what he's doing having previously broken down the OG and then 1100 series PS5s.
The biggest takeaway from the video is that the 1200 model is lighter. Quite a bit lighter, actually. While the launch console weighed 8.4 pounds, the latest model weighs just 7.3 pounds. So, where exactly has that missing pound gone? Well, after busting open the new PS5, Evans discovered the motherboard is smaller, as is the heatsink. The second time the console's cooling system has been altered.
The altered cooling system and overall downsizing doesn't appear to have altered the exterior of the PS5. Nor does it now mean your current-gen console will sound like a jet taking off whenever you ask it to do something remotely strenuous, as was often the case with the PS4. All while using 20 to 30 watts less to run the console while gaming. A lot of the components inside the console have also been moved around, making the CMOS battery almost inaccessible. That might be a problem down the line if the recent clock battery controversy is anything to go by.
Aside from what is a pretty massive console now not weighing quite as much, the reduction in size for key components means it will cost less to create and assemble. That doesn't mean a reduction in price for the customer, though. Quite the opposite as last month PlayStation revealed it would be upping the price of PS5s effective immediately in a number of regions.