Finally, PS5 appeared in front of us. It's huge. Really big.

We unboxed Sony's new gaming console and went hands-on with the revolutionary new DualSense controller. Here's everything we took out of the box and our initial impressions of this truly massive next-generation powerhouse.

My first impression of the PS5 when I first took it out of the box was that the 15.4 x 10.2 x 4.1-inch gaming console is as huge as recent photos would suggest. It completely dwarfed my PS4 and Xbox One S, standing out like a giant alien obelisk in my living room.

However, I was surprised at how light the 9.9-pound gaming console felt when I held it. As someone who often carries the system from room to room between streaming and living room gaming, I was pleased to see that the PS5 doesn't feel as huge as it looks.

Seeing and holding the PS5 up close reveals some details that were hard to detect from the press photos and videos. The matte white shell is smooth and easy to grip when turning the console around. The black center of the console is very shiny and prone to fingerprints. As seen in previous photos, there are USB-C and USB-A ports on the front, and two USB-A ports, an Ethernet jack, an HDMI port, and a power adapter on the back.

I appreciate the large number of small PlayStation symbols scattered throughout the console, including one buried in a minuscule pattern on the inner shell near the vents; whether you like or dislike the PS5's design, the attention to detail that went into this product attention to detail in this product is hard not to appreciate.

One of the first things I did with the PS5 was to install the plastic base. The base of the stand comes with screws, which are used to secure it to the bottom of the PS5 for vertical placement.

To do this, you need to remove the small circular cap on the bottom and screw the base into the console. Sony does not include a tool to do this and recommends "using a coin or similarly shaped object to secure the base. While it is a bit disappointing that no tools are included, attaching the base vertically only took about a minute, using a small coin to screw it in. Also, once the process was complete, it felt quite securely fastened.

The same cannot be said for using the stand in horizontal mode. It does not use screws and relies on the base being tucked into a specific area on the backside of the PS5. It took several attempts to get the stand to connect properly, but once it was set up correctly, it was eventually firmly secured.

Naturally, you will need a lot of space to place the PS5. I was very surprised to find that the PS5 just barely fit in the IKEA entertainment center in a horizontal position. I had tried placing the PS5 console vertically on a small table next to the TV, but I tend to place it horizontally, both to make it stand out in the living room and to avoid accidentally tipping it over when my active nephews come over to play.

When I first touched it, the DualSense had the potential to become my favorite PlayStation controller; it felt like a wonderful hybrid of the DUALSHOCK4 and the Xbox wireless controller, with the same button layout and left-right It had the same button layout and symmetrical left and right sticks as the former, but was larger and sturdier, and felt great in the hand.

Like the console itself, there are plenty of little design touches, such as translucent buttons and a myriad of hidden PlayStation symbols etched into the rear grip. I'm also glad to see that Sony has adopted USB-C for charging, as Microsoft did with the Xbox Elite Wireless Controller 2 (unfortunately, the new Xbox Wireless Controller still uses batteries).

As for gameplay, DualSense's adaptive triggers, advanced haptic feedback, and built-in speaker and microphone have already proven to be game changers when we tried Astro's Playroom. For more information, see our hands-on impressions of DualSense.

We'll have more to tell you soon about how the PS5 actually plays, but unboxing Sony's new console left us both impressed and a little concerned: both the PS5 itself and the DualSense controller have cool design quirks Lots of them. And while I am fortunate enough to have enough space to place Sony's next-gen console vertically or horizontally, those with more cramped setups will have a hard time finding a place to put it.

Of course, the physical design of the PS5 is only part of the equation. Stay tuned for more coverage on the PS5 as we get closer to the launch of Sony's next game console.