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See Sony’s stunning translucent blue PS4 Pro up close

Gaze into the soul of this console

By Samit Sarkar
Photography by James Bareham/Polygon
Samit Sarkar (he/him) is Polygon’s deputy managing editor. He has more than 15 years of experience covering video games, movies, television, and technology.

Sony has released many varieties of the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro, with most of the colorful designs tied to a particular game, like the bright red console for Insomniac Games’ upcoming PS4 exclusive, Spider-Man. But the company is now offering a unique PS4 Pro that’s tied to an impressive Sony milestone: a system with a translucent casing in deep blue, with copper detailing, to mark the fact that Sony has sold more than 500 million PlayStation consoles and handhelds since launching the original PlayStation in 1994.

The console, which comes with a 2 TB hard drive, is known as the 500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro, and it is very limited indeed: Sony is manufacturing just 50,000 units of the bundle, which also includes a matching DualShock 4 controller and PlayStation Camera. Pre-orders for the $499.99 package went live at midnight Friday, and as you might expect, most of them are already sold out.

Sony provided Polygon with one of the consoles — No. 37,297 of 50,000, according to the engraved copper plate on the front of the unit — and after spending some time gawking at it and staring into its murky depths, we’re fascinated with the thing.

500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - the box
The console makes an impression from the start, with hazy translucent packaging that hints at the see-through hardware within.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - box without the cover
The console itself is packed in a fabric sleeve rather than plastic, which lends an upscale feel to the proceedings. All the accessories are located beneath the blue cardboard panel on the right.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - overhead angle shot of the contents of the box
The contents of the box (clockwise from bottom left): DualShock 4 controller, vertical stand for the console, power cable, micro-USB cable, HDMI cable, mono headset, PlayStation Camera mount, PlayStation Camera and the PS4 Pro itself. Note that the headset’s earbud is translucent like the console and controller, but the camera and its stand are not.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - high angle shot of the console with controller in front of it
Here they are: the console and controller. The lightly colored piece that’s clearly visible through the top of the unit, taking up the rear third or so of the console, is a metal plate covering the PS4’s power supply.

It feels like a throwback, evoking the ’90s fad of toys and tech with clear or translucent plastic shells. That includes, of course, video game hardware — heck, Sony even released translucent PS4 controllers last year in a variety of colors. Unfortunately, we didn’t have anything like those gamepads or a Funtastic Series Nintendo 64 in “Ice Blue” lying around to compare to this fancy console.

But one thing that’s notable about the 500 Million PS4 Pro is that the plastic is clear blue. While it’s a dark blue, it’s not hazy like most “clear” hardware is — in the right light, there’s nothing to obscure the innards of this high-tech piece of electronics except a bluish tint. You’ll see that for yourself in these photos.

500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - close-up of PlayStation logo on top of the console
The top of the unit features the classic PlayStation logo in copper detailing.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - front right angle shot of the console
Every surface of the console — including the underside, as you’ll see — is glossy. So yes, this thing is a magnet for dust and fingerprints.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - close-up of the front right corner of the console with ‘PS4’ logo and numbered copper plate
No. 37,297 of 50,000.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - high angle shot of the console with controller in front of it
The console’s Blu-ray drive sits on the left side of the front half, of course. In case you were wondering about what was on the right side, it’s a large fan.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - shot of rear port array on console
The rear port array is the same as it ever was on any PS4 Pro.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - console in vertical orientation with controller standing next to it
The PS4 Pro is thick enough that it doesn’t really need a stand to prop it up in a vertical orientation. But it was nice of Sony to include one in this package.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - console in vertical orientation, seen from the underside
Let’s see those guts! The piece of metal that takes up the vast majority of this view — when the console is sitting horizontally, this side is on the bottom — is a shield that blocks electromagnetic interference. Also note that, as on any PS4 Pro, the underside of the unit features eight small rubber feet in the shapes of the PlayStation buttons.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - front angle shot of the console with power light
The see-through shell means this PS4’s power light is visible through the middle section of the unit’s front face — not just in a narrow strip running beneath the power and eject buttons.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - angle shot of controller standing up
It took some time for us to notice this: The DualShock 4’s face buttons are all in the same pale blue hue, rather than their traditional four-color scheme.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - close-up of center of controller
The copper logo on the PlayStation button is another nice touch.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - overhead shot of controller
Sony will sell the translucent blue controller by itself, as well as a matching wireless headset, in the U.S. and Canada starting in early September.
500 Million Limited Edition PS4 Pro - overhead angle shot of the console with controller in front of it
Did we mention the console has a very glossy, reflective surface? Seriously, it’s like a mirror.