If the rumors circulating are anything to go by, it seems that we will be getting our hands on Sony's Playstation 4.5 Neo sooner than anyone expects.

Eurogamer's sources said that the PS 4.5 Neo will be launched this year, despite Sony sitting out the console war with Microsoft at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo(E3). The same site confirmed the Neo codename and specs way before Sony ever did, which gives the source a sliver of credibility.

VR World reported that the PS 4.5 Neo is going to possibly make its debut at this year's Tokyo Game Show, which happens on September 15 - 18. The site also reported that the console will be made available during the Holiday season this year.

Incidentally, the PlayStation VR is also set to launch this year as well, and it's highly likely that a PS 4.5 Neo launch will follow suit.

These rumors can be quite farfetched, considering that Sony did not even showcase the console at E3, just like what Microsoft did with Project Scorpio, which does not even come out until late next year.

According to PC Advisor, however, Sony has a perfect explanation on why it did not show its upcoming console at the popular game trade show.

Speaking to MCV at E3, Sony's Global Head of Marketing and Sales Jim Ryan said that announcing the console will detract from the game announcements that the game publisher giant has prepared for the show.

"We had such a strong and, I'd say, pure story about games," Ryan said. "You are not alone in making the comment - and I think it is a legitimate comment - about only just getting going on the games side of things on PS4."

"I think that needed to be addressed and by focusing exclusively on the games last night, hopefully we have laid that to bogey to rest." Ryan added.

Ryan also said that Sony wants to be fully prepared to be able to demonstrate the PS4.5 Neo before showing it to the world.

If the PS 4.5 Neo is meant to be a direct competitor to Xbox's Project Scorpio, then the early release date will put Sony in significant advantage over Microsoft.

As for the price, PC Advisor speculated that it might be around the $550 mark, but with no exact specs to speak of, this is still something that cannot be confirmed.