Technology & Science
Sony & Microsoft Weigh Pushing PS6/Next-Gen Xbox Past 2027 Amid AI-Fueled RAM Crunch
Internal discussions at both platform holders now contemplate sliding the planned 2027-2028 console launches to 2029 or later because soaring DRAM costs make a sub-$800 price tag unrealistic.
Focusing Facts
- Insider Gaming reports Sony’s roadmap had pencilled in a November 2027 PS6 release, but managers are now modelling 2029 scenarios instead.
- Market data cited in multiple articles say DDR5 prices have risen 300-400 % since September 2025, a spike linked to AI data-centre demand.
- Micron, supplier of about 30 % of global RAM, confirmed it will exit the consumer market by 2026 to focus on AI clients, further tightening supply.
Context
Console cycles slipping is not new: after the 2000 PS2 boom, Sony stretched the PS3 life to 10 years when the 2008–09 financial crisis pinched wallets, and the 1988 DRAM price spike similarly delayed Sega’s 32-bit ambitions until 1994. Today’s debate fits a longer arc—hardware refreshes lengthen as Moore’s Law slows, capital costs rise, and software-as-a-service keeps older boxes relevant. The AI gold-rush turns memory into the new oil, revealing how consumer tech is now downstream of industrial compute. On a 100-year timeline, the episode may mark the pivot where dedicated home consoles yield to cloud or hybrid models, with physical silicon availability—not raw processing ambition—dictating the cadence of gaming generations.
Perspectives
Gamer-focused outlets
Gamer-focused outlets — They frame a possible PS6/next-Xbox delay as largely positive for players, arguing current consoles still have unused power and that waiting could spare gamers exorbitant launch prices. By echoing vocal social-media users these sites risk overstating how universally relaxed gamers are, glossing over how a delay could hurt studios’ revenues or innovation.
Tech & component-market press
Tech & component-market press — They depict the looming delay as a worrying symptom of a “RAMmageddon”, warning that memory shortages and price spikes could cripple console makers and drive hardware costs sky-high. Doom-laden language and reliance on rumour can inflate worst-case fears, attracting clicks while downplaying the possibility that manufacturers adapt or costs ease before launch.
Mainstream consumer-tech news sites
Mainstream consumer-tech news sites — They present the delay as a pragmatic option under discussion because AI-driven RAM demand has upended the usual seven-year console cadence. Linking every supply story to the AI boom serves reader interest in a hot trend, but it may oversimplify complex supply-chain and corporate-strategy factors beyond AI.