PS5 Scalpers Can Now Sell Through Walmarts Website

Walmart is now letting scalpers sell their PlayStation 5s for massively inflated prices on its own website. While this means that there are now PS5s available to buy on the Walmart site, the powerful new console is being posted for enormous markups by scalpers.

The PS5 has been nearly impossible to get a hold of worldwide since the gaming console was released in November 2020. The shortages have been experienced all around the world, with demand far outpacing the rate of production. Months later, any PS5s that go up for preorder are still sold out fairly quickly. The lack of units is for the most part due to the COVID-19 pandemic causing many factories around the world to be closed down ahead of the PS5’s release, limiting the number of products that could be made beforehand. This shortage is not set to end anytime soon, even with factories coming back into business.

Walmart is desperately trying to keep up with the massive online retailer Amazon in terms of sales. According to PlayStationLifestyle, one way the company decided to try and compete was to allow sellers to set up storefronts on the Walmart website, similar to how Amazon operates. Unfortunately, this has allowed console scalpers just one more legitimate market to use in order to move their stocks of PS5s for inflated prices. The disc edition of the PS5 is being listed for over $1000, and the digital edition for around $900. This is almost double the recommended retail price for these units.

The PS5 is the fastest-selling console in history, and Sony has stated that stock shortages are set to continue into 2022. Demand has been outpacing the rate of production since the PS5 was released, creating an enormous market for quick scalpers who were able to pick up multiple units early on. These scalpers buy large quantities of consoles and resell them for almost double the amount, utilizing bots to snatch up stock from retailers online faster than humans can. Unfortunately, some people aren’t willing to wait for more PS5s to show up in stock, and end up paying for these inflated units, encouraging more of this behavior.

This will continue to be a problem until the stock shortages are finally brought to an end. The PlayStation 5 has outsold its predecessor the PS4 in Japan, and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Hopefully these stock issues are resolved soon, so that legitimate customers can enjoy the new machines without having to pay exorbitant rates to predatory scalpers.

YouTube channel DIY Perks transformed the PlayStation 5 into a more compact machine, essentially removing the bulk from the console's exterior design. It's no secret that the PS5 is unusually large for a modern console. Sony's latest hardware stands over 15-inches tall, compared to the Xbox Series X's height of less than 12 inches; the Series S stands a mere 10.8 inches in total.

There does exist a reason for the heft and height of the newest PlayStation system, however. The console's architects wanted to emphasize airflow in an effort to make the platform as quiet as possible. Thus, the PS5 boasts a hulking heatsink, plenty of internal space, a massive fan, and air vents that circle around its exterior. Less than a year into the hardware's life cycle, it seems these efforts weren't for naught. The system is relatively silent by most accounts, especially compared to the incredibly loud PlayStation 4 that often sounds as though it's preparing for liftoff.