Or none of them.
There. I think we threw enough darts at this to have 100% prediction rate on this!
Next Generation Hardware Speculation with a Technical Spin [2018]
- Thread starter Tkumpathenurple
- Start date
-
- Tags
- 5 bytes
- Status
Or none of them.
There. I think we threw enough darts at this to have 100% prediction rate on this!
Steam Machines.
You mean there will be a third, PS4 Extreme that's above the 4Pro and where they phase out the 4Amateur model?
Because IMO, there's little point for MS to invest more in Xbox One platform. They will most likely rush to produce nextgen console faster than Sony.
I think it makes less sense for Sony than anyone else to invest any further in current-generation on pricier 7nm if they're truly going for 2019 launch of next-gen.
Inuhanyou
Veteran
I wonder how likely a 10tflop Navi GPU, 16 GB of GDDR6 and Zen 2 mobile with 8 cores(SMT disabled as opposed to a lowered core count) clocked at exactly 3GHZ in fall 2020 for 399$ is. on a 7nm process node of course.
that's kinda been my steadfast prediction for the PS5 for a few years now, so i'm curious to see how close to that they can actually get.
i think its more likely that they phase out the PS4 Pro, and leave the PS4 as the super low cost option that devs have been focusing on the entire time. And simply switch the higher tier SKU devs have to focus on to PS5 until it comes time to move over completely.
I don't see them dropping support for base PS4 until they really want to drop support for PS4 entirely. An Pro as a niche machine doesn't need to always be continued to be supported in that fashion.
that's kinda been my steadfast prediction for the PS5 for a few years now, so i'm curious to see how close to that they can actually get.
i think its more likely that they phase out the PS4 Pro, and leave the PS4 as the super low cost option that devs have been focusing on the entire time. And simply switch the higher tier SKU devs have to focus on to PS5 until it comes time to move over completely.
I don't see them dropping support for base PS4 until they really want to drop support for PS4 entirely. An Pro as a niche machine doesn't need to always be continued to be supported in that fashion.
I agree that with current prices $399 seems unlikely but I'm also not convinced PS5 needs that price point at launch, especially if the launch is late 2019, as the Xbox One X will likely not cost <$350. I'm also not sure GDDR6 makes sense over a tiered system with HBM at the top. Allocating several GB of a unified GDDR5 system to the OS was the right move in 2013 but may not be this time with GDDR6. When 7nm EUV matures SoC costs should go down and increased HBM adoption should have the same effect. Sony could then release a refresh at $399 for mass adoption in 2020-2021.
The other option (IMO more likely) would be conservative specs (~2x Pro GPU + 4 Zen2 cores) for a $399 late 2019 launch with another Pro SKU 2-3 years later. I think it's important to remember that current gen consoles were very conservative relative to PC parts when they first launched. Xbox One X is a hail-mary attempt to make up for lost ground and I don't expect Sony to be as aggressive.
Last edited:
Depends how a shrink affects the whole BOM. Even if the SoC doesn't drop in cost, it drops everything power related, and a redesigned SoC could allow cutting the memory chip count by half, and a very small case. It also continues to drop in the long run even if at launch 7nm might be expensive. They need a more modern PSU design, the Delta is low cost and robust... But man it's just huge. I don't think some $3 or $5 more would be a crazy expense to make the case maybe two inches less deep. High frequency designs are quite robust nowadays.
The generation will probably have a much longer overlap because of the recent pro release, but also because it will be an easy cross-gen. All previous gens had such a massive difference in hardware that studios were quick to drop cross-gen, this time it should be simple specially if development tools and APIs are just an evolution.
Shawn Layden said in a recent interview that cutting compatibility between PS4 and Pro will "never happen" (journalist asked about rolling generation). So cross gen will have to be written to scale from 1.84 TF to 10.62 TF and 2x the CPU power. Memory will also not be the gigantic jump from 512M to 8G like ps360 to ps4/xb1. PC games have no problem with this scale between "minimum" and "recommended" specs.
The generation will probably have a much longer overlap because of the recent pro release, but also because it will be an easy cross-gen. All previous gens had such a massive difference in hardware that studios were quick to drop cross-gen, this time it should be simple specially if development tools and APIs are just an evolution.
Shawn Layden said in a recent interview that cutting compatibility between PS4 and Pro will "never happen" (journalist asked about rolling generation). So cross gen will have to be written to scale from 1.84 TF to 10.62 TF and 2x the CPU power. Memory will also not be the gigantic jump from 512M to 8G like ps360 to ps4/xb1. PC games have no problem with this scale between "minimum" and "recommended" specs.
phoenix_chipset
Regular
Is there even a distinction in the silicon between zen mobile and desktop? I think zen mobile is simply the regular zen quad core module, at much lower clocks. Laptop zen cpus are limited to the 4 core 8 thread chips.
I think it's probably better to crank up the specs and sell at a higher price than go cheap with lower spec, because with the former you can always adjust the price later on while still remain competitive, yet a lower spec is set for life. $499 really isn't all that expensive in the scheme of things, phones are 3x more expensive and those poor millennial eat them up like brunches. I think what really matters here is the killer launch titles, service and last but not least specs.
Microsoft certainly learned that lesson this gen but I don't know if Sony is feeling their pain. They seem to be repeating the other's past mistakes. I agree with you and would certainly prefer a high-end SKU at launch but I'm not holding my breath.
Inuhanyou
Veteran
I'm sold.
Disregarding all other reasoning for that, at the very least MS are attempting to keep a continued library of games a thing and they will assuredly have it, and so there is no technical reason Sony would be able to avoid it.
You can make an argument that with PS3 to PS4, it wasn't very worth it because of the change in architecture. But with PS4 to PS5, it should be significantly easier.
phoenix_chipset
Regular
If they don't that gives MS some seriously good pr. "Playing your old games, crazy idea right?"
borntosoul
Regular
Does not make sence for a third (edit) tier installment of the ps4. Takes too much money and effort for no benefit at tgis time.
Better release with a bang and produce a PSV on steroids. Call it Playstation Victory and market this puppy lol.
Better release with a bang and produce a PSV on steroids. Call it Playstation Victory and market this puppy lol.
- Status
