Sony investigating reported pre-launch PS4 hardware issues

Sony is investigating reported hardware issues with its soon-to-launch next-gen console, the PlayStation 4, according to a tweet from Sony's Shuhei Yoshida.

"Be assured we are investigating reported PS4 issues," the President of Worldwide Studios tweeted this morning. "The number is very small compared to shipped, we believe they are isolated incidents."

A twitter user responded to Yoshida saying that the number was "only small compared to shipped because it is before launch day. However it is large compared to pre-launch users." In response, Yoshida explained that his comparison was, in fact, "to shipped pre-launch units."

Reports began circulating this week saying that some consoles shipped in unusable condition. Kotaku's PS4 review revealed the that first retail PS4 that the publication received from Sony "didn't work," though the publication also acknowledged that editors also used "one pre-release PS4 and three retail PS4s with no problems."

NeoGAF user Dylx reported yesterday that his PS4 froze after prompting for an update.

On Reddit, user arogon, who won a PS4 though a contest with Taco Bell, reported receiving a console that wouldn't boot. User yearsoflove responded in the comments claiming to also have received a dead on arrival PS4, though a replacement was on the way from Sony.

For more on Sony's next-gen console, which will be released in North America tomorrow, Nov. 15, be sure to check out Polygon's PS4 review. You can learn more about the console and its games through our PS4 launch week StoryStream.