Top pick
This version of the PS5 has a disc drive, so you can watch UHD Blu-ray movies, as well as play new or used PS5 and PS4 game discs. The rest of the features and hardware are the same.
Runner-up
The Digital Edition doesn’t include a disc drive, so you can’t watch Blu-rays or take advantage of new or used games or old PS4 discs. But if you’re comfortable going all-digital, it has the same graphics, CPU, memory, and storage hardware as the standard PS5.
If you’re not sure which of these two PlayStations is right for you, our journalists have examined the difference between the two PlayStation 5 models in depth. Simply put, the PS5 Slim has a disc drive, and the Slim Digital Edition does not.
That means the PS5 Slim is the better option for gamers who love physical media and own an assortment of PS4 games, since the PS5 is compatible with most of the PS4’s gaming library. And because the PS5 Slim can produce 4K UHD video, it’s also great for movie lovers who have large Blu-ray collections. (We also noticed that a bunch of good PS5 games are on sale right now—including Resident Evil 4, Gran Turismo 7, and Final Fantasy XVI—if you prefer collecting physical media.)
The PS5 Slim Digital Edition lacks a disc drive, but it is a little cheaper, so if you’re going all-digital, you can save even more money.
Because neither model is significantly different from the original PS5, you don’t have a reason to upgrade if you already own that, though they’re both shorter and slimmer than the original version. (Our testers noted the impressive size of the original PS5 and the difficulty of finding media-console space for it, so getting a Slim version is a possible solution.)
If you are starting your gaming setup from scratch, however, and you aren’t wedded to having a disc drive, you can pick up a discounted Sony PlayStation 5 Slim Digital Edition bundle that includes a second controller, which makes it an ideal starter pack.
The last time we saw the slim PS5 models on sale was Prime Day, when both versions were $50 off. So we aren’t surprised to see these PlayStations on sale again—but we haven’t seen the price go any lower. That means there’s no reason to wait for something better, so go ahead and beat the Black Friday rush. (And if you open the box and start playing games before Thanksgiving, we won’t tell anyone.)
This article was edited by Maxine Builder.
