New insights have emerged on the PS5 Pro's PS4 Image Enhancement feature, thanks to a thorough analysis by Digital Foundry. The results show subtle but noticeable improvements.
It's important to remember that this isn't the PS5 Pro's main focus. The feature primarily adds some extra sharpness to backwards-compatible games, mostly targeting titles that weren't updated for PS4 Pro or run at 1080p or lower.
So, what exactly does it do? While Digital Foundry can't say for certain, they believe it uses machine learning to upscale the image, making it look better on high-resolution displays like 4K TVs.
The PS4 Image Enhancement tool makes distant text and objects look clearer, giving a slight boost in sharpness. While not as good as true 4K, it works on top of existing visual issues like jagged edges or flickering in the original game.
Still, it does create a crisper picture, though sometimes with a small hit to performance. Paired with the PS5 Pro's stronger graphics chip, there's little reason to turn it off – but you can if you want.
Looking ahead, we hope Sony keeps improving this for the PS6. With tech like PSSR now available, the company could potentially offer great backwards compatibility on its next console.
The results here are nice bonuses, but we think Sony could do much more in this area with proper investment.
