It could allow Sony’s next-generation console to better support more complex game worlds and higher-resolution textures.
The PlayStation 5 offers 16GB of unified memory, while the Pro model has higher bandwidth
Sony said in 2024 that the PS5 had reached the latter stage of its life cycle. The ninth-generation console will be six years old later this year and early development of its purported successor, ubiquitously known as the PlayStation 6 (PS6), is said to have already commenced. According to a recent leak, Sony's next-generation gaming console could feature a notable increase in system memory. The PS6 may ship with up to 30GB of unified memory, marking a substantial jump over both the PS5 and the higher-end PS5 Pro.
The recent speculation stems from leaker KeplerL2's post on a community forum, which suggests that Sony is exploring memory configurations beyond the current memory used in the PS5 and PS5 Pro models. While both gaming consoles are equipped with 16GB of unified memory, the PS5 Pro offers a higher bandwidth, along with more RAM allocation for developers.
The PS6, on the other hand, could offer up to 30GB of unified memory, per the leak. It is expected to feature 3GB GDDR7 memory modules arranged in a clamshell configuration, paired with ten 16-bit memory channels. The leak hints towards Sony arriving at a total 30GB memory capacity without leveraging larger individual memory chips.
According to the same claim, this setup would result in a 160-bit memory bus, combined with 32Gbps memory chips, delivering around 640GB/s of memory bandwidth. For context, the PS5 offers 448 GB/s of memory bandwidth, while the PS5 Pro goes up to 576 GB/s.
In theory, the expanded unified memory would allow Sony's next-generation gaming console to better support more complex game worlds, higher-resolution textures, and advanced AI-driven features, in line with the scaling game engines. Meanwhile, the higher memory bandwidth would enable the PS6 to stream textures, geometry and other world data quicker, potentially eliminating stuttering.
A Digital Trends report further adds that the rumoured configuration may involve a non-standard memory split, potentially reserving a portion of the total memory for system operations while allocating the rest dynamically for games.
Sony has not officially announced the PlayStation 6 or shared any details about its specifications or release timeline. It was recently reported that the next-generation gaming console could be delayed beyond 2028 as Sony aims for a longer life cycle for the PS5, potentially lasting at least eight years before the next generation of PlayStation consoles hit the market.
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