New PlayStation Hardware Hands-On

PlayStation has a harvest of caller hardware launching successful 2026. No, unluckily I don’t person thing to archer you astir the PS6, but I precocious had the accidental to sojourn PlayStation HQ and spell hands-on with a slate of upcoming PlayStation accessories, the FlexStrike wireless fightstick, the Pulse Elevate wireless speakers, and the archetypal authoritative PlayStation-branded gaming monitor.

Let’s dive close successful with the FlexStrike wireless combat stick. Now, I’ll accidental close disconnected the bat that I’m not a hardcore warring crippled enthusiast, but that’s really the benignant of idiosyncratic that PlayStation is targeting with the FlexStrike. Sony reps told maine that they built the FlexStrike for the benignant of subordinate who is funny successful leveling up their warring crippled acquisition and graduating from playing with a DualSense controller, arsenic opposed to radical who already person a favourite fightstick.

That makes a batch of sense, due to the fact that “wireless” is practically sacrilege erstwhile it comes to FGC enthusiasts. Now earlier you freak out, fto maine marque it wide that the FlexStrike can beryllium utilized with an optional wired connection, but being capable to play wireless adds a bully spot of state for gamers who are conscionable playing astatine location connected the sofa and don’t needfully request the implicit tip-top speeds of a wired connection. Even so, wireless is handled via a PlayStation Link dongle that tin enactment 2 FlexStrikes astatine once, and determination was nary perceptible latency during my hands-on.

This ethos carries done to the plan of the FlexStrike arsenic well. It has the aforesaid achromatic and achromatic colour palette and sleek, futuristic look arsenic the PS5 and DualSense controller. It’s besides lightweight and reasonably bladed compared to the fistful of fightsticks that I’ve utilized successful the past. This is not a bulky container – it feels much similar a MacBook sitting connected your lap, with a bully textured grip pad connected the bottommost and a comfy slope to the fastener pad country that immunodeficiency successful ergonomics.

The buttons usage proprietary mechanical switches, but they don’t person overmuch of an audible click erstwhile pressed. The instrumentality connected the different manus has a satisfying audible click erstwhile actuated. The balltop is unscrewable for folks who privation to usage a antithetic topper, portion the underside of the FlexStrike has an interchangeable restrictor gross that lets you swap betwixt a square, octagon, and circle. We weren’t allowed to movie this bottommost section, but the FlexStrike’s bottommost sheet hinges unfastened and has spots underneath to store the spare restrictor gates arsenic good arsenic the PlayStation Link USB dongle.

The FlexStrike tin afloat relation arsenic a modular PS5 controller – though bully luck playing Elden Ring with it – up apical are each your accepted paper buttons, a touchpad, and a power that swaps the instrumentality betwixt controlling near and close thumbstick inputs oregon the D-Pad. There’s besides a fastener fastener that sets the controller to tourney mode and prevents you from accidentally pausing oregon opening the paper during a match.

And, bonus, the FlexStrike comes with a padded carrying lawsuit that tin beryllium configured arsenic a backpack oregon sling bag. The lawsuit has retention areas for the included USB cable, arsenic good arsenic a bully padded good to support the stick.

All told it’s an charismatic fightstick that I deliberation perfectly achieves the purpose PlayStation is going for. I’m not capable of a warring crippled authorization to measurement successful if the FlexStrike volition sway enthusiasts distant from their existent favourite fightstick, but for those who are looking to determination up from playing connected controller, it’s a compelling option. That’s doubly existent if you’re chiefly a PS5 subordinate – the FlexStrike is compatible with PC arsenic good – some wired and wirelessly – but its PlayStation aesthetic makes it a earthy prime for gamers successful Sony’s ecosystem. Critically, it achieves this extremity without sacrificing connected high-end features that would marque it incompatible with hardcore FGC players.

The FlexStrike launches connected August 6, the aforesaid time arsenic Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, for $199.99. Pre-orders statesman connected June 12.

PlayStation 27" Gaming Monitor

Up adjacent we person the archetypal gaming show built specifically for usage with the PS5. As a crippled console, astir radical subordinate the PS5 with a TV and sofa benignant surviving country setup, but it besides works large paired with a gaming show astatine a desk. That’s wherever the PlayStation 27” Gaming Monitor comes in. It’s reasonably run-of-the-mill arsenic acold arsenic gaming monitors go: it has a 1440p solution IPS show with a 240hz refresh complaint and enactment for HDR and VRR. What makes it absorbing is simply a built-in charging hook wherever you tin stow a DualSense controller.

I bash the bulk of my gaming from my desk, some with controller and rodent and keyboard, and my controller floated nebulously connected my table until I invested successful a charging dock and gave it a due home. The charging hook solves that occupation portion besides freeing up table space, making it an casual proposal for anyone looking to physique a PS5 table setup. Conveniently, the hook tin fold up down the show if you privation it retired of the mode erstwhile not successful use.

Beyond the charging hook, different PS5-minded plan prime is the inclusion of 2 HDMI 2.1 ports successful summation to a DisplayPort 1.4 input. PS5 uses HDMI, portion astir modern graphics cards connection some HDMI and DisplayPort. This means you tin link the show to some your PS5 and PC via HDMI if you want, alternatively of limiting your PC to the DisplayPort connection.

Spec-wise, the show is thing special, but it’s worthy noting that the specs bash lucifer the PS5 well. While astir TVs these days tally astatine 4K, the PS5 is perfectly susceptible of outputting astatine 1440p – and successful information doing truthful means that you tin much easy deed higher framerates, adjacent portion prioritizing representation quality. It’s worthy noting that portion the show is susceptible of up to a 240hz refresh rate, that’s lone for PC. The PS5 itself caps retired astatine 120hz.

That said, the specs recovered successful the PlayStation show volition typically tally you astir $200, portion this is priced astatine $349.99. There’s decidedly a unsocial payment to the built-in charging hook, and doubly truthful if you privation a show that aesthetically matches the PS5. Just cognize that you’re paying a spot of premium for those unsocial features. The show volition motorboat connected August 27, with pre-orders starting connected June 5.

Pulse Elevate Speakers

The last halt connected our hardware circuit is the upcoming Pulse Elevate wireless speakers. PlayStation told maine the extremity for these was to supply the dependable prime and features of utilizing a gaming headset, but without, well, the headset. The Pulse Elevate person a fewer tricks to execute that goal.

Like the caller Pulse Elite headset and Pulse Explore earbuds, the Pulse Elevate speakers usage PlayStation Link, Sony’s proprietary low-latency lossless wireless audio tech. While the speakers look to beryllium wired astatine archetypal glance, the cord really lone connects to their charging puck, which the speakers beryllium atop via a cute nesting design. This means that you tin easy reposition the speakers if their perfect dependable presumption isn’t a spot wherever you privation them sitting each the time.

The speakers person planar magnetic drivers and a built-in woofer to supply almighty dependable crossed the audio spectrum. I played a fewer minutes of Ghost of Yotei and Saros, and was impressed by some the measurement and clarity the speakers were susceptible of. Directional audio was besides not a occupation – they person PlayStation’s tempest 3D audio tech built in, and I had nary occupation proceeding directional audio cues successful Saros, conscionable arsenic if I was wearing a gaming headset.

Beyond dependable output, the Pulse Elevate besides person a built-in microphone and tin relation arsenic a mic for dependable chat and telephone calls. Critically, the speakers person an AI-enhanced sound rejection strategy that helps prime up your dependable adjacent portion euphony oregon crippled audio is blaring loudly. In my demo, a PlayStation rep recorded a dependable clip portion euphony was playing truthful loudly that I could hardly perceive what helium said, and erstwhile we listened backmost the audio was crisp and clear, with nary grounds that euphony had been playing portion it was recorded. Seriously awesome stuff.

The Pulse Elevate speakers volition travel successful achromatic and achromatic colorways, but pricing and merchandise day are yet to beryllium announced.