Technoglitch
Core Member
Sony’s decision to build the PS4.5 a.k.a. the PlayStation NEO may have been precipitatedby AMD’s decision to shift to a 14nm manufacturing process. The current PlayStation 4 (PS4) uses chips based on AMD’s 28nm manufacturing process, which is now very old and comparatively inefficient. It’s also more expensive to manufacture today.
A shift to a 14nm process for AMD’s new chips means that their next generation chips, codenamed ‘Polaris’, will be much more efficient and also more powerful. AMD’s decision to shift to a 14nm process means that Sony, and Microsoft, which are dependent on AMD’s 28nm-based APUs to power their consoles, will have to rely on an older, more expensive manufacturing technique in order to keep their consoles in production.
Normally, a shift in manufacturing process would mean that the likes of Sony would just shrink their design to suit the new process. However, since the current generation of consoles are based on the x86 architecture (the technology that powers your fully-upgradeable PC), they can be upgraded without alienating their existing audience and ushering in a new console generation.
With the Sony PlayStation NEO, AMD may have forced Sony's hand – Tech2
A shift to a 14nm process for AMD’s new chips means that their next generation chips, codenamed ‘Polaris’, will be much more efficient and also more powerful. AMD’s decision to shift to a 14nm process means that Sony, and Microsoft, which are dependent on AMD’s 28nm-based APUs to power their consoles, will have to rely on an older, more expensive manufacturing technique in order to keep their consoles in production.
Normally, a shift in manufacturing process would mean that the likes of Sony would just shrink their design to suit the new process. However, since the current generation of consoles are based on the x86 architecture (the technology that powers your fully-upgradeable PC), they can be upgraded without alienating their existing audience and ushering in a new console generation.
With the Sony PlayStation NEO, AMD may have forced Sony's hand – Tech2