Turn your PS4 into a laptop for $1100

Turn your PS4 into a laptop for $1100

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If you’re sick and tired of playing your PS4 in the living room, the solution is finally here. The man who brought you the Xbox One laptop has finally developed a very similar device designed for those of us who prefer gaming on the PS4. This so-called “PlayBook 4″ doesn’t come cheap, though. Converting your existing console into a laptop form factor will end up costing you around $1,100 plus shipping.
Ed Zarick, the man behind some of the most well-known laptopified consoles, has done it again. This PS4-based laptop is modeled in 3D on a PC, and made with a combination of 3D-printing, laser cutting, and CNC milling. Each one is made to order, so you can choose exactly how it looks. The core unit color can be either black or white, and 3D-printed trim can be just about any color imaginable. Based on what Zarick has shown off, the PlayBook 4 looks just as polished as his previous efforts, so the aesthetically-minded among us will be very pleased.

Along with the guts of a PS4 and the custom housing, this console laptop also uses a 22-inch 1080p display from Vizio. It’s not exactly the same experience as playing a game on your 65-inch TV at home, but with a pixel density of roughly 100 PPI, those games are going to look incredibly crisp.

While Zarick’s site doesn’t specifically mention weight, it’s pretty easy to do some rough estimates like we did with the Xbox One laptop. The PS4 weighs in at roughly 6.1 pounds, and a 22-inch 1080p Vizio TV is roughly 6.5 pounds. Put them both together, and we have an estimated weight of 12.6 pounds. You definitely don’t want to carry this “laptop” around town under your arm, but it’s light enough to travel decently in your luggage. It doesn’t run on battery power, but he did manage to get the console and screen working off of a single power cord.
Okay, a heavy and bulky PS4 laptop is already a tough sell, but the worst part is definitely the cost. If you supply the console, the conversion will cost $1,095 plus shipping. If you buy the finished product directly from Zarick himself, it’ll cost you $1,395 plus shipping. In addition, you’ll need to tack on $50 if you want an HDMI out on your PlayBook 4 for compatibility with other displays. It’s certainly one of the coolest console hacks I’ve ever seen, but unless you’re independently wealthy, you’re probably better off just buying a Vita and using Remote Play.