Damaging a PS4 is every gamers worst nightmare, but is the PS4 easily damaged? I have a PS4 but never broke it so I researched the internet wanting to know if the PS4 is easily damaged.
If your PS4 drops from the ground from 5 feet or less it should work perfectly fine, you should expect some cosmetic damage or surface scratching but it is not designed to resist heavy falls. Generally, it is not easily damaged and is a well-made console.
The PS4 is definitely not indestructible, but you do see in some YouTube videos people struggling to break it. I will explain what to do if your PS4 is broken, and how to tell if your PS4 is broken.. Read on to find out
Why The PS4 Is Not Easily Damaged
When the PS4 and Xbox One were first released way back in 2013 the internet was flooded with various videos of people destroying their consoles for YouTube glory, what better way to see how much damage a PS4 can take?
Take the video above, Angry Grandpa destroys his grandsons PS4 and the PS4 STILL looks in good shape after getting repeatedly smashed with a wrench and dropped! The PS4 still works even after the damage, as you can tell from 1:26 and 1:37 in the video as the PS4 is still beeping!
Making the PS4 indestructible is an impossible task for Sony but videos like Angry Grandpa show how resistant the PS4 is from likely everyday damage like falling from a countertop or being dropped when you have the PS4 in your hands.
For a more realistic scenario, unless you have a crazy GrandPa who really is going to destroy your PS4 with a hammer. Check the below video of the channel WIRED drop test between the Xbox One and PS4.
Two drop tests one from 5 feet and another from 15 feet were taken, the PS4 survived the first but unfortunately stopped working from the second 15 foot drop whilst the original chunky Xbox One was still fine.
So if you are asking me the PS4 drop limit is 5 feet any more than that and your risking serious damage to your console, but after all 15 feet is REALLY high so unless your PS4 fell out of your window which can happen it should be fine.
How Do You Know If Your PS4 Is Broken?
- Problem with the hard drive if games are lagging or applications and games are failing randomly
- If the console fails to boot
- If the CPU is damaged
- If your PS4 gets video signal interruptions
- If your PS4 has a loud fan
I will explain what causes every issue and how to fix it!
How To Fix PS4 Hard Drive
The PS4 hard drive is like the brain of the PS4 as it contains a lot of sensitive information like your media content, games, applications, and much more.
Whilst whilst you can get a new one if you don’t act fast enough your data could be lost forever!
Hard drives do not have a lifetime lifespan, they last a certain amount of time and the more the PS4 is used the quicker the hard drive will have problems.
If your hard drive is lagging this causes corrupted data and applications not to start and games to fail randomly. This CAN be fixed as the PS4 hard drive is easy to replace but all data must be backed up beforehand.
Upgrading your PS4 with a new hard drive will bring new life into your console if it suffers from the mentioned problems, did you know replacing it is quite easy?
Find out how to do it in my post here but you still need an external hard drive so you can back up all your save files and game data on your hard drive, as your old hard drive will have all your games and saved data so you need to transfer them over.
Not all external hard drives are compatible with the PS4 my personal recommendation is the WD 4TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive from Amazon, it is considered one of the best and it looks like a mini PS4 so it will fit just right into your setup!
How To Fix Your Console Not Turning On
If your console fails to turn on it could be an operating system issue which is fixed by reinstalling the PS4 firmware, find out how to do it in my post here.
Again this will delete all your data so make sure you back it up using the Seagate above or any other external hard drive you have! Also your CPU could be damaged.
If You Have A New Hard Drive And Your PS4 Is Still Lagging
But Dillon you say, my hard drive is fresh out of the box and my PS4 is still lagging! Don’t worry there is a way to fix it.
You need to dissemble your PS4 and replace the thermal paste, this cools the CPU and improves the heat transfer of your CPU making it run smoother. I recommend you change the thermal paste every 6-8 months but some pastes can last up to 5 years!
To take apart your PS4 you will need a screwdriver set like this one from Amazon for a small price you could potentially save buying a new PlayStation so it’s money well spent!
You need some thermal paste for your PS4, get the Cooler Thermal Paste for a great price on Amazon here both things will cost less than $20 which is a lot cheaper than a new PS4 am I right?
It isn’t hard at all to disassemble your PS4 watch the above video on how to do it, or take a look at Fixit post here.
If Your PS4 Video Signal Interupts
If the PS4 ever goes randomly black or doesn’t have a signal at all this is an issue with the GPU or the video signaling chip or the HDMI port itself. Replace the thermal paste to fix the GPU but video chip problems are a more awkward fix.
Your PS4 could be working fine aside from this problem and your PS4 is still useless as you cannot see your games! Your only option will be claiming a warranty or paying Sony for repairs. Although an HDMI port fix isn’t too expensive and only costs around $20-$30
This is how you can claim your warranty for your PS4 directly from the PlayStation website
“You must visit PlayStation Service Request Support or call 1-800-345-7669 to receive a return authorization and shipping instructions. A VALID PROOF OF PURCHASE IN THE FORM OF A BILL OF SALE OR RECEIPT FROM A RETAILER WITH THE DATE OF THE ORIGINAL PURCHASE MUST BE PRESENTED TO OBTAIN WARRANTY SERVICE”
Your PS4 Has A Loud Fan
By far the most common problem and it’s caused by dust, too much dust is the biggest cause of console death in every console ever made.
To fix the issue do the thermal paste method of check my specific post on how to stop your PS4 from sounding like a jet engine.
But the short fixes is disassembled the console and use a compressed air can to clean all the dust and take the fan out soak it in water and use a hairdryer to dry it before putting it back.
If you do all these steps I guarantee your PS4 will thank you and will last way longer then before! Happy gaming.
Recommend Products
WD 4TB Elements Portable External Hard Drive – USB 3.0 (Amazon Link)
Screwdriver Tool Kit For PS4
High Performance Thermal Paste
