While we still don’t have a price or even a concrete release date, Sony has doubled their output of PlayStation 5 consoles for 2020. According to Bloomberg (who have been following the inside track on PS5 for a while), Sony knows the console is in incredibly high demand.
Sony is aiming to manufacture and ship about 10 million PS5 consoles by the end of 2020. This is a super tall order as they had originally only planned for 5 – 6 million, with a pandemic also going on in the background. Sony began manufacturing PS5 units in June and is expected to have 5 million ready by September. The remaining 5 million+ are expected to be fulfilled by December.
Interestingly enough, the COVID-19 pandemic sparked this increase in output. With a second wave expected in the fall and an uptick seen in gaming habits, Sony saw this as an opportunity to capitalize on sales. The only problem is getting the units to retailers and consumers. Companies like Nintendo have had major issues refilling stock on products like Nintendo Switch due to the ocean lines from China to America and Europe.
While that first 5 million will likely ship in time, the other half will likely hit shelves in 2021 as these shipments take months to arrive. Bloomberg suggests that Sony could use air cargo to get units on shelves faster but given the state of the world, airlines are operating differently and will still pose challenges.
The PlayStation 5 is slated for release this holiday season. Sony did a big blowout last month which showcased the console and games like Spider-Man: Miles Morales, a sequel to Horizon: Zero Dawn, and Hitman 3.
