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Oct 22, 2024

16 Best PS5 Accessories (2024), Tested and Reviewed | WIRED

If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. Learn more. The PlayStation lineup is getting bigger, with the addition of the PS5 Slim and the upcoming PS5 Pro. The

If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. Learn more.

The PlayStation lineup is getting bigger, with the addition of the PS5 Slim and the upcoming PS5 Pro. The cybernetic clamshell tower of a console is packed to the gills with killer hardware. The PlayStation 5 can run games in native 4K, hit frame rates over 120 frames per second, and render gorgeous, ray-traced environments in stunning detail. Still, not everything you need comes in the box. A few more add-ons will make your game sessions more enjoyable. From charging docks and gaming headsets to storage expansion cards and the PlayStation Portal, these are the best PS5 accessories of the dozens we've tested.

Be sure to check out our other PS5 guides, including the Best PS5 Games, PS5 vs. PS5 Slim vs. PS5 Pro Comparison, and tips to get the most out of the console.

Updated October 2024: We added the PowerA DualSense Charging Dock, DualSense Edge Controller, PS VR2 Sense Controller Charging Dock, the Samsung S90D QD-OLED TV, and info about the PS VR2 PC adapter.

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It's 2024 and game consoles still don't ship with two controllers. The first thing you'll need with your new PS5 is an extra gamepad if you want to get in on any couch co-op, and the best one is still Sony's official DualSense model. No other third-party controller packs the same level of immersive feedback as the DualSense.

Thanks to the placement of haptic feedback motors throughout the controller, you can feel more nuanced vibrations than you can with other controllers. It's like spatial audio for your hands. If something whips by your character on the left side, you might feel a little rumble under your left hand. Games can control how much resistance the left and right shoulder triggers give you. If you're pulling the drawstring on a bow and arrow, for instance, a game might make it more difficult to press the triggers. It's a great controller, even if strick drift remains a long-term problem.

There's nothing more annoying than inviting your buddy over for some couch co-op, only to discover that your less-favorite controller is dead. That's where charging docks come in. Keeping multiple controllers charged is a task too big for a single USB cable. It's much nicer to drop them in a dock when you're done playing instead of remembering to plug them back in. We previously featured Sony's official charging dock, but this one from PowerA is a little cheaper and, for my money, a nicer experience. It has a mirrored layout with a convenient arch in the center for the charging cable, so it doesn't look out of place no matter how you orient it on your entertainment unit. Plus, it matches the white-on-black aesthetic of the PS5 without looking too ostentatious.

The PS5 has a design that could charitably be described as “bold” but it's certainly eye-catching. Doubly so with the rather wide range of alternate color covers Sony offers. One set has galactic-themed names like Nova Pink and Starlight Blue. The Deep Earth Collection introduces red, blue, and silver covers, each with a metallic sheen. These won't improve your gameplay but can help your PS5 brighten your living room. Just make sure you buy the cover that matches your specific model—a cover made for the Digital Edition, for example, won't work on a PS5 with a disc drive.

It's surprisingly easy to pop your console open and install your own lightning-quick M.2 SSD storage drives. This is one of our favorite bare-drive SSDs. This model achieved speeds of up to 5,100 Mbps in our testing, which is invaluable for tasks like gaming, where sitting around waiting on loading screens can really drag the experience down. The drive also generated very little heat in our testing, which makes it great for the PS5 since the console can get pretty hot.

If you’re not comfortable with cracking open your PS5, I don’t blame you. This WD Black external drive is another great option, though it's ideal for archiving games or storing screenshots and recordings. In our testing, it wasn't quite fast enough to run some of the biggest AAA games directly, but that's what internal storage is for. It's faster and easier to copy games over from an external drive like this one, rather than re-downloading a game from the PlayStation Store, so use this one to keep your library close at hand. We have a few more picks for external drives in our Best Portable SSDs guide.

Few upgrades will improve your home theater and gaming setup more than just getting a soundbar. We have a lot of suggestions in our Best Soundbars guide, but this Yamaha SR-C20A has the dual distinction of not only being our top overall pick but also being one of the more affordable options on our list. It's small, light, and has 100 watts of powerful audio that can fill your living room with every explosion, jump scare, or … whatever sounds cozy games make.

The Arctis 7P+ is one of my favorite gaming headsets for good reason. It gets up to 30 hours of battery life and comes with a wireless USB-C dongle that makes it compatible with most systems. So you can use it for your extended Spider-Man 2 sessions, and then swap it over to your Switch, or even use it with your phone. It doesn't hurt that these headphones sound great too.

Need something a little cheaper? The HyperX Cloud Stinger Core is a great pick if you need a headset that'll produce rich sound with an ultra-clear microphone attached. It's a no-frills headset that gets the job done and stays out of your way. It's also comfortable to wear for long periods, which can be important during marathon gaming sessions when your roommate is trying to sleep. Read our Best Gaming Headsets guide for more options.

In a market that's suddenly flooded with gaming handhelds of sometimes questionable quality, Sony's PlayStation Portal (8/10, WIRED Recommends) stands out in two main ways. First, it's only $200, substantially cheaper than handhelds from Valve, Asus, and Lenovo. The second distinction is … it doesn't play games. Not directly anyway. Instead, it relies on streaming from your existing PlayStation 5. Is your partner using the TV? No problem, hop on the couch next to them and stream your PS5 games to the Portal.

While you can stream games to your phone or tablet with the PS Remote Play app, the Portal is straightforward to set up and simpler to use. It also feels better to play because the device is nearly identical to a typical PS5 controller, but split down the middle with a frankly gorgeous screen stuck between its two halves.

The DualSense Edge is the controller you get when you're getting picked off by Widowmaker one too many times, or you're sick of trying to keep a scope on Genji. This controller has customizable paddles, swappable control sticks, and shortcuts for game-specific profiles so you can tailor everything about the experience to your exact needs.

And I do mean everything. You can customize the actuation point on the L2 and R2 triggers so they'll register a shot from a light tap. The rear paddles can be customized to any button. I found this particularly helpful for flying around as Mercy in Overwatch 2 because the default configuration of her boost is in an awkward place for me. There are also two small Function buttons at the bottom of the controller, which make it easy to swap profiles so you can save different layouts for each game. If you spend many hours playing competitive games online, then this is a great controller for you. The only downside is that some components, like the Stick Module, are constantly out of stock.

★ Alternative: The Scuf Reflex controller ($200) plays a similar role to the DualSense Edge at the same price. It has four removable back paddles instead of two, though I prefer something a little less cluttered. It also requires you to remove the face plate to swap thumbsticks. Those minor differences aside, the Reflex is a great, comparable alternative, especially if you catch it on sale.

The PS5 isn't just an excellent game console. It also has apps to watch shows and movies on Netflix, Hulu, Max, and all the other streaming services. The downside is that the PS5 controller is a little annoying to use as a TV remote—especially if you share the space with non-gamers. The PS5 Media Remote is the perfect solution to this nuisance. When paired with the console, it can automatically set itself up to control power and volume to most TVs and soundbars, and the battery life from just two AA batteries lasts for months.

While the PlayStation Portal is probably the best way to stream games from your PS5, the PlayStation Remote Play app is a viable alternative. The service lets you play your PS5 games on your phone or tablet. That might not sound appealing at first, but the Backbone One controller makes the whole system click.

The Backbone One is an attachment for your phone that turns it into a mobile gaming device, similar to a Nintendo Switch. You can use it for other games on your phone too, not just the ones you stream. But streaming games from the PS5 with the Backbone PS5 edition is one of its best use cases. You can sit back on your couch, put something chill on your TV, and still play your PS5 games every bit as smoothly as you would straight from the source.

The Samsung S90D (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is currently our favorite TV for gamers. The QD-OLED panel provides rich colors, perfect black levels, and impressive brightness for an OLED display. It supports up to 120 frames per second on the PS5 for buttery smooth gameplay. It also has excellent off-angle viewing, which helps if (like me) your home's layout doesn't always allow for perfectly centering all parts of the couch to the center of the television.

If a soundbar isn't enough, and you are decking out your gaming space, the Nakamichi Shockwafe system is a great way to go. It's super expensive, but for that price, you get two subwoofers, a soundbar, and four surround sound speakers. It's overkill in the best way. With all the speakers set up, this system turns even the most humble YouTube video into a cinema-level experience.

They say it's the thought that counts, but that doesn't apply very well to expensive gaming devices. From a hardware perspective, the $550 PS VR2 is a pricey yet worthy successor to the original, but there's a very small list of unique, interesting games to run on it.

The PS VR2 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) features impressive eye-tracking, which stands out in games like Horizon Call of the Mountain. In this title, you can highlight menu items just by looking at them. The Sense VR controllers boast best-in-class haptic feedback, making it feel like you're grabbing something when you're interacting with objects in VR. It's one of the nicest VR headsets I've played with, but I'm a big believer in buying things based on what they are, not what they promise to be.

Right now, the PS VR2 is a comfortable, capable headset with quite a few VR games you could get elsewhere and a couple you can't. You can hop into a VR environment in No Man's Sky or play a few rounds of Beat Saber, but Horizon Call of the Mountain is still at the top of the pile a year and a half later. After being delayed for months, the highly anticipated horror game Phasmophobia is finally here this Halloween, but that's about it.

If all you want is Beat Saber, then you might be better off getting a Quest 3S, but if you also want to try the unique Horizon Call of the Mountain (and I do think that's worthwhile!), then go for it. Just don't buy it expecting a flood of new content in the future. If you do buy the PS VR2, I highly suggest snagging the Sense Controller Charging Station, as it makes recharging the controllers a breeze.

The PS VR2 headset might be an impressive bit of hardware, but since it doesn't have the software library to back it up, it can be a bit of a sunk cost. Sony tried to compensate for this by releasing a PC adapter that lets you use the headset with your Steam game library. It's a tempting idea, but in my experience, it's just not worth it. The Meta Quest 3 is a better fit and slightly cheaper if you're not looking for the highest-end, PC-compatible headset—and the Meta Quest 3S is even cheaper. While playing games with the PS VR2 attached to my desktop, I had issues with controller connectivity and visual glitches that were disorienting at best and nauseating at worst.

Some features that make the PS VR2 a worthwhile headset also aren't compatible when using the PC adapter either. Eye-tracking isn't available, and neither is HDR support. The latter is especially disappointing given the PS VR2's OLED panels. If you already have a PS VR2 headset and you're looking to get a little more out of your investment, then the adapter might be worth a look, but if your cost isn't already sunk, it might be better to avoid this one.

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