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[Thraktor]

I'm a fan of 3D on the 3DS, but I'd put 3D firmly in the "more expensive than it's worth" stack for Nintendo when designing the NX handheld.

I thought they were both 45nm?

I've heard people say anywhere from 40nm to 55nm. I believe 45nm, as Chipworks' study into Latte's eDRAM seemed to be the last word. Somewhat surprising that a 45nm process was not featured on the Renesas webpage. Then again, last I had checked, their 40nm eDRAM was listed as a future product. Maybe it never came to be.

There's even a pretty cool picture comparison w/ other eDRAMs at the link.

http://chipworksrealchips.blogspot.com/2014/02/intels-e-dram-shows-up-in-wild.html

Hmm, I do remember Chipworks initially claiming it was 40nm, but I suppose you guys may well be right.

Edit: Although I can't find any references to Renesas making eDRAM on a 45nm node besides the Wii U, whereas there are plenty of references to them providing eDRAM on a 40nm node, including a 2010 press release from them with the line "The new network memory devices have been fabricated through Renesas Electronics' 40nm eDRAM technology". I wouldn't be surprised if they simply haven't updated that web page in a couple of years (it's hardly their main line of communication with clients). Furthermore, the Chipworks eDRAM comparison (while fascinating), lists the 65nm eDRAM as being in the original Xbox, so it's not impossible that they simply made a small mistake on the Wii U chip as well.

Yup, i know. I took it a bit like Cerny describing the PS4 as a "Supercharged PC", which actually adds to my point (ultra high end apu =/= 6700K+980ti). I think that even an 8 core arm cpu+1tflop gpu (my proposed specs) could be spinned as "ultra high end apu" and "industry leading chips".

Yeah, A72s and GCN 1.2 on 28nm could certainly be considered "industry leading" by some metrics. Ditto with whatever they put in the handheld (as they're the only ones left in the industry it's not that hard to lead it!)

 

[GhostTrick]

I'm a fan of 3D on the 3DS, but I'd put 3D firmly in the "more expensive than it's worth" stack for Nintendo when designing the NX handheld.





Hmm, I do remember Chipworks initially claiming it was 40nm, but I suppose you guys may well be right.



Yeah, A72s and GCN 1.2 on 28nm could certainly be considered "industry leading" by some metrics. Ditto with whatever they put in the handheld (as they're the only ones left in the industry it's not that hard to lead it!)

To be fair, I'm more worried about the free form display gimping the handheld specs.

 

[James Scott]

With the revisions likely being more common, It would be interesting to see if Nintendo will keep supporting older titles later on. Maybe improving performance, resolution, etc for older games. And like I mentioned earlier, if Nintendo ever wants to go with VR they can release a revision/upgraded version of the console a few years after launch that allows previously released games to run well with VR enabled.

Well, motion controls are still around in different forms.

and so is 3D

Spoiler

Both are used in VR

 

[double0cinco]

I LOOOOOVE the 3d, especially on the n3DS. I would be super disappointed if it isn't in the next handheld. Needless to say, I'm prepared to be super disappointed...

On that topic, I've heard before that the 3d was really expensive to implement. Does anyone have any hard numbers on what it added to the BOM? Obviously there's still the consideration of extra resources needed to actually display 3d as well.

Even with all that, I personally think it's worth it and I wouldn't classify it as a fad. It legitimately makes the worlds feel more expansive and real with the 3d effect on. I'd gladly sacrifice some resolution again for a 3d screen. But I know I'm in the minority.

 

[10k]

I LOOOOOVE the 3d, especially on the n3DS. I would be super disappointed if it isn't in the next handheld. Needless to say, I'm prepared to be super disappointed...

On that topic, I've heard before that the 3d was really expensive to implement. Does anyone have any hard numbers on what it added to the BOM? Obviously there's still the consideration of extra resources needed to actually display 3d as well.

Even with all that, I personally think it's worth it and I wouldn't classify it as a fad. It legitimately makes the worlds feel more expansive and real with the 3d effect on. I'd gladly sacrifice some resolution again for a 3d screen. But I know I'm in the minority.

Back in 2011 the OG 3DS cost about $33 to get the two screens needed to make 3D. I'm guessing it would be half the price to just get one screen so it costs Nintendo approx. $16.50 to implement 3D which after markup and R&D probably adds about $20 to the final retail price.

http://cdn.ihs.com/Technology/Share...ges/Press Releases/2011-03-28_Nintendo_DS.png

 

[Doctre81]

The WiiU GPU is 40nm
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/1...-wii-u-to-show-off-single-chip-ibmamd-cpu-gpu

Cpu is 45nm.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/ibm-puts-watsons-brains-in-nintendo-wii-u/

NX CONSOLE should be 14nm when it launches NEXT YEAR.

 

[Lonely1]

Leaving stereoscopic 3D behind ;/ ... what are the chances of Nintendo implementing variable refresh rates on either, the console or handheld? My gut tells me that they aren't significant... but it would be lovely and a good way to leverage lower powered devices!

 

[z0m3le]

Yeah, A72s and GCN 1.2 on 28nm could certainly be considered "industry leading" by some metrics. Ditto with whatever they put in the handheld (as they're the only ones left in the industry it's not that hard to lead it!)

This was my final point and since you haven't shown that they won't use 14nm, I will simply go here. WSJ had a source for Industry leading chips, it wasn't a PR person, it wasn't someone trying to sell you a NX, it was just someone who knew something. Why would they consider a 5 year old process and chips that are literally in competitor parts from 3 years ago "industry leading?" in frame of that context, it only makes sense that Nintendo was trying to fix an image problem with using older tech, so no 28nm and GCN 1.2 would certainly not make sense, I mean what do you expect from that? mullin's GPU? you think that would run low power enough to be in a handheld? They couldn't even win tablet formfactors with that chip, there is no way Nintendo okay'd it for a handheld with a SOC that will use ~2 watts.

You've clearly given your opinion on the matter, I think it is wrong but that is just my opinion. I will say though, that if they release a 28nm part, they won't be seen as industry leading at all, and with 14nm where it is by holiday this year, I see no reason they wouldn't go that route instead, especially when by 2018 (the earliest we could imagine a redesign) 28nm would actually cost more than 14nm by a fair amount as the industry pushes even further driven by insane mobile sales.

At least we both agree that they should use 14nm on the handheld.

 

[Hero of Legend]

Why do chip sizes matter again? Less heat?

 

[ElTorro]

Why do chip sizes matter again? Less heat?

In relation to the number of transistors, yes.

 

[Malus]

I feel like all release possibilities for the NX home console are kinda far fetched sounding. Release during holiday 2016 for a simultaneous handheld/home console debut. Release in early 2017 and miss the holidays. Release in holiday 2017 and basically have a dead year for Wii U.

This assuming the handheld is indeed coming by the end of 2016. The third sounds most likely based on what happened with the Wii, but times are different now obviously.

 

[double0cinco]

Back in 2011 the OG 3DS cost about $33 to get the two screens needed to make 3D. I'm guessing it would be half the price to just get one screen so it costs Nintendo approx. $16.50 to implement 3D which after markup and R&D probably adds about $20 to the final retail price.

Wow, thanks for digging that up! Certainly between the $33, most of that was towards the 3d screen vs the small bottom screen. That's actually not as bad as I would have thought ,the way some talk about it being an "expensive gimmick". Granted, "expensive" is relative in this context. It still may not be worth it for Nintendo to implement what some consider to be an expensive fad.

Though on that point about it being a fad - there's still clearly a demand for stereoscopic 3d content evidenced by the popularity of 3d movies in theaters. A personal handheld screen with glasses-less 3d is very different from a living room 3d TV which requires everyone to wear glasses. It may not have the same "neat factor" that the 3ds had when it released, but an improved 3d effect (like the n3DS, or even better), in a higher res screen, would still be stunning in 2016, and would still offer something that no other device does on the market.

 

[Doctre81]

Why do chip sizes matter again? Less heat?

The smaller the chip the more performance you can get for the size. Nintendo likes small form factor consoles so the smaller the nm the better.

 

[Lonely1]

Also, less heat and power consumption for the same node size.

 

[10k]

The WiiU GPU is 40nm
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/1...-wii-u-to-show-off-single-chip-ibmamd-cpu-gpu

Cpu is 45nm.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/07/ibm-puts-watsons-brains-in-nintendo-wii-u/

NX CONSOLE should be 14nm when it launches NEXT YEAR.

Doctre, please. It's coming holiday 2016. Either both SKU's or the console first. It needs more help than the 3DS and will appeal in the western market more while also coming into Japan practically uncontested since the PS4 is only at 2 millions units sold there.

This was my final point and since you haven't shown that they won't use 14nm, I will simply go here. WSJ had a source for Industry leading chips, it wasn't a PR person, it wasn't someone trying to sell you a NX, it was just someone who knew something. Why would they consider a 5 year old process and chips that are literally in competitor parts from 3 years ago "industry leading?" in frame of that context, it only makes sense that Nintendo was trying to fix an image problem with using older tech, so no 28nm and GCN 1.2 would certainly not make sense, I mean what do you expect from that? mullin's GPU? you think that would run low power enough to be in a handheld? They couldn't even win tablet formfactors with that chip, there is no way Nintendo okay'd it for a handheld with a SOC that will use ~2 watts.

You've clearly given your opinion on the matter, I think it is wrong but that is just my opinion. I will say though, that if they release a 28nm part, they won't be seen as industry leading at all, and with 14nm where it is by holiday this year, I see no reason they wouldn't go that route instead, especially when by 2018 (the earliest we could imagine a redesign) 28nm would actually cost more than 14nm by a fair amount as the industry pushes even further driven by insane mobile sales.

At least we both agree that they should use 14nm on the handheld.

Industry leading chips is so vague. When one hears it, they assume graphics and cpu in reference to gaming devices. Not everyone even knows what a process node is. It could mean the newest fabrication node, yes, but it could also be anything else. DDR4 RAM, newest AMD APU, newest generation of processors or graphics chips, newest flash memory type, etc.

There were many speculating that Nintendo would use 32nm for the Wii U and they went with 40nm and 45nm, an established node. It wouldn't surprise me if Nintendo went with 28nm since it's cheap, cheaper than what Microsoft and Sony paid for it in 2013, and it's the same process node that its competitors are using. I'm sure the NX console will likely be the size of the PS4 but with an external power brick to prevent heat builup. Might even be smaller if they opt for game cards (cartridges) and get rid of the HDD or disc drive (Nintendo hates moving parts).

Wouldn't shock me at all if Nintendo ends up going with 28nm SoC AMD APU with 4 A53 cores, clocked around 1.5Ghz, with a 1.3TF GPU (to match Xbox), 8GB of DDR3, and half the clock speeds on the handheld.

 

[Neoxon]

Doctre, please. It's coming holiday 2016. Either both SKU's or the console first. It needs more help than the 3DS and will appeal in the western market more while also coming into Japan practically uncontested since the PS4 is only at 2 millions units sold there.



Industry leading chips is so vague. When one hears it, they assume graphics and cpu in reference to gaming devices. Not everyone even knows what a process node is. It could mean the newest fabrication node, yes, but it could also be anything else. DDR4 RAM, newest AMD APU, newest generation of processors or graphics chips, newest flash memory type, etc.

There were many speculating that Nintendo would use 32nm for the Wii U and they went with 40nm and 45nm, an established node. It wouldn't surprise me if Nintendo went with 28nm since it's cheap, cheaper than what Microsoft and Sony paid for it in 2013, and it's the same process node that its competitors are using. I'm sure the NX console will likely be the size of the PS4 but with an external power brick to prevent heat builup. Might even be smaller if they opt for game cards (cartridges) and get rid of the HDD or disc drive (Nintendo hates moving parts).

Wouldn't shock me at all if Nintendo ends up going with 28nm SoC AMD APU with 4 A53 cores, clocked around 1.5Ghz, with a 1.3TF GPU (to match Xbox), 8GB of DDR3, and half the clock speeds on the handheld.

You also have to consider the fact that Nintendo's handhelds normally do better than their consoles. On paper, Nintendo would be better able to yield "Nintendo-like profits" by putting the handheld out first. And while the Wii U is apparently still seeing some support from Nintendo's development teams, the 3DS is more-or-less dried up from Nintendo's internal teams beyond late localizations. I do agree that Nintendo can't wait too long to launch the console, but the handheld being out the door first would be a better way for Nintendo to secure the profits that were originally promised by Iwata & now Kimishima.

 

[10k]

You also have to consider the fact that Nintendo's handhelds normally do better than their consoles. On paper, Nintendo would be better able to yield "Nintendo-like profits" by putting the handheld out first. And while the Wii U is apparently still seeing some support from Nintendo's development teams, the 3DS is more-or-less dried up from Nintendo's internal teams beyond late localizations. I do agree that Nintendo can't wait too long to launch the console, but the handheld being out the door first would be a better way for Nintendo to secure the profits that were originally promised by Iwata & now Kimishima.

mmh, the handheld won't be enough for Nintendo-like profits. Especially if 20m are going to be manufactured in a calendar year. I'm expecting both SKU's to launch same day this November, or one in September and the other in November. No way both are missing the holidays.

Hell there was even a rumor the handheld would be summer 2016 and the console would be holiday. Who knows?

It would be dumb, commercial suicide, to not release both this year. Especially if one of the hooks is sharing a library between both devices. It may be a retail nightmare but the best way to get Nintendo's messaging across for the NX is to launch both simultaneously.

And perhaps in 2017 introduce other form factors; tablets, potential Nintendo phone, custom shaped handhelds with free form displays (do you want an elliptical screen with your handheld, oval, square, rectangular, donut, hexagonal, etc).

 

[OG_Original Gamer]

I'm a fan of 3D on the 3DS, but I'd put 3D firmly in the "more expensive than it's worth" stack for Nintendo when designing the NX handheld.





Hmm, I do remember Chipworks initially claiming it was 40nm, but I suppose you guys may well be right.

Edit: Although I can't find any references to Renesas making eDRAM on a 45nm node besides the Wii U, whereas there are plenty of references to them providing eDRAM on a 40nm node, including a 2010 press release from them with the line "The new network memory devices have been fabricated through Renesas Electronics' 40nm eDRAM technology". I wouldn't be surprised if they simply haven't updated that web page in a couple of years (it's hardly their main line of communication with clients). Furthermore, the Chipworks eDRAM comparison (while fascinating), lists the 65nm eDRAM as being in the original Xbox, so it's not impossible that they simply made a small mistake on the Wii U chip as well.



Yeah, A72s and GCN 1.2 on 28nm could certainly be considered "industry leading" by some metrics. Ditto with whatever they put in the handheld (as they're the only ones left in the industry it's not that hard to lead it!)

They have actually announced 28nm eDRAM in 2010. If I remember correctly it was in eetimes article.

 

[Roo]

mmh, the handheld won't be enough for Nintendo-like profits. Especially if 20m are going to be manufactured in a calendar year. I'm expecting both SKU's to launch same day this November, or one in September and the other in November. No way both are missing the holidays.

Hell there was even a rumor the handheld would be summer 2016 and the console would be holiday. Who knows?

It would be dumb, commercial suicide, to not release both this year. Especially if one of the hooks is sharing a library between both devices. It may be a retail nightmare but the best way to get Nintendo's messaging across for the NX is to launch both simultaneously.

And perhaps in 2017 introduce other form factors; tablets, potential Nintendo phone, custom shaped handhelds with free form displays (do you want an elliptical screen with your handheld, oval, square, rectangular, donut, hexagonal, etc).

That sounds like retail and logistics nightmare in the making..

 

[10k]

That sounds like retail and logistics nightmare in the making..

Yes but it has to be done. Hence Kimishima saying they are now in the planning stage to get the message across.

Wasn't it Alberto who said they need to "rip the band-aid off" and just do the two product launches at once? Or at least do it like apple, the phone in September and the tablet in November. As long as both come in 2016 on time for the holidays and its gimmick can be demonstrated to the masses and generate positive buzz to make it that hot item for Xmas 2016 and Q1 2017.

 

[Diffense]

I'm not sure why they have to be launched simultaneously unless there is a compelling feature beyond the shared library. Buying two machines to play the same games doesn't seem like a huge selling point by itself. The shared library just means you can by ONE and still have access to most Nintendo content. That's the advantage.

That said, I'll probably own them both eventually but it wouldn't be Day 1 unless the systems work together in some unique and attractive way. If the latter is true, I'd expect them to launch simultaneously.

 

[Somnid]

Yeah, launching two devices is logistically difficult, will lead to cannibalization and really has no actual benefit. You don't need a multi-console launch for shared games to work, patches and digital games aren't going anywhere. Oh, and game sharing is not that compelling to bank two consoles on, especially since people will own neither to start with, it's only interesting if you already have one.

 

[10k]

Yeah, launching two devices is logistically difficult, will lead to cannibalization and really has no actual benefit. You don't need a multi-console launch for shared games to work, patches and digital games aren't going anywhere. Oh, and game sharing is not that compelling to bank two consoles on, especially since people will own neither to start with, it's only interesting if you already have one.

I'm sure the shared library is one benefit but is not the main gimmick. New ways to play games isn't a shared library, but I have a feeling both systems together are gonna do something unique and special.

 

[z0m3le]

I'm not sure why they have to be launched simultaneously unless there is a compelling feature beyond the shared library. Buying two machines to play the same games doesn't seem like a huge selling point by itself. The shared library just means you can by ONE and still have access to most Nintendo content. That's the advantage.

That said, I'll probably own them both eventually but it wouldn't be Day 1 unless the systems work together in some unique and attractive way. If the latter is true, I'd expect them to launch simultaneously.

Why would Nintendo need you to buy both? do they need you to buy every version of the 3DS? wouldn't they have made the 2DS more compelling if they actually cared about selling every formfactor of their platform? It would be quite enough if every gamer they could reach just bought one of the devices, as each game they make would sell the same regardless of how many people owned both if the library was shared.

 

[Somnid]

I'm sure the shared library is one benefit but is not the main gimmick. New ways to play games isn't a shared library, but I have a feeling both systems together are gonna do something unique and special.

Nintendo more than anyone knows that consoles are consoles and handhelds are handhelds. They each have unique characteristics and you need to embrace them to succeed. If there are both, they will undoubtedly each have something unique for their context.

 

[Roo]

Yes but it has to be done. Hence Kimishima saying they are now in the planning stage to get the message across.

Wasn't it Alberto who said they need to "rip the band-aid off" and just do the two product launches at once? Or at least do it like apple, the phone in September and the tablet in November. As long as both come in 2016 on time for the holidays and its gimmick can be demonstrated to the masses and generate positive buzz to make it that hot item for Xmas 2016 and Q1 2017.

Releasing both devices the same year (even months apart) is totally feasible. In fact, they have done it before.
Releasing both at the same time (a week apart at most) simply wont to happen, period.

 

[Hermii]

I'm sure the shared library is one benefit but is not the main gimmick. New ways to play games isn't a shared library, but I have a feeling both systems together are gonna do something unique and special.

It would make sense if the handheld had low.latency streaming tech in the gamepad, but that's not really unique or special.

 

[Hermii]

Leaving stereoscopic 3D behind ;/ ... what are the chances of Nintendo implementing variable refresh rates on either, the console or handheld? My gut tells me that they aren't significant... but it would be lovely and a good way to leverage lower powered devices!

I don't know what the price is but this would be worth a spec downgrade more than 3D imo.

Edit: sorry again

 

[EraErr0r1]

My thirst for NX led me to lose my mind and write an article on the matter. Makes light on some rather logical points among some slight vulgarity! Worth a read if you're starving.
http://www.noclipp.com/2016/02/nintendo-cross-nx-fantasy-platform.html

I also agree on a scattered release of NX Hardware, but I can't imagine there being more than a 3 month period between launches. if it's a shared gaming eco-system, Nintendo would surely want to start on a completely new slate to maintain a decent brand image and to showcase the versatility of the platform.

 

[blu]

Man, that would be such a sweet chip in the NX hh.

 

[GhostTrick]

Man, that would be such a sweet chip in the NX hh.

How is that ? We don't even know the Adreno 506 specs. Sounds like bad design to me. I'd rather have a Kirin 950 instead.

Knowing Qualcomm previous designs, the low tier SoC always features slowass GPUs. If they kept that trend for Snapdragon 625, it'd be 8 A53 cores with an anemic GPU. Snapdragon 650 sounds like a better deal to me.

 

[blu]

How is that? We don't even know the Adreno 506 specs. Sounds like bad design to me. I'd rather have a Kirin 950 instead.

We don't. But even at a hypothetical 1/2 of 510, the 506 would still be great.

Also, I'd take 8x A53 over 2x A72 any day of the week - single-thread performance is great for your android app jungle, but in a performance-tuned, fixed-target scenario the many A53s will normally give better throughput.

 

[beril]

Man, that would be such a sweet chip in the NX hh.

Well not really, considering how much space on those chips is taken up by the 4G Modem, multimedia processing and other stuff you won't need in a game console

 

[GhostTrick]

We don't. But even at a hypothetical 1/2 of 510, the 506 would still be great.

Also, I'd take 8x A53 over 2x A72 any day of the week - single-thread performance is great for your android app jungle, but in a performance-tuned, fixed-target scenario the many A53s will normally give better throughput.

Unfair comparison. Most SoC with big ARM cores always comes with LITTLE ARM cores. Snapdragon 650 for exemple, features 2xA72 cores... and 4xA53 cores.
Why complicate everything for devs and force them into 8 slow cores (well, maybe 6 if we take out OS things) When they could have 2 cores which are 3 times faster core per clock, without taking into account the faster architecture and 4 slow cores, baring 2 for OS tasks, so 2 slower cores dedicated to help the 2 bigger ones.

For Adreno 506, we might look at a 96 alu part. Definitely too slow if they hope to stay long.

 

[blu]

Well not really, considering how much space on those chips is taken up by the 4G Modem, multimedia processing and other stuff you won't need in a game console

That LTE goes away without saying, and I disagree about the DSP ; )

Unfair comparison. Most SoC with big ARM cores always comes with LITTLE ARM cores. Snapdragon 650 for exemple, features 2xA72 cores... and 4xA53 cores.
Why complicate everything for devs and force them into 8 slow cores (well, maybe 6 if we take out OS things) When they could have 2 cores which are 3 times faster core per clock, without taking into account the faster architecture and 4 slow cores, baring 2 for OS tasks, so 2 slower cores dedicated to help the 2 bigger ones.

Not sure I follow - the architecture is identical across the A53 and A72 (the latter is still v8, not v8.1, if that would matter at all). As per the uarch IPC boost - it could indeed be as high as 3x, but don't expect that for every workload. Actually, the major advantage of A72 would be at SIMD - 4-way ALUs vs 2-way ALUs in the A53. Re devs' complications - 8x (or 7x) SMP would be arguably easier than 2x + 4x (or 3x) HMP (Heterogeneous Multi-Processing, as per Samsung's linux scheduler naming).

For Adreno 506, we might look at a 96 alu part. Definitely too slow if they hope to stay long.

That's unlikely - the 505 would be 96 ALUs. The 506 would be higher than that.

 

[Hermii]

Well not really, considering how much space on those chips is taken up by the 4G Modem, multimedia processing and other stuff you won't need in a game console

It would obviously have a semi custom version of it.

 

[Spyder_Monkey]

We're really getting deep into the trenches when we're talking about GPU and CPU size.

 

[beril]

That LTE goes away without saying, and I disagree about the DSP ; )

Well I guess the DSP helps with Super Mario Kart.

But there's still tons of space used up for video decoding/encoding. Which isn't really necessary. Doing it in software may not be as efficient but you won't spend that much time watching videos on a gaming machine to care.

Looking at some die photos of other snapdragons, pretty much half the chip is stuff you don't need in a game console

 

[Jaagen]

Is 20nm a viable option, or is it a largely abandoned process node(in favour of 14nm)? The 810 and 808 are both 20nm SoCs.

 

[blu]

Well I guess the DSP helps with Super Mario Kart.

But there's still tons of space used up for video decoding/encoding. Which isn't really necessary. Doing it in software may not be as efficient but you won't spend that much time watching videos on a gaming machine to care.

Looking at some die photos of other snapdragons, pretty much half the chip is stuff you don't need in a game console

Hmm. I just looked at 810's floor plan and it does use quite a bit of area for codecs on top of the DSP. It's safe to say codecs go away too : )

 

[Bots are better than you]

Hmm. I just looked at 810's floor plan and it does use quite a bit of area for codecs on top of the DSP. It's safe to say codecs go away too : )

I don't think anything that comes in any form from the Snapdragon 810 is suitable for gaming ... that chip is an overheating disaster in last years Android flagships. Or more like, it throttles like heck after a short time.

 

[beril]

Either way, if we're talking about a handled; thinking we'll get a 2GHz octa-core CPU is ridiculous and it would be complete overkill.

 

[Diffense]

Why would Nintendo need you to buy both? do they need you to buy every version of the 3DS? wouldn't they have made the 2DS more compelling if they actually cared about selling every formfactor of their platform? It would be quite enough if every gamer they could reach just bought one of the devices, as each game they make would sell the same regardless of how many people owned both if the library was shared.

Well, I don't think they'll be asking customers to buy both because of the shared library. As I said, the shared library just means that it matters less which one you choose. *If* they want many people to buy both there has to be some other incentive.

 

[blu]

Either way, if we're talking about a handled; thinking we'll get a 2GHz octa-core CPU is ridiculous and it would be complete overkill.

You'll never work at SCE marketing ;p

 

[AzaK]

Well I guess the DSP helps with Super Mario Kart.

But there's still tons of space used up for video decoding/encoding. Which isn't really necessary. Doing it in software may not be as efficient but you won't spend that much time watching videos on a gaming machine to care.

Looking at some die photos of other snapdragons, pretty much half the chip is stuff you don't need in a game console

It might not be for videos, but for streaming to/from the NX console.

 

[Graphics Horse]

To be fair, I'm more worried about the free form display gimping the handheld specs.

Can't comment on price but I read these IGZO screens are supposed to be have substantially less power consmption than other lcd tech.

I'm gonna stick w/ the 540p consensus and also take IHS' word that the initial handheld will have a 3"-5" screen. My guess is closer to 5, but the Free From display would definitely make for some wacky number

what was the background on IHS' info again? I think it's fairly natural to assume that kind of screen size if you're told that a new nintendo handheld is coming out, but freeform might throw a spanner in that.

Whatever they go for it sounds like they want to shake things up again, capacitive surfaces and the like isn't something they've used yet but it's my best guess at what they'll try, maybe they can do a steam controller like setup. sorry can't quote more on my phone without difficulty.

 

[The_Lump]

what was the background on IHS' info again?

Here ya go:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/nintendo-seen-likely-to-launch-hand-held-device-this-year-1453982632

 

[Graphics Horse]

Thanks but says i need a subscription. but it's ok I was thinking more of some tweets that implied how solid thier info was regarding parts. I can't remember the details now.

 

[T-0800]

What if the NX was a Steam machine?

 

[TheMoon]

Thanks but says i need a subscription. but it's ok I was thinking more of some tweets that implied how solid thier info was regarding parts. I can't remember the details now.

throw article into google, click the google link, read full article

What if the NX was a Steam machine?

what if the NX was a banana.

different question, equally silly.