Can a PS5 Go Through an Airport X-ray?
Yes, absolutely! Both airport carry-on screening and checked baggage X-ray machines are completely safe for your precious PlayStation 5. You can transport Sony‘s latest and greatest gaming console through airport security without any risk of hardware damage or data loss.
As an avid gamer who travels to tournaments and events with my PS5 in tow, I‘ve developed some best practices for protecting your gear. In this guide, I‘ll provide expert tips from the TSA and luggage manufacturers on flying with electronics, demonstrate how airport scanners work, and explain why your PS5 will emerge unscathed. Game on!
Airlines and Airport Security Welcome the PS5
The TSA guidelines explicitly allow video game consoles like the PS5 in both carry-on and checked bags. When packed properly with padding, the PS5‘s durability ratings indicate it has a high tolerance for the normal shocks and vibrations of airline transport.
Survival rate of checked bags containing electronics exceeds 99%. And the scanned X-ray radiation exposure from airport security checkpoints clocks in at harmless levels for consumer electronics according to scientific instrumentation.
The TSA allows PS5 consoles as carry-on items with proper screening
Both TSA agents and flight crews have assured me that the PS5‘s oversized silhouette only helps the security scanning process, allowing them to clearly resolve its internal components versus dense, cluttered laptop bags. I‘ve also had great success checking the PS5 in its original box for flights when overhead bin space runs short.
Based on my first-hand experience and aviation industry feedback, you can rest easy bringing your console through airport checkpoints thanks to accommodating policies for electronics.
X-Ray Scanning Technology Pose No Risk to Electronics
I‘ll admit that passing my expensive new PS5 through an airport X-ray machine gave me initially gave me pause. Like many gamers, I worried both about physical damage from conveyor belts and rollers as well as more mysterious threats like data erasure from radiation.
Rest assured the TSA‘s tried-and-true X-ray scanners provide perfectly safe, extremely low energy radiation completely harmless to consumer electronics and magnetic media like solid state drives.
| Scanner Specifications | |
|---|---|
| X-ray Energy | 50-75 kV range |
| X-ray Intensity | 0.1 mR or less |
| X-ray Wavelength | 10^-6 meters |
| Typical Exposure | 0.2 seconds |
The low 50-75 kilovolt energy X-ray beams used in modern security scanners have longer wavelengths than medical X-rays and pass easily through plastics with no ionizing effects. In fact, the 0.1 milliroentgen radiation dose for a quick 0.2 second scan is 50 times lower than you‘d get from cosmic rays when flying at cruising altitude in a plane!
Both carry-on baggage scanners and checked luggage systems utilize tightly controlled X-ray emissions no more damaging than background radiation you experience anywhere else. Studies by luggage manufacturers confirm that thousands of trips through these scanners produce no detectable wear or data loss on exposed electronics.
So leave your tinfoil PS5 security hat at home – even the most radiation-paranoid gamer can securely traverse airport security with their console!
A TSA X-ray scan allows easy visual inspection of the PS5 internals
Best Practices For Traveling With a PS5
While airport X-ray machines won‘t damage your PS5, baggage handling between taxi, train, shuttle, and plane transfers certainly can if you don‘t take precautions. Based on my experience transporting consoles across the world, here are my best tips for travel:
- Pack your PS5 in the original box and wrap again in bubble wrap
- Place the packaged PS5 in a hard-shell, crush-proof suitcase
- Surround the console box with cushioning like clothes or foam
- Carry the bag yourself rather than checking it if possible
- Never gate-check electronics – only bring carry-on
- Keep games and accessories separate in a backpack
I know it‘s tempting to chuck your PS5 in a duffel and dash, but a little TLC goes a long way towards PlayStation safety!
PS5 Travel Gear Checklist
| Item | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Hard-shell suitcase | Protect against crushing |
| Bubble wrap | Shock absorption |
| Clothing cushioning | Extra padding |
| Original box | Factory packing |
| Carry-on bag | Avoid rough handling |
Particularly for international trips across multiple flights, I recommend hand-carrying your system despite the temptation to check bulky luggage. At a sturdy 10.4 pounds, the PS5 won‘t break your back and eliminates baggage tagging mix-ups or tossing on the tarmac.
The Future of Gaming is Portable
While the PS5 stretches the definition of portable gaming today, Sony continues innovating towards conveniently transportable consoles in markets like Japan that frequently commute by train or bike.
I predict even miniaturized, handheld PLAYSTATION models retaining enough processing muscle for immersive AAA gaming by the late 2020s thanks to Moore‘s Law advances in computing hardware. Imagine playing God of War Ragnarök on a foldable 15" tablet screen by 2030!
Until then, today‘s TSA screening technology and indestructible packing methods described here allow safe passage with the PS5. Game on whether crosstown or cross country!
Questions about traveling with a PS5 or other gaming gear? Sound off in the comments below!
