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IBM To Make CPU For Sony's PS3

SmasKenS writes "So, not only did they get to make the CPU for Nintendo's GameCube, now they work for Sony too. Saw this on voodooextreme first, they also got a link to BBC News." Now, granted, this is several years away from actually happening, (projected date of 2004) but the costs (and profits) that are involved are staggering.

15 of 110 comments (clear)

  1. Great.. by glenkim · · Score: 5

    Now we're gonna get "Peace, Love, and PS3" on our sidewalks.

    1. Re:Great.. by number+one+duck · · Score: 3

      I still don't understand what the hell 'virtual music' could be, but the commercials for the ps9 made it sound incredible. Now where's my soma...

  2. heh by number+one+duck · · Score: 3

    Well, I guess thats one way to crush the gamecube/xbox. With the marketting involved, just the very mention of 'ps3' is enough to make people shiver.
    Why buy xbox vapor, when you can buy ps3 vapor?

  3. People can be silly. by OnyxRaven · · Score: 5

    I read through the posts that showed up here quickly and the posts over at voodooextreme and I think people are a bit confused.

    The fact that IBM and sony announced their partnership here doesnt mean that they're switching gears already for the ps3. All it means is that they are announcing the beginning of development for the platform. How long did the ps2 take to develop? the x-box? a few years. This is nothing new in the way of business relations.

    What I am excited to hear about though is the kinds of technologies that IBM is planning on using or hoping to use in their new chips... They have a few years to develop it so I assume they have some high goals!

    I also wonder what platform squaresoft is going to contract to next. will they stick with sony? renew their relationship with nintendo? join the evil empire (scary thought)?

    --
    --onyx--
  4. Nowadays... by Rei · · Score: 5

    Seriously, though, it isn't the hardware that makes a console. What matters is who the companies that make games develop for. You could have the best system in the world, but if you don't get the Squaresofts of the world writing games for you, it won't amount to anything. While I pine for the days when writing your own 3d engine that beat all of the others was the mark of excelence, nowadays it is the artfulness and resourcefulness of the game design that matters. The key, now, will be attracting the developers to one side or the other. Part of that will be done by market forces, but part of it will also be done by how friendly the company is to developers. During the PS1/N64 competition, Sony showed they were superior in this aspect, as many of Nintendo's long-time supporters switched over to sony, even though their platforms were comparable (sony's had a little better overall performance for the cost, but not too much...). Anyways, we'll see what happens now, when the mists clear.

    - Rei

    --
    You know when it's okay to shout fire in a crowded theatre? When it's on fire.
  5. Thrilling Developments by nanojath · · Score: 5
    From the article...

    " "The result will be consumer devices that are more powerful than IBM's Deep Blue super-computer, operate at low power and access the broadband internet at ultra-high speeds," the statement added."

    It's really great to see that all of IBM's investments in basic research in naoscale technologies will find their apotheosis in making Lara Crofts boobs jiggle EXACTLY like Angelina Jolie's. God I can't wait for the future to be here.

    --

    It Is the Nature of Information to Transgress Artificial Boundaries

  6. Deep Blue on a chip??? by Dutchie · · Score: 3
    By God, that is just unbelievable. Consumer devices with that much power, in a GAME console for crying out loud. Ridiculous... but VERY COOL. I've said in some previous post already that I like IBM's style. Ofcourse I got told then that I am SO easily manipulated, but I'm still of that opinion. I mean, everybody knows that IBM's marketing has ultimately sucked in the past, otherwise Linux would now be competing with OS2. But I have to admit that having a rather poor marketing machine but a KICKASS research and development makes IBM still one of my favorite companies (ok, I kind of like Philips too, but their marketing doesn't just suck, it's downright horrible...). I hope superior technology will eventually beat the crap out of marketing waterheads that only know how to sell stuff and nothing about how to actually MAKE good stuff. Call me naive again.
    • Imagination is more important than knowledge.
    --
    • Imagination is more important than knowledge.

      • -- Albert Einstein
  7. Re:I can't even imagine.... by rtaylor · · Score: 3

    IBM's not exactly a monopoly -- atleast not since the trail. They're rarely #1 at something but they're almost always second or a close third in nearly everything to do with computers. DB2, Lotus, their hardware (harddrives, processors, etc.) are all good and sometimes they'll lead for a short while. I guess their trick is to develop the technology then license it off to competing companies. Without IBMs tech some companies couldn't keep up (wheres Quantom now?). Hence I don't consider them a monopoly in any field -- but they're a strong player in nearly all of them.

    --
    Rod Taylor
  8. Nextgen gamecube and PS3 could use the same cpu by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 4

    Instead of IBM developing 2 chips, why couldn't they develop just one and send it to both Nintendo and Sony. Think they would notice? ;-)

    It *would* lower the hardware production costs if Nintendo and Sony ever "standardized" on commodity hardware. Nahh, they'll never go for it, it would make too much sen$e. ;-)

  9. Re:Now let's talk monopolies by s20451 · · Score: 5

    Although IBM is a big bad company, they have retained "cool" status because of the following (in no particular order):

    • They embraced Linux.
    • They built a huge multiprocessor computer that kicked Garry Kasparov's ass.
    • They developed the IBM PC, which was expressly designed to be cloned, hacked, modified ... (unlike the Mac, which was always intended to be sterile and closed)
    • They actually innovate - IBM Research has come up with some remarkable advances in practical computing, as well as mathematics and other abstract fields. IBM labs sponsor pure research, unlike many other large companies.
    • They have already been chastened with antitrust suits, and appear to have learned their lesson.
    • They're the grand-daddy of computing.
    --
    Toronto-area transit rider? Rate your ride.
  10. IBM built the Jaguar too by Chris+Pimlott · · Score: 4

    This isn't a new role for IBM at all. IBM was contracted to make and assemble Atari Jaguars. As most /.er know, they fab Transmeta's chips too. IBM one of the best fabribation capacities in the industry, so it should be no surprise they would built PS3's.

  11. Re:Now let's talk monopolies by _xeno_ · · Score: 3
    I'll accept most of your points except:

    They developed the IBM PC, which was expressly designed to be cloned, hacked, modified

    Bullshit! It was not meant to be cloned, hacked, or modified! Remember how Compaq got their start? By making a clean-room copy of the IBM BIOS. In the early days of the PC, IBM was just as tight about their hardware as Apple was. Eventually, though, other companies started copying them and the PC was born. That "commodity hardware" didn't really start until the mid to late 80s, after Compaq had successfully created a PC clone. (I think - my dates may be wrong.)

    Eventually IBM had to let go of the PC, but it wasn't until after they were stung with anti-trust lawsuits.

    --

    --
    You are in a maze of twisty little relative jumps, all alike.
  12. Re:Why does this take three years? by Pope · · Score: 4

    Why does this take three years?

    Allow me to read from the History of Video Games poster on my wall (USA release dates):
    Atari: 2600 = 1977; 5200 = 1982; 7800 = 1987.
    Nintendo: NES = 1985; SNES = 1991; N64 = 1996.
    Sony: Playstation = 1995; PS2 = 2000.

    Do you notice anything?
    I'd be *greatly* surprised if a console didn't take 3-5 years between generations. The legions of Sony fans who cried "it (the PS2) better be backwards-compatible!" just left me shaking my head in disbelief.

    --
    It doesn't mean much now, it's built for the future.
  13. Must ....resist.....must...res.... by Rhinobird · · Score: 4

    from the article:
    The three companies aim to design a "super-computer on a chip" with a wide variety of consumer applications, they said in a joint statement.

    "The result will be consumer devices that are more powerful than IBM's Deep Blue super-computer, operate at low power and access the broadband internet at ultra-high speeds," the statement added.

    me:
    Must resist urge...must...resist...must...res...

    WOW CAN YOU IMAGINE A BEOWULF CLUSTER OF THOSE?!

    please shoot me. for the love of god, shoot me...

    --
    If Mr. Edison had thought smarter he wouldn't sweat as much. --Nikola Tesla
  14. That's too bad by Psmylie · · Score: 4

    Too bad it's not Intel. I was actually looking forward to a combination of the two commercials' sounds at the end... Imagine if you will:
    "Bling bling bling BLING - Play-sta-tion"
    It's got a certain rhythm

    --

    psmylie's dictionary: Godzillion (noun) Any number large enough to destroy Tokyo