Out of the three major consoles (Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, and Sony PlayStation 3), it's the Wii that's in most need of a hardware refresh. Appropriately enough, Nintendo is the only one of the bunch to announce a next generation console, and other than alternate color options, has mostly refrained from launching a bunch of different SKUs with features added on (like increased storage)" to extend its lifespan. The Wii U is Nintendo's next big console, but can it compete?
On paper, the Wii U is not only on par with the Xbox 360 and PS3, but it's actually 50 percent more powerful, game industry analyst Arvind Bhatia from Sterne Agee told Wii U Daily. More recently, Wii U Daily claims to have spoken with another developer who was willing to go into specifics.
According to this unnamed developer, the Wii U will rock a quad-core 3GHz PowerPC-based processor built on a 45nm manufacturing process. It's similar to the one found in the Xbox 360, but updated and with an additional processing core. It will have 768MB of DRAM embedded with the CPU that will be shared between the CPU and GPU, and an unknown 40nm AMD-based graphics chip.
The source tells Wii U Daily that Nintendo's currently testing two versions of its next generation console, one with 768MB of RAM and one with 1GB. All of these specs could change, however, as the Wii U's release is still several months away.
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jaygregz
December 06, 2011 at 3:12pm
I love my consoles. I don't understand why people don't feel the same way I do. The people who are complaining about the extended shelf life of the product must be on a different planet. Everyone and their mother is getting a lot of bang for the buck out of these outdated consoles. The online experience is a blast and there continuously adding new content. Don't get me wrong it's entirely different experience from pc gaming but I don't feel like graphics are what's holding the console makers back. Look at the latest list of amazing games just released ... Uncharted 3, Super Mario Bros, Zelda, skyrim, gears 3, batman (not everyones cup of tea but I enjoy it),battlefield 3. I have a pretty nice computer rig by my standards (2600k oced, more ram than I could ever used and two 560ti's in sli) yet I still enjoy both platforms equally. I think the issue a lot of people are having is that the full potential of their PCs aren't being tapped into. That will change as the consoles hardware gets better because of ports to pc, but who really wants a port from a console anyway? The only from console port even worth having is Skyrim. And yes it is a port. If you don't believe me then throw a wired controller on your computer and see how much better the game mechanics feel over the keyboard controls which seem like an afterthought.
Hail to the pc though for mmorpg's. Now let's all take a moment of silence until SWTOR comes out two weeks from now (less if you pre-ordered).
Slurpy
December 06, 2011 at 8:06pm
"The only from console port even worth having is Skyrim."
So Arkham City and BF3 aren't worth having? Why did you mention them then?
theabsinthehare
December 06, 2011 at 11:07am
What's weird about this, is that they're claiming it has 768MB of *embedded DRAM*. That's an insane amount of eDRAM. In comparison, the 360 has 10MB and the Wii has 3MB. That's pretty significant; eDRAM is far faster than SDRAM because it's on the chip and doesn't require I/O through a bus.
CHR15x94
December 06, 2011 at 2:13pm
I'm pretty sure it's not eDRAM, it's just RAM embedded in the die (of the CPU). Nintendo has been doing that a lot lately, making their systems SoC or as close to a SoC as they could. Saves them quite a bit of money I guess. I don't think NEC (or whatever company it is) produces eDRAM anywhere near 768MB.
Also, I remember seeing specs very similar to this several months ago. I can't remember the source, and when I tried to find it again it was gone.
I know I'm far from a reliable source, but the specs it had were about in line with what has been leaked here, along with other leaks. They said the GPU was a 4870 based, but with higher clocks, had 16MB of eDRAM (enough for 1080p) and the CPU was clocked at 3.5GHz or so. CPU/GPU also had weird codenames, they were Falcon or Eagle or something like that (not really important). Basically just an Xbox 360 with a bit more power.
EDIT: Found the site, the specs they list are quite different (as far as RAM is concerned), so yeah, who the hell knows.
praack
December 06, 2011 at 10:19am
agree with the overall sentiment- unless the move is to bring up the specs to match PC's now with discreet cards specs at DX11 we will be stuck with dx9 or maybe dx10 for the next decade
that alone would keep me from purchasing another console - the PS3 was my first - but if the cycle is not abbreviated and the hardware not improved in the console world with this next gen- it will be my last
Jyckle
December 06, 2011 at 8:48am
I have lost all faith in consoles anymore. All they have done is halt the advancement of gaming in general with graphics from 6 years ago. The all currently use hardware our top cellphones are now tapping into it seems, and it seems all they pump out for consoles is lack luster shooters anymore.
Just my opinion of course but i havent really touched my console in over a year now. I dont really plan on buying another one. My PC as it sits now, will out proform the next xbox/PS4 without breaking a sweat.
again just my opinion
kuebel33
December 06, 2011 at 12:55pm
uhhh what? Not even commenting on the graphics from 6 years ago part or the cellphone hardware part, but lack luster shooters??
Really? Uncharted 3, Skyward Sword, Gears of War 3 (a shooter, but lack luster? hardly), etc.
LatiosXT
December 06, 2011 at 9:10am
Except that I'm pretty sure mobile GPUs are at a standstill until they can figure out how to do that without drinking up the battery life like the town drunk. Not to mention they can get away with that because they're not expected to push out 1080p, or even 720p. Especially in the 3DS's cases where it's only pushing at most 800x240 or something of the sort for 3D graphics.
So no, as impressive as mobile graphics are today, they don't perform as good as the 360 or the PS3 when you want them to start doing that.
the_brink
December 06, 2011 at 10:55am
Just look at tegra 3's potential and tell me mobile GPUs are at a stand still. I wouldn't say mobile graphics are better than consoles, but they will be very soon. Also, phones are pushing 720+ resolutions right now.
Slurpy
December 06, 2011 at 8:28am
50% more powerful than a 360 or PS3 is still 1/7 as powerful as a mid-range PC these days. Sounds like Nintendo's still going for the budget system.
Kinetic
December 06, 2011 at 9:33am
I was thinking the same thing. It's not exactly hard to be 50% more powerful than the PS3 (a system released in 2006) when it's still running a 7900GT @ 550MHz, and only has 256MB of DDR3.
B_H
December 06, 2011 at 8:13am
I was a pretty adamant Nintendo fan (alongside PC gaming) up until the Wii. It really wasn't the hardware that let me down, which I still think is pretty unique and worthy, but the software. No one but Nintendo themselves really tried to innovate with its controls. There's only so many "party games" that one can be entertained with. Let's hope that changes next-gen (and includes a sane online/multiplayer platform).
Ashton2091
December 06, 2011 at 10:07am
ha, I second that. the only game that i really find to be worth my time on the wii is the zelda series. i have a ton of games on my wii that i have not touch since i aquired them. well, i'd be wrong to leave the new super mario bros out. but anywho...i def agree with you there.
iceman08
December 06, 2011 at 8:10am
Then Sony and Microsoft will come out with their new consoles and one-up Nintendo with specs, with all 3 giving thier consoles a shelf life of 15 years. I love gaming on my console, but there seriously needs to be an update as of 2009
Caboose
December 07, 2011 at 9:56am
a 15yr lifespan, cut short you mean. The Wii and PS3 are about 8yrs old, give or take, and the 360 is about 9yrs old.
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