The PlayStation 4 is a great system that is wonderfully HD capable easily supporting 1080p and 720p as well as 4k video playback. Most of its games run in native 1080p and unlike another competitor, most developers have said that the game system has enough power under the hood to reach 1080p pretty solidly.

Things however are rapidly changing as they generally never stay constant in the tech world. 1080p is rapidly being pushed aside for the newer and gorgeous looking 4k resolution. So while the PS4 has limited 4k support, it does not have the power to support 4k resolution in its games. This is really becoming evident when you take a look at PC gaming which is rapidly leaving the consoles in the dust in terms of graphical power.

I remember when GTA 5 first came out to the PS3 in 720p and thought that it looked really good, but then Rockstar released the game onto the PS4 in full 1080p and I was taken a back at how much better it looked on that system. Rockstar then decided to release the game on PC and it supported 4k resolution. Just when I thought the game couldn’t look any better than what it already did on the PS4, I had seen screenshots and videos of the game in stunning 4k and was shocked at how better it looked still even when compared to 1080p.

More and more games being released on the PC are able to support 4k resolutions especially since we have newer and much more powerful graphics cards released for computers. When compared to consoles, you’ll see why PC gaming has made such a resurgence. Open world games look even more impressive on computers than what you see on the consoles.

I love playing The Crew on the PS4, but once you see it running on a powerful desktop computer, your jaw will drop at how much better it looks. Even with how much better it looks on a PC, I still don’t really have the money right now to plunk down a dedicated gaming PC or something close to it.

Now with all that in mind, Sony and Microsoft have a dilemma. It is hard to believe, but their systems are around the 3 year mark and 4k is just gaining steam as time moves on. More and more 4K televisions are being sold and the prices on those televisions are no longer as high as they used to be so now they are more affordable.

You also now have 4k content being available such as on Netflix and YouTube. There are now 4k Blu-ray players out there and movies for them that are not much higher in cost than regular Blu-ray movies. As you can see, 4k has picked up some major steam and now that PC gaming is fully aboard the 4k train, where does that leave the consoles?

Well there are now some big rumors popping up out there suggesting that Sony could release a PlayStation 4.5 so to speak. It would have more graphical power under the hood and easily be capable of 4k gaming resolution. While this would be nice to have, that is also setting a dangerous precedent because then you would start to alienate those that already bought a PS4 and the game developers too as they would have to learn a new system and the developer kits for it. Let’s not forget how much something like this could cost.

I think the console makers should’ve done a better job of seeing what’s down the road tech wise so that they wouldn’t be in the predicament they’re in now. Granted a graphics card capable of 4k back a few years ago could’ve probably raised the costs of the system, but in the long run it would’ve been worth it as it could’ve done decently with staying around the level of PCs today, but then again with how rapidly technology advances, you just never know.

 

If you want to read more about it, here is a good article from ExtremeTech. They do make mention that such a concept is not necessarily a bad thing and is something that Sony should be looking at which I don’t necessarily disagree with. My concern is how they would execute it if they were to bring it to retail. I think a good way to do that is if you currently own a PS4 and would like the new upgraded one, you would have a limited time to upgrade to the newer system for free.

I would say give a 3 month window where you can upgrade to the new system for free. Ninety days is plenty of time to trade in for the new system and then after that if you don’t do it within that time frame, you can trade it in towards the purchase of the upgraded system, but it will no longer be free. That way you don’t alienate those that got the system before and as a thank you for buying the  original game system, they have a chance to get the new one for free.

If Sony did something like that, you better believe I would be on board with a PlayStation 4.5 that would sport 4k resolution for its games. You would already have to have a 4k capable television, but as I said earlier, they have come down quite a bit in price and are affordable these days. I also think they are starting to phase out a little bit the 1080p LED televisions so they can focus more on 4k.

I probably won’t get a 4k television for another year or two as I am satisfied with 1080p right now. I will certainly have updates here if Sony or even Microsoft do actually decided to release updated game systems. What do you all think about the possibility of a PlayStation 4.5? If executed similar to what I mentioned above, would you end up getting one? Would they have to have a good amount of games for it first before you get the upgraded system? Definitely share your thoughts on this possibility.