Now, we have an idea of what has changed in the new PS5, courtesy of Austin Evans. The popular YouTuber did a complete teardown video to show us what has changed from the previous models of the PS5.
— Austin Evans (@austinnotduncan) September 7, 2022 Evans mentions in his tweet and video that Sony opted for a complete internal redesign for the new CFI-1200 series model that is available in Australia. The resulting weight savings are equivalent to 500Grams or 1.1lbs from the original CFI-1000 series. It is interesting to see the changes Sony made to the PS5 just as they increased the price of the console.
The internal redesign
This isn’t the first time that Evans has done a comparison video. Last year, Evans noted in a teardown video that the CFI-1100 may suffer from inferior thermal performance because of the smaller heatsink. Digital Foundry ultimately proves this statement wrong and found that the thermal difference was negligible. In the new teardown video, Evans reports that the CFI-1200 is an improvement with all the changes that have been done to it. The CFI-1200 model has a smaller motherboard and heatsink than the previous models. The motherboard has been shortened by at least two inches in length. The heatsink on the new PS5 is again smaller but has been redesigned to accommodate a new heat pipe. The SSD slot on the CFI-1200 also has a better “shield” or heat sink than previous models. Overall, the motherboard for CFI-1200 is lighter than the reported 200gram difference from the CFI-1100. Sony also added plastic supports to the CFI-1200 which made up for some of the weight savings that it gained from the redesigned internal components. The interesting part is the total power draw of the CFI-1200 compared to the previous two models. The new PS5 draws only 200 watts while the CFI-1100 is at 228 watts and CFI-1000 at 218 watts. Having a console that runs with 10% less power usage is good news, especially with the rising power rates. The CFI-1200 will also have better thermal performance because it consumes less energy. Evans reports that the only downside to the redesign is that Sony has moved the CMOS battery to a peculiar spot. This will make changing the battery a chore, but that isn’t likely to be required until many, many years after purchase. As to the issue that Sony has shrunk down components to save on manufacturing costs, the teardown video is inconclusive. A smaller motherboard or heatsink does not automatically equate to less production costs. And from what we have seen, all of the changes that were made make the overall design better (well, except for the CMOS battery). So how does this translate to the overall gameplay experience? Probably not that much as it is not a PRO model that was leaked a few months back. Ultimately, the CFI-1200 model is better than what’s available on local storeshelves. Keep in mind, beggars can’t be choosers. If you’re wanting a PS5 and there’s one available to purchase right now, you might as well get it.
