PlayStation 6 could ditch the built-in disc drive

The next generation of PlayStation consoles might not appeal to people who enjoy building physical game collections.

A hardware leaker known as KeplerL2 posted in the NeoGAF forums this week (via WCCF Tech), claiming that the still-unconfirmed PlayStation 6 will not have a disc drive built in.

In a reply to another user's inquiry, KeplerL2 also said the base PS6 would come with just 1TB of storage space on its internal SSD. For reference, that's exactly the same as most PS5 models. Typically, specs like that only get better over time, but it seems like Sony might make a lateral move at best for storage capacity this time around.

That's almost certainly because of the AI-driven global RAM shortage, which was recently rumored to potentially cause the PS6 to miss its intended late 2027 launch date. All things being equal, Sony might be inclined to put a 2TB drive in each base PS5, but that might not be feasible right now.

As for the lack of a disc drive, that's going to ruffle feathers for a multitude of reasons.

Yes, the PS5 has had a no-disc-drive variant since its launch in 2020, but Sony also sells a standalone attachable disc drive unit in case users want one. Obviously, Sony could do the same with the PS6, but we don't know that yet. And while a large majority of video game sales happen in digital marketplaces as opposed to physical retail stores, plenty of people still like to own their games, whether it's out of concern for digital storefronts eventually shutting down, or just to build a nice collection of physical media. And, of course, sometimes you get good discounts on used games.

Needless to say, if this is true, it will be controversial.

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