September 7 is going to be a busy day. Sony sent out invites for a press event in New York. The company will likely unveil the successor to the PlayStation 4. On the same day, Apple could also hold its usual iPhone launch event for the rumored iPhone 7.
The event is called “PlayStation Meeting,” and the company plans to “share details about the PlayStation business.”
Given that Sony already acknowledged that the PlayStation 4 ‘Neo’ was real and wouldn’t be announced at E3 in June, everything indicates that Sony is ready to announce the PS4 ‘Neo’ just in time for a launch before the holiday season.
Rumors of a more powerful PlayStation 4 codenamed ‘Neo’ started emerging in March on Kotaku. The new console is supposed to be much more powerful than the existing PlayStation 4 in order to support more demanding games, and especially for the PlayStation VR headset.
Virtual reality is quite demanding, and that’s why many people are buying new graphics cards for their computers. The PlayStation 4 was released three years ago and could be a bottleneck for good-looking virtual reality games. If you want a smooth experience, you need to run a game at a consistent frame rate above 60 frames per second — otherwise you’ll get nauseous. And because the screen in your VR headset is so close to your face, you want a good resolution as well. The existing PS4 will support the PlayStation VR, but the PS4 ‘Neo’ is the console you want for virtual reality.
In addition to virtual reality, the PS4 ‘Neo’ could be a good companion for your brand new 4K TV. The new console should support 4K movies, TV shows and even games. Sony doesn’t want to fragment its user base, so don’t expect PS4 ‘Neo’ exclusive games — all games should still work on the good old PS4.
Microsoft will unveil a competitor to the PS4 ‘Neo’ next year. The Xbox One ‘Scorpio’ could be even more powerful than the ‘Neo’, but will also launch a year after Sony’s new console. We will have a team on the ground in New York to cover Sony’s PlayStation event.
