Death of the console. Seriously.

[Bunchies]

Um...OnLive? Gaikai?

haha is that the same?

well i just heard about nvidias plan like 2 weeks ago

 

[3870x2]

Anyone seen the mobile unreal engine? And even that was 3+ years ago, it was pretty amazing. People don't seem to mind spending $800 or more on a tablet these days, you can fit quite a bit of technology into that.

 

[Iceni]

This is an interesting read for those of you that are following this.

The current news on intels plans to dump LGA in favour of BGA seem to fit the small form factor plan. With a BGA mount you loose a lot of the depth of the modern cpu, This with clever cooling solutions means that manufacturers will have a very powerful tool in comparison to atom/arm. I'll leave AMD out of this for the minute as they have other designs, and or use arm when they need to. Grated CPU's like the atom have been using BGA for a while, a more powerful chip on this socketing type is actually a big step forward. It means mainboards can be more compact and the fact intel are moving features from the mainboard to the cpu is a good indicator that mainboards are going to get simpler.

Because it wouldn't cost you like $2000?

Assume the TV was a modest size--40''--there's $400; with a high-end GPU--the equivalent of a 7950--there's another $200+; some SSD--32GB?--there's $100+; a tablet there's $300; and a keyboard, mouse, and controller adds another $100. There's $1100 worth of electronics, but you know they'll charge a premium for having such an all in one system, so assume $1200 for that 40'' TV with gaming capabilities, and probably $300 for a Tablet, and $100 for inputs. That's a conservative guess at $1600 for what you're talking about.

You're going to tell me you'd rather have all that shit than just buying and assembling a PC for about $600-800 and getting a bigger or better TV without the gaming capabilities, and the input devices (KB\M\Controller) which would run you like $1200 total? Or a gaming console for $300 and a (better) TV for $600-700--total of $900-1000?

People need to realize, Tablets are just the new in tech item. They won't ever completely replace Game Consoles or Desktop PC's, because they will never be as versatile. Their mobility and low profile forces them to make sacrifices when it comes to power, performance, control, and responsiveness. I hate playing most games on my phone or a tablet, because you always lack the precision you get with physical buttons, and I know most people feel the same way. Yes, games like Angry Birds work great on a tablet, but try playing something like Gran Turismo, or Gears of War, or Zelda on a tablet, and then tell me it's just as good.

Also, as for the Tablet mentioned, that was a Tablet with a dual-core i5 with HD4000 iGPU, 2GB RAM, and a 64GB SSD. The exact one they reviewed cost $850-900. Not exactly a cheap investment.

I think your missing the point. That tablet has already been stated to be flawed. This does not detract from what it actually is, A full CPU in a tablet form factor. It also does not detract from a TV with an intergrated GPU/CPU. I think your assuming these devices are going to be on a par with a full on desktop. That is a fundamental flaw in your logic. Clever use of components, and a mid range GPU can and will work on either of these form factors. Haswell has already been stated at having an 80% improvement on the HD4000 IGP. That and the fact it will be BGA, pre soldered onto a motherboard, and the storage does not have to be an SSD when your using the Television form factor can all reduce the price. Your also not needing a top end CPU. Most current games will play on a much older system, Provided you have a good solid chip, with reasonable clock speeds CPU should not be an issue.

If you took the current range of 1155 cpu's and modified them to fit this role you'd probably be looking at the G620, with a HD4000, single ram slot, and 1 sata port for a laptop/desktop HDD and 1 usb. Haswell should mean the HD4000 is better and more versatile in game playing. And because the package will be using a similar Board design to the tablet market there should be some manufacturer crossover. Perhaps the Television version could afford better clocks since power saving and HSF options will be easier to accommodate.

The device itself would also not be targeted at the desktop gamer. Gamers in general love hardware, this is a faceless device capable of playing games, net browsing, and file storage. Without the need to invest in expensive often complicated hardware. Think apple. You name it, It asks if you want it to connect to the network, after that it's windows idiot mode, with games direct from the M$ store.

I also think it's more than a strange co-incidence that Win8 has an interface that will support a cursor style input method. Remotes have had cursors for a long time, and M$ have also have the Xbox platform to test simple interfaces. Between the 2 there is room for a fairly simple user input style that is already in use and intuitive.

I like the overall direction this appears to be taking.

 

[newconroer]

Social gaming is destined to grow and tablets will be the medium of choice.

Core gaming as mentioned before will always require specific hardware.
Tablets are too small, too uncomfortable without proper peripheral support and they will have to sacrifice heat for power.

 

[Sasqui]

They are melding into one and the same. Do you know anyone who has a mobile device that does not use social networking?

Start looking for APUs not only in mobile devices, but place in televisions.We will not see a more spread of functionality, but a convergence.

I could be completely wrong and as always this is my opinion, but if I'm not send me money because I told you so.

Add an HMDI HD connection to a TV (wireless or not), bluetooth motion controller, IR reciever and/or cameras... you've got a console. Just add software.

I think you're right.

 

[lilhasselhoffer]

Is anyone else getting the sense that the blindingly obvious is staring at us?

The Wii-U has a touch screen embedded into the controller. The games can literally be played on the controller, without interaction with a television. People are raving about the fact that their "console" games can be taken with them. The pundits have given their approval, the only question is whether or not the average person agrees. Only time will tell.

Now, the caveat is that the controller+screen is basically a gameboy. Tablets never have the extra buttons, which make most current gaming design rules obsolete. It has the console inputs, older console processing power, and the ability to interact with a large home that can make good use of a TV.


Tablets cannot currently beat out consoles. They may be able to have similar graphical fidelity, but nobody yet has a formula to make their input feel as responsive as a traditional controller. Whenever there is a formula, tablets might stand a chance. Of course, if you're MS or Intel, the tablet revolution is "already here." I'm happy with an android smart phone, that plays a few games. I'm happy with my desktop, that plays all my games and media. I'm willing to accept a console, that can extend into a media center. I'm not happy with a tablet that costs as much as two consoles, and doesn't even match one in performance. I will not ever purchase a tablet computer designed to "replace" a desktop, because there is no such thing as replacing a Veyron with a Geo and not having to settle. There is no company out there than can say my 3930k is just as good as a Cortex A9. Anyone who does is a fool.


Edit:
Sorry, off on a tangent. Replace 3930k with any modern console, and the point still stands. Tablets may be the future of gaming. They aren't the near future, or even the predictable future. There's a reason that people still buy a 3DS or DS and Wii. Those who miss that fact are ignorant of the facts looking them dead in the face.

 

[Lazzer408]

Have you guys seen these?

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us...rboards/next-unit-computing-introduction.html

http://www.legitreviews.com/article/2083/1/

Other then an absolutely obnoxious name, it's an interesting little PC.

 

[Iceni]

That product is excellent.


I'd like to point out that that device also has a built in miniPCI-e slot. If that was modified to an MXM slot, or a graphics card manufacturer tried to use the PCIEmini for a GPU, then this device could have a much better GPU.

Intel are not using the miniPCI-e header on either of the featured models but the fact it is there adds a lot. Take that 4x4 inch motherboard. Add a ribbon cable to the GPU and mount it all to a ridged aluminium extrude and you have the very crude beginnings of a tablet with a high powered GPU.

Here is a link to that motherboard on sale with some better quality images.

 

[Lazzer408]

https://linitx.com/images/products/..._Express_X1_Socket_-_9cm_Cable_main_large.jpg

1x?

 

[Iceni]

You could put an SSD on it as well, using a Compact flash minipcie adapter, and a 128Gb compact flash card. Provided that 1x extender is made to fit in the 51mm Minipcie header, and the compact flash adapter sits over it you have all the makings for something all together more powerful. (that's if your too cheap to grab a standard PCIEmini ssd.)

link