| walsufnir said:
You are right but it will only increase costs for MS and won't effect performance. It is like this gen: 360 is way easier than the complex ps3. But I think it is doubtable that MS will never achieve comparable outcome of wafers and I doubt that costs will always stay higher - it also depends on how much chips you order. Also keep in mind that when looking at system-performance you have to consider every part of the system. For example, SHAPE is built so that sound-processing won't need any CPU-performance. It is not like "we add everything together and we know how much it'll be better". But yes, overall $ony has an advantage also in my opinion. |
I agree.
In my opinion the Xbone maybe have issues with the chip yelds now but for the launch and next year production that will be not a issue.
That's not change the fact the Sony can produce more chips per Wafer than Microsoft because the small/simple vs. big/complex... the Xbone's chip will be always more expensive than PS4's chip.
Now my guesses about the full history...
MS always wanted 8GB RAM for Xbone because the TV/PC apps... so at the time to design and create the project the option to use GDDR5 was discarded due the high bost to use a 32 GDDR5 chips to archive 8GB (in 2012 only the 2Gbps module was in production... 256MB per chip... so 32 for 8GB).... so they decided to use DDR3 to archive 8GB using eSRAM do avoid the bottlenecks created by the low bandwidth of the RAM.
Sony always focused in games only... so they decided to go with 4GB using 16 chips of GDDR5.
These was the initial project/design of both... MS didn't changed anything because a change in memory controller (DDR3 to GDDR5) a year before the product release is a dead move... no company can make that... so if they go for any change a delay in the Xbone release will be needed... so they stay with 16xDD3 for 8GB RAM.
Sony have a good lucky because the memory manufactures launched the 4Gbps (512MG) GDDR5 modules in early 2013... so what the cost to change the 16xGDDR5 chips to other 16xGDDR5 chips? None... it is like you open your computer and replace the 1GB RAM module for other with 2GB RAM module... no project/design change... nothing change... and at the end the same 8GB RAM matching Xbone.
If the 4Gbps GDDR5 modules was not ready in early 2013 then the PS4 will be showed with only 4GB but Sony received a gift and the main advantage of Xbone was vanished.
This time even the luck is on the Sony side 
