Earlier this year, accessory maker dbrand released "Darkplates," which replace the PS5's stock white plate with a matte black plate to match the console's dark color with other consumer electronics Late last week, however, Sony issued a cease and desist order, forcing dbrand to stop selling the plates

But this is not the end of Darkplates In fact, the company has taken the blow in stride and released Darkplates 20 A redesigned version of the original Darkplates, dbrand claims that it can be immune from copyright lawsuits--even in light of Sony's latest crackdown

Of course, dbrand famously dared Sony to take legal action when it released the first Darkplates However, according to an extensive Reddit post announcing Darkplates 20, dbrand confirmed that things were not as simple as they appeared

It turns out that Sony had obtained a design patent on the PS5 plates in the time between the release of the original Darkplates and the legal threat In other words, d-brand believed that Sony would never obtain a design patent and therefore had done nothing to merit a lawsuit at the time it released the plates, but the fact that it used the now-patented design meant that the company was legally wrong

The choice was either to spend millions of dollars fighting existing copyright laws or to start over with a new design The company chose the latter, and the fact that it had already spent a great deal of effort developing a custom plate design for the PS5 encouraged it to do so Thus Darkplates 20 was born

Darkplates 20 is distinctly different from the original, which was a carbon copy of the original PS5 plate design Not only are the wings of the console gone, giving the plates a straighter, cleaner appearance, but each plate also has a large fan vent on the side

Interestingly, these vents are positioned directly above the fans inside the console dbrand says that these vents help distinguish the new design from Sony's patented ones and help improve the PS5's cooling system This is because the standard plate essentially "suffocates" the fan, causing the console to run about 9 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than a console without the plate

dbrand also shut down any complaints about dust, claiming that your PS5 would already be dusty Because like it or not, dust can get everywhere So dbrand offers an optional mesh grille to keep the nasties out of the PS5 Alternatively, it can be used as a "wildly impractical coaster"

The new design also comes in new colors and accessories If you like the new design, but not the black " For those who like the new design, dbrand offers Darkplates 20 in white

The white Darkplates is a complete contradiction, but if you like snow-white style gadgets, it is an option There are also "retro gray" Darkplates, which are designed to match the "unnamed retro video game console It looks a lot like the original PlayStation

The price, however, has changed The previous Darkplates cost $60, while Darkplates 20 costs $6905 However, it is currently discounted and can be purchased for $5905 The price is the same for all colors, whether you purchase the disc or digital version Shipping is free if you live in the US or Canada, but there is an additional charge for international orders

Also on sale are "light strips," translucent vinyl strips that cover the existing LED strips on the sides of the PS5 dbrand says it did not invent the idea, but "our proprietary double-shot coloring process ensures the most vibrant light strips available on the market," the company claims With a variety of colors to choose from, there is no need to have the same ones on both sides of the console Priced at $495 each

Not surprisingly, the company's "middle skin," which adds a touch of glamour to the PS5's center bar, is still available for $995

dbrand admits that Sony is probably still trying to sue, but insists that there is no problem because the company has developed its own design In other words, Sony has "no grounds to claim infringement" We'll have to wait and see what Sony actually does, but for now, the Dark Plate 20 is available for pre-order on dbrand's website

Unfortunately, you'll have to wait a bit, as pre-orders won't start shipping until January 2022 However, those who missed out on the first Darkplates, perhaps because they were unable to get their consoles from the PS5 restock, can rest easy for the time being