PS5 will be on sale at Smyths Toys stores across the UK on Thursday morning

Smyths Toys stores across the UK will reportedly be taking PlayStation 5 pre-orders on Thursday morning.

That’s according to PS5 Stock UK, which has proven to be a highly reliable source of updates on console restocks during the Covid-19 pandemic.

It claims Smyths will be taking pre-orders for the standard disc PS5 model only and that the level of stock available will be “low”.

As has been the case previously, customers will be able to place pre-orders as soon as their local store opens and will need to put down a £20 deposit in order to secure the console.

UPDATE 02/12/21: VGC spoke to staff at several Smyths stores on Thursday morning who told us a bit more about how the retailer continues to handle PS5 sales.

Customers interested in buying a PS5 are advised to visit their local store and leave their contact details. The day before Smyths begins taking its next batch of pre-orders, those who have registered their interest should be contacted to let them know.

Some stores are opening early specifically to take PS5 pre-orders, which are going quickly. One Smyths employee said their store opened at 8am today and that the available stock was snapped up within about 15 minutes.

ORIGINAL STORY CONTINUES: Smyths has over 100 stores throughout the UK and Ireland, according to its website.

Sony has been flying PS5 stock into the UK in an attempt to better meet demand in the run-up to Christmas.

It recently chartered three Boeing 747 jets from Seoul, South Korea to London, each loaded with nearly 50 pallets of PS5 consoles, according to The Sun.

The PS5 stock carried by each 747 was reportedly enough to require 12 articulated lorries per jet to transport the cargo to UK distribution centres.

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Console manufacturers have struggled with stock shortages for over 18 months now, after the pandemic shut down essential supply chains and saw demand for gaming devices increase significantly as countries implemented social distancing measures.

The boss of AMD, which makes the CPUs and GPUs inside PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, has said she expects chip supply issues to ease gradually in the second half of 2022.

Chip maker Toshiba has also warned that supply issues for power regulating chips will stretch well into next year and perhaps even beyond.