PS5 restock bad news as Sony makes a tough call
It's not a secret that the PlayStation 5 is an in-demand console. Nearly a year out from release, PlayStation 5 stock is still sparse to the point where restocks are highly contested events; mad scrambles where available stock is snatched up in minutes. There's a global silicon shortage at the center of these stock issues, and while we've known that things probably won't get better for a long time yet, today we're learning of the direct impact the shortage is having on PS5 production.
Sony lowers its PS5 production forecast
As reported by Bloomberg, Sony has dropped its PS5 production forecast for the current fiscal year to 15 million units, down from 16 million. That's not a huge drop in the grand scheme, but it's enough to complicate things for Sony, which was hoping to sell 14.8 million PS5 units in the fiscal year and have some supply left over for the next.
With production estimates now down to 15 million – according to an anonymous source who spoke to Bloomberg – meeting that goal of 14.8 million units sold might be difficult even though consoles are seemingly selling as fast as they're being produced. As Bloomberg points out, the PS5 had a strong start out of the gate, but now its sales pace has dropped below that of the PlayStation 4 because of these supply issues.
It seems like Sony's manufacturing partners don't anticipate this getting better any time soon either, with Bloomberg reporting that some of them believe PS5 supply will be limited throughout 2022. Even though a lot of us have been hoping that the silicon shortage and, by extension, hardware stock shortages would end soon, Sony's partners aren't alone in suggesting they could last well into next year.
Stock shortages at a crucial time
Of course, these stock shortages sting a little more when you remember that we're about to enter the holiday shopping season. This is a major sales period for companies like Sony, and there are going to be a lot of consumers looking to buy consoles for the holidays. With Sony reportedly revising its production forecast for the rest of the year, PS5s could get even harder to find as we head into winter.
Sony isn't the only one that's been forced to revise production forecasts in the wake of the parts shortage. Earlier this month, Nintendo officially confirmed revisions to its own stock forecast, so we can likely expect Switch consoles to be in short supply during the holidays as well. The Xbox Series X has been equally as difficult to find as PS5, and just yesterday, Valve had to delay the launch of its incoming Steam Deck by two months to accommodate a shortage of materials.
In short: it's going to be a sparse holiday season for consoles, so if you were hoping to buy one, it's probably best to start seriously looking now. If you want to better your chances at getting one of these in-demand consoles, you can check our tips guide for securing one. Otherwise, we'll let you know when these companies provide us an update on when they expect supply constraints to ease, but judging by all of the reports we've seen lately, we wouldn't count on that happening anytime soon.