Sony has not officially announced the PlayStation 5 yet and is still focusing on the PS4 and the PS4 Pro. But this hasn't stopped some from making predictions about what the console might offer to players and how much they would have to pay for it.

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has now offered some more predictions about the console, saying that the next-generation of consoles will not cost more than $500. Speaking during his Pachter Factor show on YouTube, the analyst said "I don’t think next gen consoles will be $500...though I guess the right answer is, let’s see what happens with the Xbox One X."

Pachter suggested that "If Xbox One X is a phenomenal success, if it sells out, if overall Xbox sales rise to above the current level of 10 million a year, because everyone wants that power, then sure, the next gen can be more expensive." But if the Xbox One X only sells between one and two million consoles a year (out of an estimated 10 million Xbox One sales overall) then a price higher than $500 is unlikely.

Pachter explained that after a couple of years, the Xbox One X may have satisfied demand for a powerful console with impressive specs. As such, there would be no reason for Sony to make a box appealing to a similar subset of gamers, resulting in a price over $500.

Sony knows well how much pricing can have an impact on sales, as it was the high price of the PlayStation 3 that saw that console get off to a rocky start. At launch, the 20GB model of the PS3 was available for $500 while the 60GB version cost $600. In comparison, Xbox 360 models were available for either $300 or $400, giving thrifty gamers a major reason to pick the Microsoft console instead.

Likewise, Microsoft's decision to bundle the Xbox One with a Kinect sensor at launch drove the console's price up, impacting its sales massively too. It's why it didn't take long for Microsoft to make a U-turn, unbundling the Kinect from the Xbox One. Later, Microsoft would end Kinect production as the technology was unable to make much of an impact with Xbox One players.

At this point, it's unclear when Pachter's price predictions might be tested as Sony has yet to make any official confirmations about its future console plans. Pachter himself has suggested that the PS5 would arrive in 2019 and would include backward compatibility but nothing is for certain.

Source: Pachter Factor - YouTube