The latest revision of the PlayStation 5, the model 1200 or CFI-1202, which after the first generation (model 1000) and the first refresh (model 1100), is the second revision of Sony’s Zen 2 RDNA 2 gaming console, features a new 6nm AMD Oberon Plus custom APU and higher efficiency.
So far, what was known above all was that the console was becoming lighter. A lot has changed inside — the PCB has been changed in many places and is now a bit more compact. In addition, the processor is manufactured in a new manufacturing process. As a result, the cooler can be smaller and correspondingly lighter.
Compared to its Oberon predecessor — which was manufactured at TSMC using the N7 process (7 nm DUV) and had an area of around 300 mm² where new revision Oberon Plus has shrunk to less than 260 mm² thanks to the N6 node (6 nm EUV).
For consoles, it is important that the architecture exactly matches the older revisions. This ensures that all games work on every Playstation 5 without adjustments. The now outdated Zen 2 cores remain unchanged. The reason is simple — console games are often developed much closer to the hardware than PC titles. This means that the hardware can be used better, and bottlenecks are avoided.
In addition to an 18.8% higher transistor density, the N6 node is more economical than its predecessor with the same performance. Accordingly, the new console needs less power than its predecessors. And Sony’s primary goal for the new revision of the PlayStation 5 is to reduce production costs.
