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Forums - Nintendo Discussion - Clarifying the 4GB of RAM of the SWITCH for those who just see the numbers.

 

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understood 53 61.63%
 
I don't want to understand 32 37.21%
 
Total:85
m_csquare on 31 October 2016

It doesnt mean anything if the processing power is meh. If i could use an analogy, RAM is like an aquarium while the processor is like the water. The size of aquarium doesnt matter if theres not enough water for the fish to live. Anyway, it's good to know NS has decent RAM size



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walsufnir on 31 October 2016
onionberry said:

Once again, I see reports and I see people jumping to conclusions.

The PS4 reserves 3.5 of ram for the os, what does it means? the ps4 has 4.5 gb of ram for games, and it's a "powerful" home console. If the switch has a simplistic and not demanding os, they could use less ram for the os, and 3 to 3.5 gb of ram for games. For contex, xbox uses 3gb of 8gb, so in paper the xbox has more ram than the ps4, but guess what? does not matter, not one bit. Ram is not going to be a problem for western developers like some are saying? why? because game engines are scalable and if your game can run with 5 gb of ram, optimization can make a game run with 3 gb of ram.

so let's say the rumor is true.

Ps4. 4.5 gb of ram

xbox one. 5 gb of ram

switch 3 to 3.5 gb of ram, or guess what? 4gb of ram for games if  they could use the wholeee 4 gb of ram if the os doesn't interfiere when playing games, something like the gamecube. But what about other functions? just like the wii u gamepad, a quick launch menu for apps while playing games. Nintendo does stuff like this, even the os of the wii u uses just 1gb of ram and that was made as a home console, not as a hybrid.

it's not just about numbers friends, we have to wait for the details.

 

The WiiU also uses 1 GB of RAM for os purposes. What makes you think this will be different for NX other than hope?



Akeos on 31 October 2016
Conina said:

Sharu said:
Guys, you just cant directly compare Switch to PS4/X1. Its different architecture.

We all know that it is a different architecture. Doesn't make it uncomparable for every aspect.

PS4/X1 is pc's little brother now, which is why the games are the same and the specs are compatible.

How can specs be compatible? Do you mean comparable? The game versions between PC/XBO/PS4 aren't the same, but they are often similar. Nevertheless there are often performance differences.

But Switch is NOT x64 machine. Its likely build on ARM chips, and its total different when speaking to ram/cpu etc.
Take a pc with a Ipad air specs and try to run Hearthstone on it...

Sorry, I can't find PC hardware with less than 2 GB RAM anymore to test Hearthstone on it.

And, yes cartriges WILL make a difference. Cause it removes any need to install games.

Yes, they will make a difference to STORAGE space, but not to needed RAM. These are totally different things with different purposes and some of you mix that all together to support your arguments.

And we don't know what type of memory Nintendo using in this, why just assuming its a SD card?

It will be some kind of flash memory in the cartridges, don't you agree? It won't be any kind of memory with direct access to the SoC, so it absolutely has to be copied into the RAM to be processed/accessed by the CPU and GPU parts of the SoC. So it mades no difference in a discussion about RAM limitations.

You re making assumptions without any substantial info, blinded by Sonys marketing trick (more ram is better and gddr5 is better then ddr3).

And you are making assumptions that more and faster RAM ain't better than less and slower RAM.

a system using cartridges needs less RAM because it has less need to store the data ... speed of access and much higher transfer rate used to empty and fill the RAM much more easily than the blue-ray ... which allows developers to optimize the use of RAM ...



Conina on 31 October 2016
Akeos said:
Conina said:

a system using cartridges needs less RAM because it has less need to store the data ... speed of access and much higher transfer rate used to empty and fill the RAM much more easily than the blue-ray ... which allows developers to optimize the use of RAM ...

The data has to be in the virtual memory when the CPU/GPU needs them. Either they are there in that moment or not... it doesn't matter much if the cartridge can copy than data into the virtual memoryin 1 instead of 5 seconds... 1 second is already 1 second too late.

And nobody is talking about slow transfer speeds from blu-rays or other optical discs, the competitors load game data from much faster HDDs into the RAM.

Also if Nintendo isn't ditching (more profitable) eShop-sales entirely, the Switch games will have to run from affordable microSD cards, (which are in the same ballpark as HDDs from a speed perspective), not only from cartridges (which has to be seen, if their connection to the system can handle very fast transfer speeds)... so developers can't depend on "much higher transfer rates" than HDD speed.



bigtakilla on 31 October 2016
Conina said:
Akeos said:

a system using cartridges needs less RAM because it has less need to store the data ... speed of access and much higher transfer rate used to empty and fill the RAM much more easily than the blue-ray ... which allows developers to optimize the use of RAM ...

The data has to be in the virtual memory when the CPU/GPU needs them. Either they are there in that moment or not... it doesn't matter much if the cartridge can copy than data into the virtual memoryin 1 instead of 5 seconds... 1 second is already 1 second too late.

And nobody is talking about slow transfer speeds from blu-rays or other optical discs, the competitors load game data from much faster HDDs into the RAM.

Also if Nintendo isn't ditching (more profitable) eShop-sales entirely, the Switch games will have to run from affordable microSD cards, (which are in the same ballpark as HDDs from a speed perspective), not only from cartridges (which has to be seen, if their connection to the system can handle very fast transfer speeds)... so developers can't depend on "much higher transfer rates" than HDD speed.

Pretty much this. Those required installs on every PS4 game and Xbone game are there for a reason.

It's like everyone here believes NS will have all 4gb of ram available for games and PS4 and Xbone ONLY use the bluray disk for running games. Neither are the case.



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Cobretti2 on 31 October 2016
setsunatenshi said:
bunchanumbers said:
I love how everyone was ridiculing me for saying Switch is a tablet instead of a home console. But the instant the specs are leaked everyone is instantly talking about how its a handheld and how relieved how weak the system is.

What happened to all that home console talk?

especially those people daydreaming about how it would be able to game on the go and still be more powerful than a PS4... man I miss those delusions xD

who said that? didn't most people only say that thinking it would when docked? i.e. people were hoping for the dock to have supplimantary power.



 

 

vivster on 31 October 2016
WagnerPaiva said:
onionberry said:

Once again, I see reports and I see people jumping to conclusions.

The PS4 reserves 3.5 of ram for the os, what does it means? the ps4 has 4.5 gb of ram for games, and it's a "powerful" home console. If the switch has a simplistic and not demanding os, they could use less ram for the os, and 3 to 3.5 gb of ram for games. For contex, xbox uses 3gb of 8gb, so in paper the xbox has more ram than the ps4, but guess what? does not matter, not one bit. Ram is not going to be a problem for western developers like some are saying? why? because game engines are scalable and if your game can run with 5 gb of ram, optimization can make a game run with 3 gb of ram.

so let's say the rumor is true.

Ps4. 4.5 gb of ram

xbox one. 5 gb of ram

switch 3 to 3.5 gb of ram, or guess what? 4gb of ram for games if  they could use the wholeee 4 gb of ram if the os doesn't interfiere when playing games, something like the gamecube. But what about other functions? just like the wii u gamepad, a quick launch menu for apps while playing games. Nintendo does stuff like this, even the os of the wii u uses just 1gb of ram and that was made as a home console, not as a hybrid.

it's not just about numbers friends, we have to wait for the details.

and it uses cartridges, so, it is different than the PS4 and Xbox One. My Xbox One can not play anything till it spend hours installing and then downloading some stupid patch, the same goes to the Ps4. A retail game installed 30GB of data in my HDD, I say this is bravo sierra, how come??? It is stupid and my 500GB HDD is full as we speak.

That has nothing to do with RAM though.



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DonFerrari on 31 October 2016

So you believe that developers will release unoptimized codes for PS4 and X1 but would go overoptimize for Switch? And considering WiiU is already over 1Gb of OS I see little reason to not think Switch will be even more...

And just a not, PS4Pro have an extra 1Gb for OS, and will probably release more than 6Gb for games (because of textures and other needs for the 4k and checkerboard).

The system haven't release and we are already finding excuses to try and make it seems better than it's?



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setsunatenshi on 31 October 2016
Cobretti2 said:
setsunatenshi said:

especially those people daydreaming about how it would be able to game on the go and still be more powerful than a PS4... man I miss those delusions xD

who said that? didn't most people only say that thinking it would when docked? i.e. people were hoping for the dock to have supplimantary power.

holy shit, where have you been these past few months? especially around E3 when the rumors went to overdrive...

there have been plenty of wild claims made, one day we should dig those old posts and have a proper laugh :D



Conina on 31 October 2016
WagnerPaiva said:

My Xbox One can not play anything till it spend hours installing and then downloading some stupid patch, the same goes to the Ps4. A retail game installed 30GB of data in my HDD, I say this is bravo sierra, how come??? It is stupid and my 500GB HDD is full as we speak.

Then there is something wrong with your Xbox One and PS4.

Both my Xbox One and PS4 can play games while other games are installing or downloading in the background:

  • The PS4 and Xbox One can play digital games while installing a retail game
  • The PS4 and Xbox One can play retail or digital games while downloading a digital game
  • The PS4 and Xbox One can play retail or digital games while downloading a patch