PlayStation 5 Teardown Video Explains Why It's Such A Hefty Lad
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Featured Image Credit: Sony
Sony's shiny and official PlayStation 5 teardown video has shown the masses why the console is so weighty: it's all to do with the impressive cooling system inside the machine.
At long last, the video has shone some light on the PlayStation 5, which has been shrouded in shadow even after its reveal in summer. We got a collection of unofficial photos of the deconstructed DualSense, and some rather interesting closeups of the controller. There's even a mysterious nut hidden away into the side of the console's upper right casing, which, upon its discovery, sent fans into a frenzy. Now, it seems Sony has soothed the people's fervour with a teardown video, talked through by vice president of the mechanical design department, Yasuhiro Ootori.
We know the PlayStation 5 may either stand vertically or lie horizontally while in use. Ootori unscrews the circular black stand on the base of the console, and then shows that the screws can be stored in the base for safekeeping while a small cap covers the screw hole on the console. For the horizontal position, the stand is rotated, and then clips onto one of the panels, so it is in line with an engraved series of symbols. I'll admit, that's a nifty system, and there's no need for worrying about where the separate screw has wandered off to.
The white panels will be removable by the user if they "lift the back corner and slide it off." Exposing the inner section of the console, Ootori explains that here the user can see the outside of the system's cooling fan. The cooling fan is perhaps the most significant aspect of the PlayStation 5, and is the reason why it's such a chonker. It draws in air from both sides of the system through two long side vents on the front and a rear exhaust vent that runs the entire length of the system.
"It uses a heat pipe, however the shape and airflow made it possible to achieve the same performance as a vapor chamber," says Ootori. Moreover, the inner shell also has two "dust catcher" holes which are easily accessible and even able to be vacuumed out. That's an amazingly handy feature which will make a world of difference to PlayStation players. With the PlayStation 4, users would have to crack open the console and clean the accumulated dust with canned air to get the system running smoothly once again.
Sony advises that you leave Ootori or another hardware specialist to take the console to bits, for fear of "exposure to laser radiation, electric shock, or other injury." No need to say it twice. The PlayStation 5 will launch on November 12 or November 19, depending on where you call home, and Sony reckons that the new kid on the block will beat the PlayStation 4's launch sales.
Topics: PlayStation 5
