The PS4 Pro will definitely be unable to run games in native 4K resolution most of the time- it’s simply not powerful enough to do so for modern high-end AAA games. Microsoft’s Scorpio, meanwhile, professes to deliver true 4K gaming, when it launches next year.
So did Sony make a mistake here? Did they rush out the system to deliver a half hearted half step solution that will be obsolete within the year? Should they have waited an additional year and taken the time to deliver a true 4K system? This was the question we decided to ask Michael Pachter, well known analyst, when we had the chance to talk to him. According to him, the PS4 Pro’s lack of native 4K won’t matter much in the long run.
“4K penetration isn’t that great. An in the US, it’s probably about 5% of households,” he said. “And 4KTVs are still a bit too expensive. I literally just bought a TV, our second room television, and I had a choice between a 55inch Samsung curved 1080p TV for $700, and the same TV in UHD for $1100. And I thought about it, and I realized, it’s not worth an additional $400. There’s no programming for 4K. There’s no broadcast television. I can watch Netflix in 4K, and play games when I get my Scorpio in a year, but do I want a TV for that now? And the answer is, no, I don’t. I can afford it, and I didn’t do it. So I think it’s foolish to chase this small slice of the market. I do know that these tech enthusiasts who are into super high tech, and early adopters, are all drooling about it, and they really want 4K native resolution on their games. But I think that Sony are a mass market consumer electronic manufacturer, and they are going after the biggest slice of the market, which is 1080p.”
I’m not sure I can agree with him on this one- after all, this was the argument made against HDTVs in the first place, back when Nintendo forwent HD with the Wii. It was short sighted then, and it may yet be short sighted now. I do think Sony, being a tech oriented company, should have aimed for something more high end.