Sony unveils faster, more powerful PlayStation 5 Pro. And it comes with a price tag to match

Pre-orders for Sony's PlayStation 5 Pro will begin on September 26. (PlayStation via CNN Newsource)

After years of speculation and hype, Sony will be launching an upgraded version of its popular PlayStation 5 at the console’s highest ever price.

The PS5 Pro will go on sale on November 7 at US$700, about 40 per cent more expensive than the PS 5 when it launched in 2020, Sony said on Tuesday. Pre-orders will begin on September 26.

The newest console will have much more powerful computing power, allowing up to 45 per cent faster rendering for game play, Mark Cerny, lead architect for PS5 Pro revealed in a video presentation. “Simply put, it’s the most powerful console we’ve ever built,” he said.

Sony has added custom hardware for machine learning and an AI Library that provides super sharp image clarity, he said. The console will not come with a disc drive, which is  sold separately.

In a blog post, Sony wrote the new console will improve the performance of older titles, saying “several games will be patched with free software updates for gamers to take advantage of PS5 Pro’s features.”

The current PS5 has sold more than 56 million units since its release, according to Sony, which said it expected to sell 18 million PS5 consoles this financial year. That’s slightly less than the 20.8 million devices it sold in the same period a year earlier, Reuters reported.

Sales of the PS5 have lagged behind its predecessor, the PS4, of which more than 114 million units had been sold since its launch in 2013. The PS4 had dominated the gaming world and far outpaced its rival Xbox One developed by Microsoft Gaming.