PS6 will reportedly offer detachable disc drive, following PS5 model to support physical games

One unknown about the next PlayStation console is if it will still embrace physical games. Insider Gaming reports the PS6 specs will, in fact, support an optional disc drive. Sony plans to offer a digital version of the system, along with bundles that include a detachable drive.

Some gamers believed that with the PS5 Digital Edition, Sony was moving away from disc-based media. Still, buyers could add an optional drive to the slimmer version of the consoles to boot physical games. Meanwhile, the pricier PS5 Disc Edition includes the drive by default. According to several sources, Tom Henderson expects Sony to offer similar options on the PS6 release date.

Henderson explains that strong sales of the PS5 disc drive have given the company confidence in this approach. Another factor is a desire to downsize the PS6 to mitigate rising shipping costs. Along these lines, Insider Gaming describes a “much simpler design than its predecessor”.

With tariffs contributing to a PS5 price increase, Sony will look for any way to keep costs reasonable. The recent decision to downsize the PS5 Digital Edition's SSD to 825GB may seem insignificant. Even so, the savings quickly multiply when selling a high volume of consoles.

Digital gaming may still be the future of PlayStation

Despite the promising news about PS6 specs, supporters of physical games still have concerns. The upcoming PlayStation console may be disc-compatible, but it remains unclear how long publishers will continue to use optical media. It has become more common for PS5 and Xbox games to be available exclusively digitally.

Sony may instead be more concerned with backward compatibility. Many analysts anticipate that, using a familiar x86 architecture, the PS6 will boot PS4 and PS5 titles. A new console with a modular disc drive would entice gamers with large collections of Blu-ray discs. Also, as former PlayStation executive Shawn Layden speculated in February, PlayStation would cater to countries with limited broadband connectivity.