With better ray tracing and 60fps in select games, the PS5 Pro will likely come late this year

The console is codenamed 'Trinity', and the upgraded model is expected to feature several improvements, mainly aimed at enhancing the ray tracing capabilities and overall performance of the console.

Recent leaks highlighted the specifications of the PS5 Pro, with… the edge For a complete list of console features. Those familiar with Sony's plans revealed that developers have already taken it upon themselves to ensure compatibility of their games with the upcoming console, with a major focus on improving the quality of ray tracing.

Internally, the PS5 Pro will have a more powerful GPU and a slightly faster CPU. These upgrades are expected to significantly improve the console's ability to display games with ray tracing enabled from the start, while also enabling higher resolutions and frame rates in select titles. Sony is actively encouraging developers to take full advantage of the graphics capabilities that the PS5 Pro will provide, even offering a “Trinity Enhanced” (PS5 Pro Enhanced) label for games that offer substantial improvements.

According to documents describing the upcoming console, Sony expects GPU performance on the PS5 Pro to be approximately 45% faster than the regular PlayStation 5. The PS5 Pro's GPU will be larger and use faster system memory to enhance ray tracing in games. Additionally, Sony is implementing a more advanced ray tracing architecture in the PS5 Pro, promising up to three times better performance compared to the regular PS5.

Sony has made it clear that the PS5 Pro is a high-end version of the PlayStation 5 and that the company will continue to sell the regular PS5 model alongside the new console. Game developers are expected to create a single package that supports both the PS5 and PS5 Pro console, with existing games able to receive the appropriate patch to improve performance.

PS5 Pro test kits are currently available for developers to order, and Sony expects every game submitted for certification in August to be compatible with the new console. Indoor games stated Full specifications for the PS5 Pro have been revealed in the last few days, indicating that the console is expected to be released during the holiday season at the end of the year, which usually means mid-November.

While the PS5 Pro's GPU is getting a big upgrade, the CPU will remain the same as the regular PS5, but with a new feature that allows for higher overclocking. Sony gives developers the option to choose between “Standard Mode” at 3.5GHz or “High CPU Frequency Mode” at 3.85GHz, which is roughly 10% faster than a regular PS5.

The PS5 Pro will also offer system memory changes to developers. The PS5's standard memory runs at 448GB/s, but Sony increases it by 28% to 576GB/s in the PS5 Pro. With the memory system being more efficient in the PS5 Pro, the increase in bandwidth could exceed 28%, according to the Japanese company.

Developers will have access to an additional 1.2GB of system memory on the PS5 Pro, increasing the total memory available for games to 13.7GB, compared to the 12.5GB available on the base PS5. This increase in speed and memory allocation could be useful in supporting Sony's new PlayStation Spectral Supersolution (PSSR) technology, which is essentially Sony's answer to Nvidia's DLSS or AMD's FSR for improving frame rates and image quality on PlayStation. The Verge also reports that Sony is asking developers to build a new PS5 Pro exclusive graphics mode into their games, which will combine PSSR, with 60fps and ray tracing enabled from the get-go.

Sony has also developed a custom machine learning architecture on the PS5 Pro, capable of supporting 300TOPS of 8-bit calculations. The new build supports Sony's PSSR upscaling solution, which is designed to replace the in-game temporary anti-aliasing or upsampling application. With inputs similar to DLSS or FSR and full HDR support, PSSR requires about 250MB of memory according to the same information.

Based on the above, it seems that Sony is adopting a similar strategy to the one it did with the PS4, launching a PS5 “Slim” model, followed by a Pro version. The PS5 Pro launch is expected to be accompanied by an “enhanced” library of existing games, while new first-party titles will arrive over time, showcasing improved ray tracing support for the new console.