As usual take this with a pinch of salt until next week....but if true its very interesting. Wii 2 specs(Rumored) Graphics: Custom AMD RV770 Chip “WOLF” @ 766Mhz on 32nm process 1398 Gflops CPU: Custom IBM Power 6 Chip “FOX” on 32nm process 4 cores, each two way SMT-capable and clocked at 3.5 GHz 175.9 GFLOPS theoretical peak performance (single-precision) 87.6 GFLOPS theoretical peak performance (double-precision) Memory: 512 MB XDR2 DRAM main memory + 1024 GDDR5 video memory + 16 MB eDRAM Storage: 2.5-inch SATA hard drive with 250 GB / 320 GB capacity Expanded storage via SD and SDHC card memory (up to 64 GB) Media: Custom Blu-ray Disc, up to 50 GB Compatible with 7 cm Nintendo GameCube Game Disc and 12 cm Wii Optical Disc Display: Video output formats Composite video: 480i, 576i (PAL) S-Video: 480i, 576i (PAL) RGB SCART: 480i, 576i (PAL) Component (YPBPR): 480i, 576i (PAL), 480p, 576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p D-Terminal: 480i (D1), 480p (D2), 720p (D4), 1080i (D3), 1080p (D5) HDMI: 480p, 576p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p Wii2 rumored leaked specs
CPU Custom-built IBM CPU, "Broadway" 729MHz Custom-built ATI, GPU "Hollywood" 243MHz MoSys-developed 1T-SRAM System memory 88MB Internal storage 512MB Flash Memory 2x USB 2.0 ports 4x GameCube controller ports 2x 1 slot (SD Card compatible) Max Resolution 480p Game Format 12 cm Wii Disc, 8 cm GameCube disc 4.7 GB (or 8.5 GB Dual Layer) Controllers Wii Remote & MotionPlus (supports up to 4 wireless controllers), Wii Balance Board, Nintendo GameCube controller, Nintendo DS Wireless Connectivity Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g Bluetooth 2.0 (EDR) Other Features "Virtual console" for retro games 1x proprietary component/digital out
Seems too powerful to me. Nintendo never goes for cutting edge technology preferring to keep their costs down, so I'm expecting something equal to or maybe even a bit weaker than the 360.
They didn't follow that mantra with the 3DS, and I don't think two consoles (CG and Wii) constitutes "never". The NES, SNES and N64 were all relatively cutting edge technology on the home market and were priced similarly to the MS, Genesis, and Playstation. If Nintendo really has decided that going back after the "hardcore" market is the only way to continue making as much profit as possible, that's what they will do. They will need powerful hardware to do it with. The Kinect and Move are clearly aimed at that market and will inevitably continue to devour larger pieces of the pie when their next gen systems come out. And it's really not that powerful, no more than something like an i7 2600 with a GTX 470. A top of the line PC right now, but by the time it debuts that kind of performance technology will be one or two years old. Properly integrated for gaming in a way that's almost impossible for a PC to achieve, you can get great results, but it doesn't look revolutionary. I can see them bringing a system like that to market for $299, taking a $50-150 loss on each one for three years and still making Nintendo a bundle by getting ahead of the "720" and "PS4".
Heh, actually, all three of these consoles were well below 'powerful' at the time of their introduction. The NES, for its part, was actually pretty OLD tech for the US market by the time it was released. (It was off-the-shelf components even when it was the Famicom.)
And the 3DS, despite being 3D, is barely more powerful than the 7 year old PSP. The only Nintendo systems that were considered powerful for their time were the N64 and GC which didn't work out all too well for Nintendo. In fact, every video game generation going back to the Atari 2600 was won by a weak system.
Indeed, the history of gaming is littered with the corpses of expensive, high-tech consoles: * TurboGrafx 16 * Neo-Geo * Dreamcast * 3DO * Jaguar
As Ford mentioned, these specs don't exactly look THAT cutting edge. It's certainly not that much more powerful then my PC that I built over a year ago.
I rather seriously doubt both the Hard Disk and Blu-Ray. I cannot see Nintendo going for an internal rewritable mass-storage device other than built-in flash/SD unless they're going to have a greater online focus than the 3DS indicates. An external add-on is definitely a possibility, but I think they'll want to do everything possible to keep costs down. I think direct read-write from SD for downloadable content is a given, however, rather than the woeful "copy to built-in flash" workaround used on the Wii for WiiWare/VC games. Blu Ray has an attached licensing cost and I cannot see them wanting to share any revenue with Sony, regardless of capacity increase. Besides the overwhelming majority of games aren't large enough to warrant Blu Ray now so it would seem a format they can afford to skip. Note that the Wii doesn't play DVDs (yes, I know you can hack it to do so); I expect they haven't had to pay a nickel to the DVD Group for that system as a result. Realistically I expect the successor to at least match the specs of PS/360 or best them by a bit. Horsepower for a home console does seem to have plateaued for the moment, so their real focus should be on the online front where they were very weak this generation both in terms of a lack of community and any kind of real OS infrastructure that would allow developers to easily take their games online.
The 360 and PS3 are no longer cutting edge. Catching up with them while keeping it relativley cheap doesn't seem like a problem to me. It's been about 7 years or so, and both consoles were under development for at least a few years. Getting equivalent power to either the 360 or the PS3 should be a simple matter.
It was announced today at E3. It's called Wii U. Check it out: http://wii.ign.com/articles/117/1173582p1.html The main feature of this new system (besides being HD) is the new controller, which has a 6.5" touch screen built in. I can't wait to see what new games they'll come up with for this system...
The whole thing seems a little clunky with this big screen in your hand and looking up at the tv then back down at your controller? Doesn't seem to have the instant pick-up appeal of Wii-mote that appealed to non-gamers.
Yeah, I hope that new controller is optional and there will be a more "normal" one. If I wanted a handheld console, that's what I have a DS for...
I definitely think my next gaming system will be an iPad 2 (or three by the time I get around to buying one). My Wiis work just fine.
Wow, so after the whole GBA connectivity fiasco Nintendo STILL hasn't given up on the idea huh? Looks horrible to me, but then again I thought the Wii was horrible and it sold like hotcakes. (I still think it's a horrible console though.)
I'm kind of disappointed, to be honest. I think it looks rather ridiculous, not that the original controller didn't of course, but it almost feels as if they didn't really think it through well enough. What made the Wii so successful was its simplicity. It was something anyone could easily pick up and play as it wasn't too intimidating. They opened up new opportunities for older people and people that weren't used to playing in general. This on the other hand feels like they're adding a layer of complexity, something I can see older people being intimidated by. The barrier is the added technology between the player and the console which from seeing here looks less accessible. Of course, it will also use the other type of controller made popular by the Wii, with this controller being an extension of that, but I'm not really sure it's really needed. And what does Wii U stand for exactly? I mean, I get that the two ii's symbolizes two people playing, but what about the U?