Sony PlayStation 5 launched globally on November 19, but the launch situation for India has seen a whole lot of drama. But it was finally announced on January 1, 2021 that the PlayStation 5 would launch in India on February 2, and would go for pre-booking on January 12.
Now, while the previous generation of PS4 consoles have already seen price drops in India, there were definitely some who expected the price to drop further post the launch of the new Sony PS5.
But those hopes seem dashed as it becomes apparent that the company is no longer interested in continuing production of the PS4. This is according to a number of Japanese retailers (via VGC) that have begun notifying customers that it will no longer be able to restock the PS4 500GB Glacier White, PS4 1TB Jet Black, PS4 1TB Glacier White, PS4 2TB Jet Black, and PS4 Pro 1TB Glacier White console editions "due to the manufacturer ending production".
It follows an earlier message from Sony (since removed) listed on the PlayStation.com Direct Store PS4 Pro product page that stated "there are currently no plans to restock this item in the future.”
- PlayStation 5 price in India, release date, pre-orders and availability
- Sony PlayStation 5 India launch set for February 2; Pre-orders open on January 12
Why discontinue the PS4?
While the whole range of reasons why Sony plans to discontinue the PS4 is only known to them, we can only guess those that seem obvious.
Since the global launch of the PS5 many are struggling to find a PS5 console, and it makes sense for Sony to shift its production line resources to focus on the new machines. According to reports from a PS5 stock tracker Sony is pushing the production of the PS5.
This means that the production of the PS4 units will take a hit. And in turn makes sense that certain models of the previous generation console are discontinued. Besides this the company would also want to boost the sale of the present generation of console even if platforming head of Sony Interactive Entertainment Hideaki Nishino claimed earlier that the transition of PS4 to PS5 would take a few years, and the older generation would just not stop and vanish.
Previous claims of PS4 availability
While it now seems apparent that the PS4 production is no longer going to take place, there were previous claims that the console would be available in India. In an interview with Hindustan Times last year in July, Prosenjit Ghosh, Head of PlayStation Business, Sony India assured that the company does not plan to discontinue the PS4 consoles after the PS5 launch.
While there has not been an official announcement of the stoppage in production, it seems all but apparent. And as it has been proved in the previous months with the launch announcement of the PS5 in India, the India division of Sony is not the most connected with global.
After the announcement of the PS5 global launch date the India website was updated three times to show the November 19 date, only to be removed. This was done by the European team that controls the India website and not India. Besides that the Sony India team has been less than accommodating when it comes to queries about the PS5. Hence proving the lack of information on their own part.
Sony PS5: India launch details
While the PS4 has not been officially discontinued, the reduced prices should apply to the stocks still available with the retailers. As for the PS5, pre-bookings are going live at 12 p.m. on January 12 and it has been priced at Rs 49,999 for the regular edition and Digital Edition has been priced at Rs 39,990. Sony will be launching different accessories with the PS5, primary among which is the new DualSense Controller that has been priced at Rs 5,990.
