PS5 Console Design Should Make PS4 Pro Owners Very Happy

It's a long-running joke that at certain points while playing almost any game, the PS4 Pro sounds like it could blast off into space. While PCs and console fans typically get loud while the hardware is pushed to its limits, the PS4 Pro seems to take things to a new level. The console can get so loud, in fact, that it can be hard to hear the game over the fan spinning.

Because of how loud the PS4 Pro can get, one of the biggest hopes going into the next generation was that the consoles would be quieter. Not just for the sake of gaming audio quality, but also for the peace of mind that silence affords. When the PS4 Pro is revving up for takeoff, there is always the concern that it might inevitably fail.

The good news is that the newly revealed PlayStation 5 seems to address those PS4 Pro criticisms head-on. Sony's next-gen console is BIG, and despite its unexpected form factor, it has a lot of details that promote heat dissipation and cooling. Some may even say PS5 design looks like a router and is ugly, but the PS5 should hopefully not be loud.

As consoles begin to veer closer and closer to mini-PCs it only makes sense that their designs start to mirror desktop towers. Microsoft went in a bold direction with the Xbox Series X, unveiling a minimalistic black rectangle that looks like a nondescript PC. Sony, meanwhile, put plenty of flourishes into its next-gen console's design but also gave it a PC-like look.

Even the choice to show off the PS5 standing vertically instead of laying horizontally evokes a stronger similarity to PCs than ever before. More importantly, the bigger footprint should allow for the more powerful components inside the PS5 to breathe more easily.

Whether or not that will translate into a completely whisper-quiet console is yet to be seen, as Sony has only shown off the PS5 through digital photos and video. But the design itself and its size suggest that Sony wants to make sure that the PS5 does not repeat that one key mistake from the PS4 Pro. Fans can get noisy – that is inevitable – but the PS4 Pro is loud and that is a problem.

There are so many reasons to be excited for the PS5 and the Xbox Series X, but it isn't a joke to say that one of the most intriguing aspects is the promise of a quieter gaming space. No more worrying about whether or not the PS4 is going to explode as Kratos fights a dragon, and having to explain to non-gamers that the small jet engine on the desk is supposed to sound that way.