Sony's PS5 Digital Edition has a smaller, lighter heatsink

Photo by Ben Iwara on Unsplash

Sony recently released a lighter version of its PlayStation 5 Digital Edition (the disc-less model). And YouTube creator Austin Evans showed a teardown of why it was this way. This console has a smaller, potentially lower-cost heatsink that shaves off 0.66lbs off the machine. As Engadget pointed out, that could raise the overall temperature overall. It might not be a problem, except if you upgrade your SSD and add other improvements into its crowded media cabinet. 

Other changes made include an easier-to-use stand screw and tweaked connections to the Wi-Fi chip. Sony hasn't explained why it made these changes. But Evans speculates it could be a cost-cutting measure that reflects what Sony has learned since the PS5's debut. In the first-quarter earnings briefing, Sony has told its investors that it'll stop selling the disc-based PS5 at a loss, and this new design can make the Digital Edition profitable much sooner.