Sony Reportedly Working on Nintendo-Switch Style Hybrid PS6 Handheld With AMD APU

Sony is reportedly planning to release a Nintendo Switch-style hybrid gaming handheld alongside its next-generation console, the PlayStation 6. A new leak has shed light on the purported PS6 handheld, along with details on the chipset powering the device, performance indicators, and likely price. Sony, which currently offers a remote player for the PS5, has previously been reported to be working on a handheld device that can run PlayStation games natively.

PS6 Handheld to Run on AMD APU

The leak comes from Moore's Law is Dead, a YouTube channel noted for accurate scoops on gaming hardware. According to the leak, Sony is planning to launch a PS6 handheld along with the traditional PS6 home console. The PS6 handheld will be powered by an AMD APU, as per “up to date” documentations obtained from a source at AMD, the channel claimed.

According to the leak, the PS6 handheld will be dockable with a TV, just like the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2. The device will reportedly support backwards compatibility with PS5 and PS4 games.

Sony currently offers the PlayStation Portal remote player for PS5
Photo Credit: Sony

PS6 Handheld Expected Specifications

The purported PS6 handheld is said to run on AMD “Canis” APU, which comes with four Zen 6c cores, and two additional Zen 6 LP cores dedicated for the operating system to keep non-gaming tasks away from the main gaming cores, as per leaked documents. The four Zen 6c cores will reportedly power 16 compute units of RDNA 5 graphics, clocked at 1.2Ghz in handheld mode and around 1.65Ghz in docked mode.

The PS6 handheld is also said to come with 192-bit memory bus with support for up to 48GB of LPDDR5X RAM. The channel also showed a leaked render of the AMD APU that will reportedly power the handheld. The handheld will also reportedly come with a MicroSD slot, an M.2 SSD slot, haptics, touchscreen, and dual microphones.

Citing the leaked documents, the channel also claimed some performance indicators for the PS6 hybrid handheld. In docked mode, the device will reportedly exceed the performance of a base PS5 when FSR 4 support is factored in. This, however, would only apply to games specifically optimised for the handheld; the performance output could be “slightly lower” in non-patched games.

The PlayStation Portable (PSP) was the first handheld release in the PlayStation line of consoles
Photo Credit: Sony

PS6 Handheld Expected Pricing, Launch Window

The channel also tipped the likely price of the PS6 handheld based on cost estimate of parts. The device could “easily price match the Switch 2 if Sony wants to,” Moore's Law is Dead claimed in the video. The Nintendo Switch 2 is priced at $449.99 in the US. The PS6 handheld could be priced between $399 to $499 (roughly between Rs. 35,000 to Rs. 44,000)

Finally, the PlayStation hybrid handheld is tipped to launch in Fall 2027, with manufacturing planned for mid 2027. The release window falls in line with previous reports that have claimed that the PS6 home console could launch in 2027, considering its chip design was reportedly ready. Bear in mind, Sony has not confirmed its plans for a gaming handheld or discussed plans for its next-generation console. Details around expected specifications, price, real-world performance, along with plans to bring the device to market, could change.

A new Sony handheld has been a bit of an open industry secret over the past year, even though the company has not discussed its plans for a future device. In November 2024, Bloomberg reported that Sony was in the early stages of developing a handheld console to compete with the Nintendo Switch. The device, the report said at the time, could run PS5 games on the go natively. Around the same time, Digital Foundry, too, claimed that Sony possibly already had a prototype of the handheld ready.

Sony currently offers the PlayStation Portal, a PS5 remote player that can only stream games and media from a connected PS5 console over Wi-Fi connection. This requires the device to be paired with a PS5, which must stay in rest mode to enable remote play on the Portal.