The lack of components expanded with another item, but this time, it’s something that virtually all electronic devices use.

TheGamer reports that Toshiba has low hopes, expecting the next-gen console supply shortages could continue into 2023, as the company has problems with having enough power regulating chips the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series require. The scarcity is due to the shortages of raw materials. And if you have issues manufacturing such a common item, then the problem is serious!

“The supply of chips will remain very tight until at least September next year. In some cases, we may find some customers not being fully served until 2023. Game console makers are among the customers making the strongest demands, and I’m sincerely sorry for their frustration as none of them has a 100% satisfaction,” Takeshi Kamebuchi, a Toshiba director who does semiconductor production, said. Remember that it takes time from having an opened up supply to receiving the PlayStation 5. The chips need to be inserted into the consoles, which require several steps until a customer can obtain them! Not even PlayStation Direct, Sony’s direct-to-customer service, can speed this up.

This is different from the previously reported semiconductor shortages, as those focused mainly on the availability of memory and processor chips (the latter category is for CPUs and GPUs). These could push the lack of PlayStation 5 availability out to early-mid 2022, and Toshiba’s concerns could push it up to more than a year! Even Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) said it expects shortages into and beyond next year. (No wonder a few Hong Kong truck drivers have shifted smuggling operations from hard drugs to semiconductors due to the scarcity, TheGamer claims!)

Sony previously said that they would redesign the PlayStation 5 to ease the strain… but until now, all we saw was a console with a smaller heatsink and a fan with fewer ventilation blades.

Source: PSL