Desperate dad reveals 'PS5 war room' with EIGHT screens where he spent 13 hours trying to buy console

A DEVOTED Dad spent 13 HOURS refreshing EIGHT screens in an incredible bid to get his son a PlayStation 5 for Christmas.

Stephen Hill, from Walsall, assembled a war room-style operation using a smartphone, laptop, five iPads and a PC in the hopes of buying one of the in-demand £450 consoles for eight-year-old Harrison.

Dad-of-three Stephen told Birmingham Mail that as soon as the clock struck midnight on release day, he was glued to the screens.

He'd saved links to dozens of retail websites – including GAME, John Lewis and Amazon – and even followed online blogs to check availability.

And after 13 hours of gruelling work, Stephen was able to secure a one of the consoles at 1.20pm on Thursday.

He said the ordeal "a lot of clicking and refreshing" on dozens of websites.

Stephen also managed to bag himself a brand new Xbox Series X – also £450 – when that launched in the UK last week.

"The demand for both consoles was high but I was very determined," the 39-year-old said.

"It's that time of year, all the kids want them so they can play the latest games, whenever a new one comes out it's always the way.

"But it's what the boys had asked for and as a parent, you want to give them what they want."

The PS5 went on sale in the UK yesterday and sold out at most major retailers within minutes.

Stephen revealed that his route to success involved using multiple gadgets to select every PS5 bundle on UK retailer Game's website.

Helped by his wife Emma, he eventually got hold of a PS5 bundled with the new Spider-Man Miles Morales game, setting him back £509.

While the PS5 is going to Harrison, Stephen's  autistic six-year-old son Isaac is getting the Xbox.

Luckily, his seven-year-old daughter Lillie-Mai is not as gaming-obsessed as her siblings.

Stephen said: "She's having a normal Xbox, a mobile phone and some other stuff."

He said it had been "a terrible year" for the family due to lockdown and losing a loved to Covid-19.

As a result, the loving dad wanted to make sure 'Santa' was able to deliver exactly what the kids wanted for Christmas.

He said: "I can't wait to see their faces when they open them."

PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X – when did they launch and how much do they cost?

Microsoft launched the Xbox Series X and its smaller, cheaper sibling, the Series S, on November 10.

The release date covered the UK, US, Australia and a bunch of other countries worldwide.

The disc-free Series S costs £249/$299, while the Xbox Series X comes in at £449/$499.

So how does that compare to the new Xbox's biggest rival, the PlayStation 5?

The PS5 launch fell on November 12, but not everywhere.

That date only stood for the US, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea.

UK gamers had to wait until November 19 to order one of the consoles.

The PS5 proper costs £449.99/$499.99, while the digital edition comes in at £359/$399.

Sony launched two versions of the PlayStation 5 in the UK and Europe on November 19, following the consoles' release in the US last week.

The full PS5 costs £449/$499, while a Digital Edition without a disc tray is priced at £359/$399.

They're up against stiff competition in the form of the Xbox Series X (£449) and Xbox Series S (£249), which launched worldwide November 10.

The Series X and Series S also sold out around the world within minutes.

In other news, check out our Xbox Series X review.

We also took a look at the Xbox Series S.

And try the powerhouse Dell Alienware R10 gaming PC on for size.

What do you make of the PS5? Let us know in the comments!

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