PS5 consoles are hard to come by these days, especially if you’re an avid gamer in South Africa.
UPDATE: This article was updated on Tuesday 31 May 2022 with information on the availability of the PS5 console at Raru.co.za, BT Games, Incredible Connection and KooDoo.
PlayStation 5 consoles: What’s the latest supply update?
Major retailers in the country and in international markets restocked the much-sought-after Sony console in the last two months of 2021 but, as expected, the units that were available quickly sold out.
More daunting, perhaps, is the fact that 2022 could spell yet another year-long drought for those who were not able to purchase the console.
Central to high levels of uncertainty around PS5 console supply in 2022 is the surging COVID-19 pandemic in emerging nations where Sony produces the game’s components.
Slow vaccination drives and high COVID-19 cases in poor countries continue to hamper progress, and according to Sony CEO Jim Ryan, it’s hard to forecast when manufacturing plants that produce microchips and other console parts will resume full operations.
“We’ve built more PlayStations faster than we ever have before which makes me happy. But on the other hand, we’re some time from being able to meet all the demand that’s out there, which makes me feel bad,” he said back in November 2021.
When will PS5 consoles be available in South Africa?
In South Africa, you will not find a single console retailer with the PS5 in stock. As reported by Tech Radar, Game in the United Kingdom (UK) was the only electronics giant in Europe that still had stock of the console at the start of 2022.
However, by now, all units would have been sold out.
Swisher Post made contact with leading PS5 console retailers in South Africa to find out when stock will be available and these are the latest updates:
BT Games
BT Games has stock of PS5 consoles with two DualSense controllers retailing for R10 999. Customers have 24 hours to complete the purchase and can only secure one console per sale.
Game Store
Game in South Africa does not have stock of PS5 consoles. Nothing is known, at this stage, about when they will be available.
Incredible Connection
Incredible Connection has a PS5 console bundle available for purchase at R14 999. The package comes with a glacier white console, a controller, headsets plus four games. The landing page says nothing about current stock availability but, it seems, the tech retailer may be the only hope of securing a PS5 in South Africa.
KooDoo
KooDoo currently has an assortment of stock of the PS5 console. Customers can get a bundle deal for as low as R12 999, or the basic console with one DualSense controller for R11 999.
Makro
Makro currently has limited stock of the PS5 console bundle that comes with four games at R13 999. The sale is exclusively online and customers are only allowed to purchase a maximum of two consoles.
Raru.co.za
This online retailer does not have available stock of the PS5 console. However, gamers can save the item on their wish list to receive notification of pre-orders which, according to Raru.co.za, may start on 31 May 2022.
UPDATE: Allocation of PS5 consoles at raru.co.za is sold out.
Takealot
Takealot’s last batch of consoles sold out in late November 2021. Currently, the online retailer does not have stock available and no indication has been made on when stock will be available.
