The PS5 is now more expensive in most countries.
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There’s some bad news if you haven’t been able to get your hands on the PlayStation 5 in the 21 months since its launch. Sony has announced a price increase for the PS5 in many countries. He blamed global economic pressures, including high inflation rates and “adverse monetary trends”.
The price changes are effective immediately in most key markets. They apply to the UK, Canada, Europe, Japan, China, Australia and Mexico. There is currently no price increase in the United States.
A PlayStation blog post doesn’t mention specific changes anywhere else. However, it notes that some markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America (LATAM) may also see price increases.
People in the UK will now have to pay around 6% more for a PlayStation 5. In Europe, the price increase is around 10%. Meanwhile, in Japan (where the increase will be effective from September 15), the price of the PS5 is increasing by 21 percent. The price increase is more modest in Canada, where both versions of the console are $20 (about 3%) more expensive.
Here’s the list of new prices, according to the PlayStation Blog:
europe
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive: €549.99
- PS5 digital edition – €449.99
UK
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive: £479.99
- PS5 Digital Edition: £389.99
Japan
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive: ¥60,478 (tax included)
- PS5 Digital Edition: ¥49,478 (tax included)
china
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray disc drive: 4,299 yuan
- PS5 Digital Edition: ¥3,499
Australia
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive: $799.95
- PS5 Digital Edition: AUD$649.95
Mexico
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive: $14,999 MXN
- PS5 Digital Edition: $12,499 MXN
canada
- PS5 with Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive: CAD$649.99
- PS5 Digital Edition: CAD$519.99
“Although this price increase is a necessity given the current global economic environment and its impact [Sony Interactive Entertainment’s] company, our top priority remains improving the PS5 supply situation so that as many players as possible can experience everything PS5 has to offer and what’s yet to come,” wrote Jim Ryan, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment.
At this point, expect to see price cuts for the PS5, nearly two years into the console’s life cycle. But the increases are, unfortunately, understandable. The global economy has been an absolute disaster over the past few months. Many companies are feeling the sting of this and the current component supply chain crisis that has had a grip on manufacturing over the past two years.
It seems unlikely that the price increase will translate into reduced sales for Sony. The PlayStation 5 is still in high demand due to limited supply, and new retail prices are still lower than what you’d pay scalpers, for the most part.
The move follows Meta raising the price of the Meta Quest 2 VR headset by $100 last month. Meanwhile, Sony plans to release PlayStation VR 2 and a premium DualSense controller in the coming months. He hasn’t announced pricing for either yet, but you probably shouldn’t expect them to be cheap.
Microsoft and Nintendo have yet to give any indication that they plan to raise the prices of the Xbox or Switch. Still, the idea of cloud gaming might be starting to sound pretty appealing to some people right now.