PlayStation®5 Digital Edition (Slim) Review: a clean, quiet console if you’re fine living without discs

I held off on buying a PS5 for a long time. I had a PS4 that still worked fine, and I didn’t feel like dropping a few hundred bucks just to see slightly nicer graphics. I only caved when the PS5 Slim Digital went on promo and a couple of the big titles I wanted dropped in price. So this isn’t a launch fanboy review; it’s more “regular person who upgraded late and actually uses the thing.”

I’ve been using the PS5 Digital Slim for a few weeks, mostly evenings after work. I play on a 4K TV, nothing fancy, and I’m not chasing ultra settings like on a high-end PC. I just want a console that boots quickly, runs games smoothly, and doesn’t sound like a vacuum cleaner. That’s pretty much the lens I’m judging it with.

Overall, the PS5 Slim Digital does what it’s supposed to do: it runs games fast, it’s quieter than older consoles I’ve had, and the 1 TB SSD is actually usable, at least at the start. But it’s not perfect. The UI is a bit messy, the whole digital-only thing has some real downsides, and Sony loves charging extra for stuff that should frankly be included, like the vertical stand.

If you’re trying to decide between this and the disc version, or between this and just sticking with a PS4 or PC, I’ll walk through how it’s been in practice: setup, design, performance, storage, and whether the all-digital approach is a good idea or just annoying. Short version: I liked it overall, but there are a few things I’d think about before pulling the trigger.

On raw performance and user experience, the PS5 Slim Digital feels like a good buy, especially if you catch it on sale like I did. You get a modern console with fast load times, 1 TB SSD, a solid controller, and access to the current PlayStation library. For someone coming from a PS4, it’s a clear step up. For someone tired of constantly upgrading a PC, it’s a simpler and cheaper way to keep playing new games without thinking about GPUs and drivers.

Where the value question gets tricky is the digital-only part. At first, it feels convenient: no discs lying around, no swapping, everything is just on your account. But you lose:

• The ability to buy used games or borrow discs from friends
• Resale value of physical games once you’re done
• Using the console as a Blu-ray/DVD player

Over time, that can add up. Digital games don’t always go on sale as cheaply as used physical copies, and you’re stuck with whatever prices Sony and the publishers set. If you tend to replay the same few games and don’t care about physical media at all, this might not matter. If you’re used to hunting for deals on discs, the digital lock-in can hurt your wallet in the long run.

On top of that, Sony loves add-ons: vertical stand sold separately, extra storage costs extra, extra controllers are not cheap. None of this is shocking, but you should factor it in. The console itself is fairly priced for what it does, and the 4.7/5 rating on Amazon lines up with my experience: it’s a pretty solid machine. Just don’t ignore the ecosystem costs. For me personally, I’m okay with it because I’ve already shifted to digital and I don’t buy tons of games at launch. But if you’re more price-sensitive on games than on hardware, the disc version might be a better long-term deal.

Physically, the PS5 Slim Digital is a clear step up from the launch model in terms of size. It’s still not tiny, but it’s a lot easier to fit into a normal TV setup. I went from an older PS4 to this, and while it’s bigger than the PS4, it doesn’t feel like you’re installing a small PC tower under the TV anymore. The white panels are still very "PlayStation 5" looking, so if you hated that look, this doesn’t fix it, but it does feel a bit less bulky and goofy than the original.

What bugged me is the whole stand situation. Out of the box, you get two small plastic feet so you can lay it horizontally. Those are fine, they do the job. But if you want to put it vertically, you have to buy the vertical stand separately. For the price of the console, that feels cheap from Sony. It’s not about the plastic itself, it’s just the principle: previous consoles usually just stood up on their own or came with what you needed.

Port-wise, it’s pretty standard: HDMI out, power, a couple of USB ports, network port. I didn’t run into any layout issues. Ventilation openings are on the sides and back, so you really don’t want to shove it into a closed cabinet. One person in the Amazon reviews mentioned higher temps on heavier games; I had a similar experience where the console got warm, but not scary hot. I just made sure it had space around it and it’s been fine so far.

Visually, it feels modern and fairly clean, but it’s still a big white plastic box in your living room. If you’re expecting some kind of fancy high-end object, it’s not that. It’s functional, looks "nice enough", and the smaller footprint is the main win. If you’re tight on space, the Slim makes more sense than the original, but I still think Sony could have included the vertical stand instead of selling it separately.

The console itself obviously plugs into the wall, so the "battery" part is really about the DualSense controller. Sony includes one controller in the box, and it charges via USB-C. I usually play in 1–2 hour chunks in the evening, and under that kind of use, the battery life has been decent. I’m not constantly running out of juice, but it’s also not endless. If you game for long sessions on weekends, you’ll probably end up plugging it in mid-day or keeping a cable handy.

The haptics and adaptive triggers do seem to affect battery life. In games that use them heavily, I feel like I’m charging a bit more often. It’s not terrible, just something to keep in mind. You can always tone down vibration and trigger resistance in the settings if you want to squeeze more hours out of a charge. For me, the default settings were fine, and I just got into the habit of plugging the controller in when I’m done for the night.

One thing I wish Sony did better is show the battery status more clearly. The battery gauge is not super obvious from the Home screen, and it’s easy to start a session thinking you’re good and then get the low battery warning mid-game. It’s a small UI thing, but when you compare it to how clearly phones or even some PC accessories show battery levels, it feels a bit behind.

If you live alone and mostly play casually, one controller is probably enough and the battery situation is manageable. If you have kids or multiple people using the console, I’d strongly suggest getting a second controller and maybe a charging dock. Constantly swapping and charging one controller with a cable is a bit annoying over time. So the battery life is okay, not great, not awful — it just pushes you toward buying at least one more accessory if you’re a heavier user.

I obviously haven’t had this console for years, so I can’t say how it will age long term, but I can compare it to past PlayStations and what I’ve seen so far. Out of the box, the PS5 Slim Digital feels reasonably solid. The plastic doesn’t feel premium, but it doesn’t feel super cheap either. It’s about what you’d expect from a console in this price range. The panels don’t creak when you move it, and the ports feel secure when plugging in cables.

Noise-wise, it’s way better than an older PS4. Even with longer sessions, the fan stays at a low, steady level. I haven’t heard any coil whine or weird high-pitched sounds. That said, I’ve been careful about placement: it’s on an open shelf with good airflow and not pushed against a wall. One reviewer mentioned the console running hotter on demanding games. I saw mine get pretty warm to the touch after a long Ghost of Tsushima session, but there were no performance issues, so I’m not panicking yet. Still, I wouldn’t stick this in a closed TV cabinet.

From a durability perspective, the fact that this is digital-only cuts out one common failure point: the disc drive. On older consoles, disc drives often became noisy or stopped reading discs properly after a few years. Here, there’s simply no drive to break. The flip side is: if anything does go wrong, you can’t fall back to discs or use it as a Blu-ray player, so you’re fully dependent on the system working and your digital library.

Dust is going to be the usual enemy. The vents will need occasional cleaning if you live in a dusty place or have pets. That’s just the reality with any console. I haven’t opened it up or anything, but based on the design, you can at least see and reach the vents easily, which helps. Overall, my gut feeling is that it should hold up fine if you don’t suffocate it in a cabinet and you give it a quick dusting now and then. I’d give it a cautious thumbs up on durability, with the usual "don’t abuse it" disclaimer.

In practice, performance is where the PS5 Slim Digital actually feels like an upgrade, not just a side-grade. Load times are much shorter than on PS4. Going from menu to in-game is usually a matter of seconds instead of sitting through a long loading screen. For games that support performance modes, I mostly stick to 60 fps options, and they run smoothly on a normal 4K TV. I’m not measuring frame times with tools, but just by feel, gameplay is fluid and responsive.

The console is also pretty quiet. Compared to my PS4, which sounded like it was going to take off during heavier games, the PS5 Slim is way more discreet. Even after a few hours of playing, I could hear a light fan noise if I muted the TV, but nothing that bothered me during normal use. One Amazon user mentioned it running hotter with some titles; I noticed it getting warm with more demanding games, but again, no thermal throttling or crashes so far. Just don’t block the vents and don’t cram it into a tiny shelf.

The DualSense controller is part of the performance story too. The adaptive triggers and haptics are actually useful in some games. At first, I thought it was just a gimmick, but in practice, the feedback is more precise than the old PS4 rumble. One thing I had to tweak: the rumble felt weak at first because the controller microphone was on, which apparently reduces vibration strength. Turned off the mic, and the haptics felt much better. So it’s worth going into the settings and adjusting that instead of assuming the controller is bad.

Overall, if you’re coming from a base PS4, you will feel the difference: faster loading, sharper graphics, and smoother gameplay. If you’re a hardcore PC gamer with a beefy rig, you’re not going to be blown away, but that’s not really the point. This is about consistent, couch-friendly performance without tweaking settings all the time. On that front, it gets the job done very well.

The PS5 Digital Edition (slim) is basically the smaller, slightly cleaner-looking version of the original PS5, but without a disc drive. Important point: there is no way to use discs on this specific model. You’re locked into digital purchases and downloads. The box includes the console, a DualSense controller, HDMI cable, power cord, USB cable, the two little horizontal feet, and Astro’s Playroom pre-installed. No physical game, no vertical stand, nothing extra.

The SSD is listed as 1 TB, but like always, you don’t actually get the full 1 TB. After system files and all that, you’re left with a bit less for games. In my case, after installing a few big titles (think 70–100 GB each), I was already watching the free space drop faster than I would have liked. You can add an NVMe SSD later, but that’s another extra cost on top of the console itself.

Setup is straightforward. You plug it in, connect HDMI, pair the controller, and then it walks you through account login, updates, and optionally transferring data from a PS4. The wireless transfer from PS4 worked fine for me, just took a little patience. One thing that annoyed me: the loud voice reading everything out until I dug through the Accessibility menu to switch it off. Not a big deal, but it’s the kind of thing that makes the first hour more annoying than it needs to be.

In day-to-day use, this is a pure "sit on the couch, turn it on, play" machine. No discs, no media player for Blu-rays, nothing like that. If you liked using your PS4 as a DVD/Blu-ray player, this specific digital model is a downgrade. If you already buy all your games digitally and stream your movies, then the missing drive won’t bother you. Just be clear about that before you buy, because there’s no detachable drive option with this one.