The patent application by Sony for a mysterious cartridge spawned several rumors regarding its main function.
The illustration of the supposed cartridge for the PlayStation 5 was first spotted by LetsGoDigital. You can view the report here, but it is in Dutch.
The application was filed at the Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial (National Institute of Industrial Property). There are no details that would explain what the patent application was all about. The accompanying text only referred to it as a storage device or data recording.
These patent applications should be taken at face value, as a number of them don’t get realized anyway. However, considering the buzz surrounding the PlayStation 5, the report will naturally create a firestorm.
Earlier, people speculated that the cartridge was referring to a new handheld console from Sony. They based the speculation on the design similarity with the game cards of PS Vita or the UMD for the PSP.
Also, the patent application was filed by designer Yujin Morisawa, the senior art designer at Sony Interactive Entertainment. He is also very influential when it comes to PlayStation products.
However, another theory is that the patent application was for an external SSD for the PlayStation 5. But Sony already confirmed that the console would have an internal SSD. Why do you need an external storage solution?
For one, the console is designed for 4K games, and those are notoriously demanding in terms of memory capacity. Among the rumored games that will come at the PS5 launch are Cyberpunk 2077, Death Stranding, and Battlefield 6. An external SSD would help boost the loading time of the games.
The PS5 will supposedly revolutionize the way consoles perform in terms of loading time. In June this year, a patent filing was leaked that explained how Sony will address the loading time. The fast loading time of the next-generation console was also showcased during a Japan meeting.
Admittedly, extra SSD storage, along with the new technology, will boost the loading performance of PS5. The cartridge can be inserted into a slot that will drastically increase the storage of the console.
All of these are just speculation, of course. Sony, just like any tech company, doesn’t issue statements to address every single leak regarding a new product. Fans will simply have to wait for the console to come out to answer their most nagging questions. However, they will have to wait for a long time as the PS5 won’t launch until the last quarter of 2020.
