If you purchased a PS5 in the U.S. on its November 12, 2020 release date, it will be one year since you purchased Sony's newest piece of gaming hardware. Unfortunately, this means that the one-year manufacturer's warranty on the console will expire.

While this may be a concerning fact you never considered, you still have options available to you.

For starters, the PS5's one-year warranty will expire, which means that if you experience any problems with the console, such as overheating or erratic shutdowns, the time frame for getting a free repair will rapidly shorten. after November 11, any repairs you request from Sony will be charged.

Also, if you did not get an extended warranty at the retailer where you purchased your PS5, you will also be well past the time you can get a used warranty elsewhere; warranty services such as SquareTrade and Upsie only cover gaming systems purchased within the last 30 or 60 days, respectively. It's worth keeping in mind for future gaming system purchases.

If the manufacturer's warranty expires and you need to pay for repairs, you will either have to pay Sony to fix it or find a local repair store. The former is likely to take considerably longer, the latter is somewhat riskier, and may require careful research to find a place you can trust with your hardware.

In addition, a kind Redditor recently noted that Costco's return policy is very flexible, almost limitless. This does not guarantee that a defective PS5 purchased at Costco can be returned after a year, but given the company's history of returning even very old items, there is at least a pretty big chance.

Finally, if the PS5 was purchased with certain credit cards from Amex, Visa, and Citi, it may already offer a two-year extended manufacturer's warranty. If you were not aware of this at the time you purchased the console, we recommend that you examine the fine print in detail and possibly contact your credit card company to see if you were able to take advantage of this often-overlooked benefit.

Are there any exceptions?

There is good news for European buyers. If you purchased your PS5 on November 19, the UK launch date, you still have almost a full year to start worrying about this.

This is true in other countries as well, so if you get your console outside of the US, it is worth checking to see if your country requires Sony to protect it for more than two years.

Consumer protection laws in some countries may even extend this significantly.

Now that the warranty period is ending, it is more important than ever to exercise extreme caution when handling the PS5 and its peripherals. Here are some tips to follow to reduce the likelihood of problems:

Store in a well-ventilated area. Sony's newest game console is extremely powerful, but that power also means that it generates a lot of heat at the same time; never place your PS5 in a location where there is not enough space for the heat to escape.

Connect electronics to surge protectors. Random electrical surges are a common way for electronic equipment to fail. we recommend that you connect your PS5 to a universal power supply (UPS). a UPS not only keeps your PS5 safe from surges, but it also has a built-in battery to keep the device powered on and running. a UPS is too costly, we recommend taking a look at our best surge protector list for some solid and reliable units.

Beware of children and codes. It is best not to leave the PS5 unattended where it could be knocked over and damaged by children or adults. In particular, it is an ironclad rule not to leave the cord extended in high-traffic areas to avoid such undesirable consequences.

Do not leave the power on all the time. Every electronic device has a lifespan; turn off the PS5 when not in use to avoid accelerating its lifespan.

Avoid drinks and moisture. Moisture and electronics do not mix well, so avoid placing drinks near your PS5 or controller. Even a little water or soda can damage the internal components. It is also not a good idea to place the game console near humid items such as fish tanks, kitchen utensils, air conditioners, etc.

Clean it occasionally. One of the assumptions many people make is that there is basically nothing wrong with leaving a game console in place all the time. In reality, you need to periodically remove the console from the area where it is placed, clean around it, and blow out any dust that has accumulated in the areas where the console breathes in and out. A can of compressed air is usually sufficient. If you live in a dusty climate, you may need to open the game console to clean dust from the vents and fans.