Sony will be unveiling a new PlayStation 4 standard model in September alongside a new, upgraded PlayStation 4, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Citing sources “familiar with the matter,” the report alleges that the two new consoles will be introduced in a bid to “maintain demand” for the PlayStation 4.
The timing lines up with the PlayStation event Sony has scheduled for September 7 at 3PM ET. The presentation will be held at PlayStation Theater in New York, although the company has not disclosed what exactly it will be showing. This new information lines up with previous reports that the a new PS4 model would be revealed at a PlayStation 4 event in September. GameSpot has reached out to PlayStation for comment, and will report back if we hear more.
In June this year Sony confirmed that it was working on a more powerful version of the PlayStation 4, code-named Neo. Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Andrew House revealed that the console will feature improved graphics and support for 4K resolution. House also confirmed that the console is intended to be sold alongside the standard version of the PS4, at a higher price.
Sony hasn’t revealed much else about the Neo, opting not to talk about the console at E3 this year. However, the PlayStation event takes place just a week before Tokyo Game Show, which starts on September 15. Analysts have previously suggested that new PlayStation 4 models would be launched before or during Tokyo Game Show.
All PS4 games will be playable on both the existing PS4 and Neo. Sony has said it will take a “small but manageable” amount of effort for developers to get games working on both versions of the PS4. Since the announcement of Neo and Scorpio, a number of publishers have spoken positively about this type of mid-cycle hardware upgrade.