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Despite launching in 2020, the PlayStation 5 has been very difficult to purchase for its nearly two years on the market. Supply line constraints and extremely high demand have made the console extremely scarce – unless you were willing to shell out nearly double the MSRP on secondhand sites like eBay.
Thankfully, prices have started to drop. If you want a PS5, odds are good you can find one online for a decent price. You might even see a system on store shelves! This is great news for gamers who want to jump into the next generation. But which version of the system should you buy?
There are two variations of the PS5. One version has a disc drive, and the other doesn’t. It’s that simple! The difference in their prices is similarly simple: if you want a disc drive, you’ll pay $500. If you don’t, your PS5 will cost $400. So, which one should you get? That depends on how you play and buy your games.
If you prefer to download your games and don’t ever buy physical media, you should opt for the disc-less version of the PS5. You also might prefer the slimmer PS5 if you plan to mostly play games through the PS Plus subscription service. This approach will save you $100, and you’ll get a slightly smaller console, too. However, outside of these advantages, there are some compelling reasons to go with the disc drive version of the console.
Without a disc drive, you can’t buy used games on sale and play them in your system. You can’t buy a disc, play the game, then loan it to a friend. You also can’t sell games you’re done with unless you own a physical disc. These are some substantial losses that might amount to far more than $100.
The disc drive version of the console is $100 more expensive than its sibling, but it’s worth the price for most players. If you have friends with PS5 discs, you can borrow their games and play them on your system. If you’re a bargain-hunter, you can find used copies of games on sale for very little money.
You should opt for the disc drive version of the console unless you’re certain that you’ll never want to use a physical game disc. Having more options available is never a bad thing, and you’ll likely regret not having a disc drive if you go with the $400 PS5.
