Sony has sold 7.8 million PS5 consoles as of March 31, the company announced in its latest earning report – which means it's selling slightly quicker than the PS4 did at launch.
When you consider that PS5 stock continues to be frustratingly constrained, the feat is all the more impressive. It also shows that demand for dedicated hardware continues to defy some analysts predictions, who tipped consoles to go the way of the dodo during the last generation.
Sony had previously shipped 4.5 million PS5 units worldwide by the end of 2020, which means it managed to move a further 3.3 million units in January to March. We expect supply to improve further as the year goes on, but the global semiconductor shortage continues to pose problems for manufacturers.
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During its latest earning report, Sony also revealed that the number of PS Plus subscribers now sits at 47.6 million, which represents a 14.7% increase year on year. It also managed to shift an additional million PS4 consoles in the last quarter, taking the PS4’s lifetime sales figure to 115.9 million units. That’s down 28.6% from the 1.4 million it managed to sell in the previous year, but the drop off is expected as more people try to pick up a PlayStation 5 instead.
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The PS5 is currently outpacing the sales performance of the PS4, which had shipped 7.6 million units as of March 31st, 2014. Again, when you factor in the complications caused by Covid-19, PS5 scalpers and lack of stock at retailers, the PS5 is well on its way to being a success for Sony.
PlayStation 5 is set to receive a boon as Returnal, a first-party exclusive, launches on April 30. The game takes full advantage of Sony’s new hardware, with support for 3D audio, the DualSense’s controller’s haptic feedback and adaptive triggers.
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