Sony, Toshiba and IBM will start mass production on a 45nm version of the Cell processor in 2009, according to Japan's Nikkan. We first heard about the 45 nm shrinkage in February 2008, when Ars Technica reported the smaller chips would run off only 80 watts of power (compared to the 200 watts of the 90nm Cell when the PlayStation 3 first launched).
There is no reported time frame indicating when in 2009 production will begin. The new chip will also be cheaper to produce, meaning Sony is approximately 200% more likely to use these for PS3 production as soon as feasibly possible.
[Via Engadget]
Reader Comments (25)
Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 3:44PM Shagittarius said
The cell processor look a lot like a dime. Amazing!
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 5:39PM (Unverified) said
Only doing this to get on the top of the comment list.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 3:51PM (Unverified) said
Hopefully they can pass the savings onto the consumer ASAP so everyone can enjoy the PS3.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 3:59PM (Unverified) said
when will these things come to computers? I want them in a laptop.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 4:10PM MrHashbrown said
Well if Toshiba is seeking them out than that may not be too far off.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 4:50PM Lekko said
you would only want one in a laptop as a co-processor.
Cell would maul tasks like decompression, transcoding, and raw power, but would fail miserably at the spaghetti code of an OS.
A beefier version that is more geared towards an OS, perhaps... but then you would be venturing into CPU/GPU on one die territory.
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Cell would maul tasks like decompression, transcoding, and raw power, but would fail miserably at the spaghetti code of an OS.
A beefier version that is more geared towards an OS, perhaps... but then you would be venturing into CPU/GPU on one die territory.
Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 7:08PM BananaBoat said
I'm not a comp-sci major or anything, but isn't it staying away from PC's because it's not x86? The only thing that runs on cell right now is Linux distributions with support for whatever the hell the cell is.
If this were an x86 chip (which would have cost them a ton of money in licensing fees) it would already be in consumer PC's today.
Whatever the case, I'm still waiting for someone to unlock the GPU so that I can turn my PS3 into an actual computer, instead of a graphically-gimped computer like it is right now.
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If this were an x86 chip (which would have cost them a ton of money in licensing fees) it would already be in consumer PC's today.
Whatever the case, I'm still waiting for someone to unlock the GPU so that I can turn my PS3 into an actual computer, instead of a graphically-gimped computer like it is right now.
Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 4:11PM MrHashbrown said
That reminds me of the Seinfeld episode with "maximum shrinkage". haha man that was classic.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 7:26PM (Unverified) said
It's actually a good idea to NOT stack anything on top of your PS3. I can't even imagine putting anything on top of any of my consoles for that matter. Longevity is more likely with better ventilation. My 360 finally crapped out just recently and it was an original launch box.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 9:52PM ummhello said
yeah, but the only things I like to stack on top of my consoles are some videogame controllers or their respective remotes (it gets tiresome looking for controllers when you have 4 or more consoles hooked up to your tv). other than that, I keep them and my sound system separated to keep them from overheating.
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 6:42PM (Unverified) said
that would be a little early to see the slim model PS3.....
the PSOne Slim came out RIIGHT before the PS2 was launched(5-6 years after the PS1 came out).
PS2 Slim came out in 2004(4 years after the Original PS2)
I wouldnt suspect to see a PS3 Slim until 2010(4 years after launch).....
BUT if they move it up a year or so(like they did with the difference between the PS1 & PS2 slim revisions from 5 years to 4 years) then it just MIGHT make it out next year.......
but hell it can only get SO small with the HDD in there........unless they go the SSD route in which case the PS3 Slim would be OUTRAGEOUSLY priced.......
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the PSOne Slim came out RIIGHT before the PS2 was launched(5-6 years after the PS1 came out).
PS2 Slim came out in 2004(4 years after the Original PS2)
I wouldnt suspect to see a PS3 Slim until 2010(4 years after launch).....
BUT if they move it up a year or so(like they did with the difference between the PS1 & PS2 slim revisions from 5 years to 4 years) then it just MIGHT make it out next year.......
but hell it can only get SO small with the HDD in there........unless they go the SSD route in which case the PS3 Slim would be OUTRAGEOUSLY priced.......
Posted: Sep 23rd 2008 6:59AM (Unverified) said
oh yea I know the HDD aint what made it that big......
but I was thinking in comparison to how thin the PSOne was as well as the PS2 Slim.....the PS2 slim was around an inch thick....
I just wonder how they will get the heatsink, HDD, and all that in a nice small package.......I know they will put the power supply outside and HOPEFULLY without all the trouble they had with the PS2 Slim power supplies.......as long as it WAAAAAAAAAY smaller than the 360 one I'm good.....lol
hell even the PS3 laptop(even tho made from parts of the current PS3 model) was pretty thick.....
but hell........I cant wait.......seeing as how I already have a BC PS3 model I wont care if the PS3 Slim has it or not......I'll get one for the bedroom and use it as a BD Player/Game Console......lol
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but I was thinking in comparison to how thin the PSOne was as well as the PS2 Slim.....the PS2 slim was around an inch thick....
I just wonder how they will get the heatsink, HDD, and all that in a nice small package.......I know they will put the power supply outside and HOPEFULLY without all the trouble they had with the PS2 Slim power supplies.......as long as it WAAAAAAAAAY smaller than the 360 one I'm good.....lol
hell even the PS3 laptop(even tho made from parts of the current PS3 model) was pretty thick.....
but hell........I cant wait.......seeing as how I already have a BC PS3 model I wont care if the PS3 Slim has it or not......I'll get one for the bedroom and use it as a BD Player/Game Console......lol
Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 7:24PM (Unverified) said
Which sized cell processor is in the new 40G PS3's?
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Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 7:59PM (Unverified) said
IBM recently spoke of a 22nm processor.
http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/22/ibm-shoots-for-22nm-processor-bragging-rights/
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http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/22/ibm-shoots-for-22nm-processor-bragging-rights/
Posted: Sep 22nd 2008 8:47PM xGearSecondx said
Unrelated to the article, but, where the HELL are my Jasper Motherboards??! I kinda want my 360 now w/ those inside.
On topic.
Sounds awesome
Reply
On topic.
Sounds awesome
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