Either you were lucky enough to catch Sony’s new PlayStation 5 on launch day, fast enough to get one when the stock has reappeared or you’ve got one for Christmas, it’s important to have one. Congratulations and welcome to the wonderful world of state-of-the-art console games! We’ve put together some not-so-obvious tips and features that will help you get the most out of your new console.
Are you looking for accessories to prepare your new system? Check out our guides to the best gaming headphones, the best wireless gaming headphones and the best gifts for PlayStation lovers for our top picks. If you just want to know more about the PS5, here’s exactly what’s new.
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1. Learn how to disable PS5
You may be making fun of this first tip. How hard can it be to turn off the console? I certainly didn’t spend 10 minutes trying to find the option, if that’s what you suggest! It looks like you have to press the PlayStation button in the middle of the controller once; don’t hold it down like you would on a PS4. After you touch that button, a menu appears at the bottom of the screen and you will see the power icon on the far right. The menu wraps up, so it’s faster to go left.
You can also press the physical power button on the hardware itself, which is at the bottom, if you have it vertically or on the left, if your PS5 sits horizontally on the media console.
2. Transfer files and games from PS4
If you are upgrading from a PS4, then we recommend that you transfer games, settings, and other files to your new console. You will be prompted to do this during setup, but if you missed it, you can go back and do it later. Before you get started, it’s a good idea to have both consoles connected to each other and turned on with an Ethernet cable to connect them (you can use Wi-Fi, but it will take longer).
When you’re ready, go to settings on PS5, then System> System software. Choose Data transfer, Keep going and choose your PS4. When Prepare for data transfer appears, you have to hold down the power button on the PS4 for a few seconds until it sounds. Choose what you want to move and choose Start Transfer.
3. See how long you played a game
Now it’s easier than ever to see how many hours you spent playing PlayStation games. Choose your avatar at the top right of the PS5’s home screen and select Profile, then Games tab. You will see the total playing time next to each game with the trophy progress to the right.
4. Make sure you play the PS5 version of a game
While it is great that you can play PS4 games on PS5, it can sometimes create a bit of confusion. Some older titles have been improved for the newer console, so you’ll want to make sure you’re playing the updated version for the best experience. Take a closer look at the game title on the home screen. Any PS4 version will tell you PS4 together. You can also scroll right and choose Game library, then tap Sort and filter icon on the left and filter the games by Platform.
5. Change the controller settings
The DualSense controller of the PS5 is excellent and represents a real step compared to the DualShock 4. The sensation of the triggers and the vibration range add to the immersion and change dynamically in response to the action on the screen. The default settings suit me, but if you want to reduce vibration intensity or trigger effects, then enter Settings> Accessories> Controllers. Because you can use the old DualShock 4 controllers to play PS4 games on PS5, there is also an option here to reduce the brightness of their indicators.
6. Get more immersive sound with 3D sound
A key feature in the PS5 is 3D Audio, which allows game developers to link sound effects to everything around them to enhance the illusion that you’re actually in the environment, but you need to use headphones or headphones to take advantage. 3D audio is enabled by default, so connect the headphones to the controller and you should hear the difference right away, but you’ll want to calibrate it for your ears by Settings> Sound> Audio output. Under the option to Turn on 3D sound, choose Adjust the 3D audio profile and choose the one that sounds best to you from the five available levels.
7. Play Astro playroom, Then Delete it
Every PS5 comes with Astro playroom installed and worth checking out. This fun 3D platformer is positively packed with PlayStation references that will give you a dose of warm and fuzzy nostalgia, but also does a great job of showing what the new DualSense controller is capable of. When you’re done, you can free up almost 11 gigabytes of storage by finding and deleting it. Settings> Storage> Console storage> Games and applications. Don’t worry, you can download it for free from PlayStation Store anytime.
8. Get more storage space
One of the ways the PS5 improves on the PS4 is with an SSD (lightning fast) drive for storage. Segmenting games and reducing the need for duplicate data also means that game downloads should be smaller, but you can fill in the 667 gigs available fairly quickly if you play many different games. Sony has promised to activate the internal slot that allows you to add an approved SSD card in the near future. For now, you can connect an external SSD or HDD that supports USB 3.0 or later to a USB port on your PS5. Great is that you can only play PS4 games stored on that external drive.
9. Choose game presets
You can save some time by setting up games for your preferences by accessing Settings> Saved data> Game / application settings> Game presets. You can select your favorite game difficulty, choose between performance or graphics quality, and change the camera movement for the first and third person, which includes the ability to set reverse commands by default.