PlayStation Handheld May Have Exclusive Next-Gen AMD Graphics, Report Suggests
Sony may have exclusive access to AMD's next-generation graphics architecture for a potential PlayStation handheld, the tech experts at Digital Foundry have said.
Digital Foundry experts suggest Sony may have exclusive access to AMD's next-generation graphics architecture for a potential PlayStation handheld. Rumors of a next-generation PlayStation handheld have been circulating for some time, following the success of Nintendo's Switch and a plethora of PC gaming handhelds. In June, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Hideaki Nishino indicated that PlayStation may shift towards more hybrid, Switch-like consoles to cater to modern on-the-go players.
Digital Foundry's Richard Leadbetter stated that there have been behind-the-scenes discussions about Sony having an exclusive with AMD for RDNA 5 for handheld devices, with AMD's only other handheld chip being Z3, which is unlikely to have RDNA 5 graphics. Sony and AMD have been collaborating on Project Amethyst, resulting in successful games like PSSR 2 on the PS5 Pro and FSR 4.1 for PC and Xbox.
Microsoft is reportedly developing handheld gaming devices, with the first expected to launch by holiday 2027, followed by a next-gen console in 2028. AMD has hinted that FSR Diamond, part of Project Helix, will run on RDNA 5, suggesting that AMD may need to enhance its handheld chip offerings for various devices. Intel's Panther Lake handheld chip, launched at Computex 2026, outperforms AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme, which uses an older RDNA 3.5 GPU.
As handheld devices become increasingly expensive, the category may face extinction until the RAM crisis subsides. Sony's potential handheld might be the only one to afford the added cost of RDNA 5, but other devices with RDNA 5 are expected to emerge eventually, such as Xbox's own first-party handheld.
Written by urgent.news from IGN's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
