Sony’s PlayStation 4 Pro Won’t Play 4K Blu-Rays, And Microsoft Is Razzing Them About It

Yesterday, after much speculation, Sony finally unveiled the PlayStation 4 Pro, a beefed-up version of the PS4 that will bring 4K resolution, high dynamic range (HDR) visuals and better framerates to console gaming. It’s a bold step, and Sony showed off some impressive PS4 Pro-powered game footage during their event, but fan reaction to the new machine has been decidedly mixed.

The PS4 Pro may be a powerful machine, but it will have its limitations, most notably the inability to play 4K Blu-Rays. This is particularly baffling since Blu-Ray is Sony’s own creation, and being able to play the latest, greatest movie format has been a core feature of the company’s consoles since the PS2 era. You know who does have 4K Blu-Ray support? Microsoft, and you don’t even have to wait for their superpowered Project Scorpio Xbox update – 4K Blu-Ray support is included in the new, inexpensive Xbox One S. Microsoft was, of course, all-too-happy to point this out on Twitter.

Head of Xbox marketing Aaron Greenberg also responded to this tweet about PS4 Pro’s specs with a bit of boasting about Project Scorpio’s more powerful hardware.

Considering how smooth their game has been this generation, Sony allowing their own tech to be used against them like this is downright inexplicable. I’m guessing 4K Blu-Ray was cut in favor of the PS4 Pro’s larger 1TB hard drive, but, honestly, that was the wrong decision – excluding 4K Blu-Ray support makes both the Pro and Sony’s own media format look bad. But hey, it’s the games that matter in the end, and Sony may have built up too much momentum this generation for questions about the PS4 Pro’s tech to really matter.

The PlayStation 4 Pro hits shelves November 10, while the 4K Blu-Ray-enabled Xbox One S is available now.

via Polygon