Cameras built into various devices have become quite ubiquitous over the past decade or so. Now, it seems that video game consoles may soon be following suit. A recent leak indicates that Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 5 will feature a built-in camera.
The leak comes from an anonymous tipster who gave out details about the console and its development kit to Gizmodo. According to the tipster, they’re currently working on a new title for both the PlayStation 5 and Microsoft’s Project Scarlett. As part of this, they revealed a number of interesting details about the console, including the fact that it’ll have a built-in camera.
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According to the tipster, the Sony sent out the latest versions of the console’s development kit, code named “Prospero,” over the summer. The development kit apparently does look like the schematics that seen in a Sony patent last month. The name, on the other hand, comes from a character in William Shakespear’s The Tempest. Interestingly enough, two other characters in said play, Ariel and Gonzalo, are also supposedly used as code names for a couple of AMD chips that are allegedly being used in next-gen consoles like the PlayStation 5.
As for the built-in camera, it seems that the idea is for it to be used for live streaming. Interestingly enough, when the leaker mentioned this, they also confirmed that Microsoft’s Project Scarlett will also have a built-in camera as well. The current-gen consoles from both companies already support live streaming, albeit a rather bare bones version of it, so adding a more capable camera to their successors makes sense.
Microsoft’s built-in camera reportedly supports 4K and has less latency than the Kinect camera. As for the PlayStation 5, the camera in the “Prospero” development kit apparently uses older technology. While this seems like a step back for Sony, it’s possible that the company simply hasn’t finalized the specs for what it will use on the PlayStation 5.
Now, as a supposed leak, it’s probably best to take all of this with a grain of salt. However, Gizmodo claims that the tipster sent them some (admittedly low-quality) photos of the “Prospero” development kit, so it does seem likely that the leak is legitimate.
