Future Gaming...

[=98=]

Re: Future Gaming...

Don't things normally get bigger and overtime get smaller? That's how technology has seemed to work in the past.

The CPU market was like that. Things got bigger, faster (raw speed) and hotter until, pop, Core 2 Duo came along and redefined that trend.

Maybe the same will happen to the GPU market.

[Kylee!]

Re: Future Gaming...

Damn this is one insanely interesting thread to read, and dairuka should write a book... you've got the talent.

I don't know about you guys... but all I see is the economy losing steam (The US at least), I don't think technology will be progressing at the same speed as it is now within 10 or 20 years. Don't be too surprised when we gotta go out and find work instead of playing video games...

Disclaimer: (This is just a view from my media saturated mind.)

[Vreki]

Re: Future Gaming...

Crossfired/SLI'ed (Meaning Two) Ageia PhysX compatible tanks, and Quad-core processors look like the wave of the future to me. I had to buy the largest case on earth just to fit this crap. My mondo-processor certianly sticks out compared to my 3200+... and have you SEEN the 1000W power units? It gives people PSU envy.

You could stuff your computer with crap ten years ago too. SLI or whatever they called it was possible with the old Vodoo cards too, not to mention the need for 5.25 HDD(s) and 5.25+2.5 FDD, modem, network card and maybe some sort of backup device.
As far as I recall the only addon card in my gaming computer today is the (single) GFX card, everything else is onboard. Sound, network,USB etc. is all handled by the MB, and I might just as well remove the 2.5 FDD too.

There has always been a market for Full towers, but they are not something you can expect to see outside the residence of the occasional nerd. No offence intended :p

Instead of improving and compacting what already exists, we're building ontop of proven designs to make it stronger and faster. Nothing is more apparent to this fact than your PS3 or X-box 360. Open one up and you'll find a cluster**** of hardware. Now you know why it over-heats so much. Even the nightmarish Dreamcast wasn't this badly compacted.

There are always performance/size tradeoffs to be made, and they are trying to outperfom a current PC in a much smaller case. No surprise that it has problems.
Compare on the other hand the Wii with the original XBOX. Improved performance and capabilities in a box a fraction of the size of the previous generation.
Or look how the PS2 was slimmed during its lifetime.

Then take a gander to Sony and Apple's super-thin laptops, and you'll notice a definitive lack of decent hardware, or even multiple USB outlets. This is because the major advances in the last year have involved the doppleganger effect. Doubles, Triples, Quadruples, More... Bigger, Better, Faster, not Smaller. The only thing that has shrunk in the past two years are the 10k RPM hard drives... and maybe the Xeon Processors.

Or maybe because they are targeting customers that value size over performance?

Oh... and while I was browsing for a new computer case I noticed a lack of Micro-ATX cases. They're actually getting harder to find. As are Micro-ATX MOBO's.

In Denmark there is a very extensive online database of hardware for sale online, so I can quickly pull some numbers:
For MB the Micro-ATX / ATX ratio is 216/366 and for cases it is 113/483.

[Dairuka]

Re: Future Gaming...

You could stuff your computer with crap ten years ago too. SLI or whatever they called it was possible with the old Vodoo cards too, not to mention the need for 5.25 HDD(s) and 5.25+2.5 FDD, modem, network card and maybe some sort of backup device.
As far as I recall the only addon card in my gaming computer today is the (single) GFX card, everything else is onboard. Sound, network,USB etc. is all handled by the MB, and I might just as well remove the 2.5 FDD too.

There has always been a market for Full towers, but they are not something you can expect to see outside the residence of the occasional nerd. No offence intended :p

Even a single 2900 XT won't fit in a Micro-ATX Case. It doesn't even fit in my Sonata II case.

When 8800 GTX's and 2900 XT's go down to $150, guess what non-nerdy casual gamers are gonna be buying? See a trend? It's a glimpse of the future my friend.

There are always performance/size tradeoffs to be made, and they are trying to outperfom a current PC in a much smaller case. No surprise that it has problems.
Compare on the other hand the Wii with the original XBOX. Improved performance and capabilities in a box a fraction of the size of the previous generation.
Or look how the PS2 was slimmed during its lifetime.

The Slim PS2's have had an onslaught of problems ranging from power adapter's causing sparks (Forcing a recall), to overheating causing the systems to stop working (Forcing another recall).

The price of Original PS2's has skyrocketed on E-bay thanks to Sony's decision to stop selling the Fat PS2's.

Or maybe because they are targeting customers that value size over performance?

Thats why I weep for future consoles. Everybody expects the consoles to get smaller, and they scoff at the large bulky boxes of yesteryear... yet they don't realize that there is a reason their console is over-heating so much.

In Denmark there is a very extensive online database of hardware for sale online, so I can quickly pull some numbers:
For MB the Micro-ATX / ATX ratio is 216/366 and for cases it is 113/483.

Yeah, and computer warehouse stores sell plenty of Standard Computer Monitors - but here in Canada, if you go to any computer retail outlet, all you'll ever find are Wide-Screen monitors.

Retail Trends are a scary glimpse of the future, because it tells you what is selling. What sells, is what companies tend to adopt.