PlayStation 4 had a good Christmas, but sales are slowing

Sony's Christmas sales figures are in and they're good - but they're down noticeably on those from previous years.

PlayStation shifted 6.1m PS4 consoles over the final three months of 2019, down from 8.1m over the same period in 2018.

All of that puts PlayStation 4 at a lifetime total of 108.9m consoles shipped worldwide as of 31st December last year.

This decline is far from surprising, of course. PlayStation 5 is announced - even if details remain thin on the ground - and is scheduled to arrive in time for Christmas 2020.

What is interesting is the long-term downward trend which can be seen clearly in the console's lifetime figures. PlayStation 4's biggest sales quarter was Christmas 2017 - every subsequent year has trailed off.

^{Image credit: Daniel Ahmad}

And yet, 108.9m PlayStation 4 consoles is still a remarkable achievement. It is around double the suspected sales of what Xbox One has managed, and double where Nintendo Switch is currently sat.

Across 2019 as a whole, Sony shipped 14.7m PS4 consoles, down from 17.7m the year before. Sony's forecast for 2020 is conservative - with sales for this coming quarter expected to be half those a year ago.

More details on PlayStation 5 can't come too soon...