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Sony has stolen the headlines lately

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for how the PlayStation 5 uses a cooling method

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that's pretty different from what we've seen in consoles.

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And while people have modified their consoles

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to be liquid cooled, similar to what you'd see on a PC,

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we're not talking about putting the CPU under a water block.

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Instead, Sony has replaced

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the traditional thermal interface material

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with liquid metal.

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Sounds like something out of a James Cameron movie,

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but what exactly is it?

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And is it actually better

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than your typical goopy thermal paste?

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Liquid metal is actually a eutectic alloy

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of three different metals, gallium, indium, and tin.

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The word eutectic means that it has a melting point lower

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than any of the three metals do on their own.

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Pretty cool.

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The kind of liquid metal used for chip cooling

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doesn't solidify until you lower the temperature

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down to negative 19 degrees Celsius,

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or negative two Fahrenheit for you Yankees out there.

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So unless you're taking your PS5 outside

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during wintertime on the Canadian prairies,

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it stays liquid under normal conditions.

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But liquid metal isn't something that Sony just invented.

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It's actually been around for a while,

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and it's had a small niche in the PC enthusiast space,

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with some enthusiasts and over-clockers

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favoring it over thermal paste.

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And it can be very effective,

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regardless of whether you're using it

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on top of the integrated heat spreader,

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or going a step further and delidding your chip,

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replacing the stock thermal integration material

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with liquid metal.

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Liquid metal works better

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because it's a more effective conductor of heat.

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In contrast to thermal paste,

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which usually has some metal combined with some gas,

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the thermal paste does a better job of heating it,

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silicone, liquid metal is, well, all metal.

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But why exactly did Sony decide to go with liquid metal

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when plain old thermal paste is cheaper, more common,

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and seems to be good enough in most cases?

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I'll tell you right after this message from Taskade,

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Okay, Sony, why liquid metal now?

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The PlayStation 5 has power approaching

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that of an upper mid-range PC,

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which is not something we've been able to say

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about previous consoles.

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This means that there's a heck of a lot of computing muscle

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packed into a relatively small,

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small area with the CPU and GPU residing on the same chip.

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And as you might've guessed, it generates a lot of heat.

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Even so, Sony could have used thermal paste,

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which is cheaper per unit than liquid metal.

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But not only did Sony go with liquid metal

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to cool off that high performance SOC more efficiently,

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but it also helps to keep the PS5 quieter.

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Had Sony used regular thermal paste,

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it would have needed to spend more money

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on higher performing heat sinks and fans,

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which would have both made the system louder

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and driven up the cost.

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So even though liquid metal is pricier,

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it still saves money for Sony in aggregate,

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since they don't have to spend as much money

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on the rest of the cooling system.

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But what about for you, the home PC enthusiast?

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Is liquid metal a good idea for you?

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If you just need a single tube of the stuff,

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it's not much more expensive than regular old thermal paste,

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so why not go out and get some?

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Well, the big knock on is that because it's liquid,

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it flows much more easily than thermal paste,

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meaning it's easy to spill.

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And it's high connectivity means

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it can easily cause a ShortCircuit

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if you get it anywhere on your system

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other than on top of your CPU.

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This is the same reason that some people

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opt for ceramic thermal paste

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over regular metal-based thermal paste.

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Your system might run a few degrees warmer,

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but there's no risk of a short,

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a risk that just gets larger with liquid metal.

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So if you do decide to go this route,

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start with a small amount and be very careful when applying.

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Also, many liquid metals should not come in contact

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with aluminum coolers, as this can cause degradation.

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But if you take the appropriate precautions,

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it can make your home rig pretty cool.

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Ha, see what I did there?

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So thanks for watching, guys.

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If you liked this video, hit like, hit subscribe,

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and hit us up in the comments section

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with your ideas for topics

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that we should cover in the future.