PlayStation 6 Portable Beats Xbox Series S, Low-Power SoC

The portable version of the upcoming PlayStation 6 is rumored to be more powerful than the Xbox Series S but less capable than the base PlayStation 5. Given its less to work with in the memory bandwidth department, it’s not anticipated to run PS5 games at the same resolutions or framerate as the original system, though it will still run them.

Portable PlayStation 6 Will Outperform Xbox Series S, Feature Low-Power SoC with Fewer Than 40 CUs

The details originate from infamous leaker Kepler L2, who followed up with his own comments on a NeoGAF forum thread. While the PS5 version of the system’s capabilities doesn’t have the same power as the portable edition, it will still allow you to play PS5 games, albeit with some tradeoffs in graphics and the performance of the system, Kepler noted.

Kepler suggests that the system’s performance tier is going to lie in-between the Xbox Series S and the PlayStation 5. But they also cautioned that the exact performance of the console’s hardware can be tough to predict because it will be based on a new, unreleased design for graphics processing units.

Kepler also remarked on the portable console’s internals. It’s set to use a different system-on-chip (SoC) than the main PS6 console, targeting low power consumption and likely with less than 40 compute units. That’s likely even fewer than the 36 CUs in the PS5’s chip (though the performance implications of this are unclear without further details).

The portable SoC also isn’t slated to tape out — begin production — until a few months after the main console’s chip, so we might not know much more for a while. While Sony has yet to officially announce the PlayStation 6 or any of its versions, it’s been confirmed that AMD will once again power the system, continuing its partnership from the PS4 and PS5. Interestingly, Intel had also vied for the contract but was ultimately passed over. Current expectations suggest the PlayStation 6 could launch between 2027 and 2028.

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