Sony sold 4.5 million PS5s worldwide last year. However, the Japanese manufacturer is now facing a shortage of components, which could make finding where to buy a PS5 even more difficult than it is now.

Sony had already claimed that the PS5 was its biggest launch ever. But to be able to sell so many consoles in less than two months after its November 12 launch in the U.S. is astounding.

If you have been following the post-launch coverage of the PS5, it will come as no surprise that Sony sold a large number of PS5 consoles; PS5 restocks sell out in just a few minutes. But the sales of these consoles show that the desire for Sony's new console is very strong, despite the fact that there are not that many games that can be played on the PS5.

But the more surprising information is that Sony is selling the PS5 at a loss. This means that those lucky enough to find a PS5 or PS5 Digital Edition with a disc drive have scored a bit of a tech bargain.

Sony did not reveal the exact cost breakdown for producing the PS5 and selling it for $499 or the Digital Edition for $399. However, Sony stated that it had to offset some of its profits because it "set the strategic price point for the PS5 hardware lower than the cost of manufacturing."

That is understandable given that the PS5 will offer users a console with 10 teraflops of graphics power, state-of-the-art PCI 4.0 SSDs, a DualSense controller with advanced haptics, and 4K gaming with ray tracing . A comparable PC would cost $1,500 or more.

This is nothing new; Sony sold the PS3 at a loss. By doing so, they were able to get Blu-ray players into many homes. And since Sony gets a share of every Blu-ray sale, it was a shrewd move to be the first to make a loss on hardware. Sony also made a lot of money from the sale of games and fees for its services.

So it is not a big deal for Sony to do the same with the PS5. From what we've seen with the console, it's clear that services like PlayStation Plus are front and center, and the interface is quite suitable for flagging new game purchases.

It is not unreasonable to predict that the more than 4 million PS5s sold last year will continue to generate money for the life of that console.

This is good in two ways: the $499 price is definitely a bargain, given the hardware and performance the PS5 offers, and the innovative controller. Also, the more revenue Sony generates, the better it will be able to serve gamers with better support, such as PlayStation Plus.

Of course, this is easier said than done: getting a PS5 is still ridiculously difficult, and availability is unlikely to change for several months. But when that changes, 2021 will likely be the year of the PS5.