Well, we know the 65nm Cell processor is going to decrease the PlayStation 3's manufacturing costs. Apparently, Sony has more than that up its sleeve for the upcoming year. It also makes the units currently in circulation completely obsolete. Well, not completely, but it's hard to keep yourself from pouting.Sony CFO Takao Yuhara indicated a number of changes and advances to come. In addition to the 65nm Cell, other improvements mentioned include:
- A component update to "reduce the parts" in the PS3 (removal of EE+GS chip for backwards compatibility?). Other potential areas for chip consolidation are: "the unification of separate smaller ICs - such as bluetooth and WiFi - into single chip solutions and a change to a more specialized southbridge."
- Beyond3D reports: "Going forward, as primary silicon gets shrunk, and tertiary silicon is removed from the system, PS3 should enjoy a cascading cost-reduction effect. Not only will the cost of the chips themselves go down, but the associated motherboard, cooling solution, and power supply will be able to be 'lightened' as well, as power and thermal pressures subside." We quote because we don't want to say something we're not entirely sure about.
Looking good. While we probably won't see a price cut on our end before Sony stops taking a hit per console sold, we know that after this year, it's entirely feasible. What do you guys think? Would you embrace the removal of the Emotion Engine and, essentially, the PS2 from the PS3 (keeping backwards compatibility intact)?
