Oh boy. This next generation of consoles is going to be very, very interesting.

F0X said: Oh boy. This next generation of consoles is going to be very, very interesting.

No it wont. It will mostly be just like this one.

Dallinor said: How does these rumored specs compare with the Wii U? If this is legitimate, it seems Sony are trying to create a very smooth user experience coupled with specs that allow for easy development. Key areas the PS3 encountered problems. Lets hope they've learnt from some of their other mistakes as well. Also, I actually hope they don't call it the PS4. They need to be daring with their new console, create something totally new and exciting. Re-branding the PS division and giving it a completely new look might work in their favor.

Take it you haven't seen my comparison thread?

The A10 APU is too weak for 1080p@60fps in 3D.

Dallinor said: How does these rumored specs compare with the Wii U? If this is legitimate, it seems Sony are trying to create a very smooth user experience coupled with specs that allow for easy development. Key areas the PS3 encountered problems. Lets hope they've learnt from some of their other mistakes as well. Also, I actually hope they don't call it the PS4. They need to be daring with their new console, create something totally new and exciting. Re-branding the PS division and giving it a completely new look might work in their favor.

I'm not a great authority on these things, but I'd estimate anywhere from 2-3 times as powerful as the Wii U (maybe a conservative estimate, but again don't trust me on these things). Most of that has to do with the available RAM, which will become easily apparent not long after PS4 launches, and will eventually create a huge performance gap in which future games will have to be severely downscaled in order to run on Wii U. I think that first-party Sony games will be quite impressive-looking (again), but multiplatform titles? That may be up to Microsoft's plans.

Im almost certain they will price it as a $399 model and a $449 model. something like a 40gb model use your own drive for $399 and a 750gb for $449

F0X said: Dallinor said: How does these rumored specs compare with the Wii U? If this is legitimate, it seems Sony are trying to create a very smooth user experience coupled with specs that allow for easy development. Key areas the PS3 encountered problems. Lets hope they've learnt from some of their other mistakes as well. Also, I actually hope they don't call it the PS4. They need to be daring with their new console, create something totally new and exciting. Re-branding the PS division and giving it a completely new look might work in their favor. I'm not a great authority on these things, but I'd estimate anywhere from 2-3 times as powerful as the Wii U (maybe a conservative estimate, but again don't trust me on these things). Most of that has to do with the available RAM, which will become easily apparent not long after PS4 launches, and will eventually create a huge performance gap in which future games will have to be severely downscaled in order to run on Wii U. I think that first-party Sony games will be quite impressive-looking (again), but multiplatform titles? That may be up to Microsoft's plans.

Looking at the APU it is based on, it is probably about 2 to 4 times as powerful as the PS3 and would be roughly on par with the rumoured specs of the Wii U ...

 

I could be wrong but I suspect why Sony and Microsoft haven't been "bashing" the Wii U for being low performance is because they're not going to be producing a system that is much more powerful.

Please no 3D Sony, just give up it's a dead end, no one cares for 3D over a regular TV.

Gilgamesh said: Please no 3D Sony, just give up it's a dead end, no one cares for 3D over a regular TV.

While I agree in general, I doubt Sony will listen ...

Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have their weaknesses and Sony's biggest weakness is that they try to use one product line to drive sales in other product lines. It doesn't matter whether there is much of a market for 4k or 3D televisions, if people really want 9.1 surround sound, or if people are interested in rebuying their movie collection in 3D, Sony will likely use a product like the PS4 to try to drive adoption for these products.

Gehirnkrampf said: I really can't understand why people want a cheap console. Do you want to buy a new one in 5 years?

Consumers don't want a cheap console; they expect a lot for their money. The mass consumer (not the core demographic that's always first in line to buy new hardware/games) generally isn't willing to pay that much for it. $299 is the likely current sweet spot for mass adoption. 

Personally, I don't think I'll ever pay $600 or more for another console again, regardless of what it offers as it would primarily be a gaming machine and portal to whatever online services/shops that were within its walled garden. 

I bought 2 PS3s; one at $599 in Jan 2007, which died in 2009 and was refurbed (died again in 2012). The other in late 2008 for $399 (died in 2010). 

Never had to experience the aggravation of multiple RRoD Xboxes. Same summer 2007 model still runs today. If it had been my primary console, I would have likely bought more than one. 

As it's been pointed out, any heavily used console (Xbox was not heavily used, which is probably why it still runs today) will be more likely than not to see repeat purchases within the same hardware generation, either replacments or "upgrades" to newer models. 

If you're still playing regularly on a given platform in 5 years, odds are you will have bought more than one of the same console anyway. 

The real cost in a new console is not limited to the box and initial purchase itself, but the related peripherals and costs of starting up with a new hardware platform.