Last year, on November 12th, Sony released the next generation of its video game home console, the Playstation 5 (PS5). Much to the dismay of Playstation gamers, however, these consoles have since become nearly impossible to find in stock at major retail outlets, and though Sony has integrated a digital waitlist of these consoles whenever they become available, registering for the waitlist does not guarantee those enlisted a PS5 console and it remains unclear as to how many registrants will be selected by Sony to receive a PS5 console.
Regardless of these challenges, the PS5 console has remained a highly sought-after purchase for Playstation gamers and fans alike. Though it’s expected that Sony will release a new wave (or waves) of these consoles in the coming months, it is likewise expected that the number of PS5 consoles to be released in waves will remain lagging behind their demand.
As a result, here are some ways that you can find and buy a PS5 console this holiday season. Keep reading to learn more!
Tip #1: Check restock updates with retailer websites
While common retailers and retail outlets such as Walmart, Amazon, Target, Best Buy, and others are some of the most common and preferred means of obtaining a PS5 console, these major names and others have remained out-of-stock with their supply of PS5 consoles. As it currently stands, the only major retail outlet expected to see a restock of PS5s over the upcoming Thanksgiving/Black Friday weekend is Walmart—all others are projected to remain out of PS5s for the foreseeable future.
Thankfully, Tech Radar has created a live update feed of PS5 restocks expected to take place at major retailers throughout the 2021 holiday season. Note that most of these live updates only pertain to those retailers’ online stock supplies via their websites and not in-store supplies.
Tip #2: Check stock-trading websites like HotStock.io
Along with Tech Radar’s live update feed on PS5 restocks, another option available to watch for PS5 console restocks comes through stock-trading websites such as HotStock.io. According to Business Insider, this website and others like it alert followers as to which retail outlets closest to them last had physical PS5 consoles in stock and can allow for setting up alerts to trace these restocks across multiple retail outlets.
The only issue with checking for restocking updates through sites like these is that there are bound to be hundreds (if not thousands) of others like you also following those same alerts and updates in real-time. As such, it can surmount to a digital battle to add a PS5 console to your online cart and check-out in time to claim your own console while others do the same.
Tip #3: Create accounts with preferred retailers for restock updates
The last way to remain as up-to-date as possible on PS5 console restocks with your preferred retailers is to first create an online account with those retailers. Once done, you can set your account’s notifications to receive alerts as soon as that retailer announces it will be restocking its supply of PS5 consoles, be it in-store or simply online.
Unfortunately, other than this, there are very few ways (if any) to gain a clearer vantage point over when and where PS5 consoles will be restocked. But for the more ambitious Sony fans wishing for nothing more than to get their hands on a PS5 this holiday season, utilizing all three of these strategies together can pose greater advantages than simply using one of them alone.