Nintendo Revolution Vs. XBox 360 Vs. PS3

Before I get into the details of each system, let’s state the specs that are current right now for each system.

PS3 (Playstation 3) Specs

CPU: Cell Processor
� PowerPC-base Core @3.2GHz
� 1 VMX vector unit per core
� 512KB L2 cache
� 7 x SPE @3.2GHz
� 7 x 128b 128 SIMD GPRs
� 7 x 256KB SRAM for SPE
� 1 of 8 SPEs reserved for redundancy
� total floating point performance: 218 GFLOPS

GPU
� RSX @550MHz
� 1.8 TFLOPS floating point performance
� Full HD (up to 1080p) x 2 channels
� Multi-way programmable parallel pipelines

Sound
� Dolby 5.1ch, DTS, LPCM, etc. (Cell- base processing)

Memory
� 256MB XDR Main RAM @3.2GHz
� 256MB GDDR3 VRAM @700MHz

System Bandwidth
� Main RAM: 25.6GB/s
� VRAM: 22.4GB/s
� RSX: 20GB/s (write) + 15GB/s(read)
� SB: 2.5GB/s (write) + 2.5GB/s (read)

System Floating Point Performance
� 2 TFLOPS

Storage
âÂ?¢ HDD: Detachable 2.5″ HDD slot x 1

I/O
� USB: Front x 4, Rear x 2 (USB2.0)
� Memory Stick: standard/Duo, PRO x 1
� SD: standard/mini x 1
� CompactFlash: (Type I, II) x 1

Communication
� Ethernet: (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T) x 3 (input x 1 + output x 2)
� Wi-Fi: IEEE 802.11 b/g
� Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.0 (EDR)

Controller
� Bluetoothup to 7)
� USB2.0: (wired)
� Wi-Fi: (PSP)
� Network: (over IP)

AV Output
� Screen size: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p
� HDMI: HDMI out x 2
� Analog: AV MULTI OUT x 1
� Digital audio: DIGITAL OUT (OPTICAL) x 1

Disc media
� CD: PlayStation CD-ROM, PlayStation 2 CD-ROM
� CD-DA: CD-DA (ROM), CD-R, CD-RW
� SACDL: SACD Hybrid (CD layer), SACD HD
� DualDisc: DualDisc (audio side), DualDisc (DVD side)
� DVD: PlayStation 2 DVD-ROM, PLAYSTATION 3 DVD-ROM, DVD-Video (DVD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW), Blu-ray Disc (PlayStation 3 BD-ROM, BD-Video, BD-ROM, BD-R, BD-RE)

XBox 360 Specs

Custom IBM PowerPC-based CPU
� Three symmetrical cores running at 3.2 GHz each
� Two hardware threads per core; six hardware threads total
� VMX-128 vector unit per core; three total
� 128 VMX-128 registers per hardware thread
� 1 MB L2 cache

CPU Game Math Performance
� 9 billion dot product operations per second

Custom ATI Graphics Processor
� 500MHz processor
� 10 MB of embedded DRAM
� 48-way parallel floating-point dynamically scheduled shader pipelines
� Unified shader architecture

Polygon Performance
� 500 million triangles per second

Pixel Fill Rate
� 16 gigasamples per second fill rate using 4x MSAA

Shader Performance
� 48 billion shader operations per second

Memory
� 512 MB of GDDR3 RAM
� 700 MHz of DDR
� Unified memory architecture

Memory Bandwidth
� 22.4 GB/s memory interface bus bandwidth
� 256 GB/s memory bandwidth to EDRAM
� 21.6 GB/s front-side bus

Overall System Floating-Point Performance
� 1 teraflop

Storage
� Detachable and upgradeable 20GB hard drive
� 12x dual-layer DVD-ROM
� Memory Unit support starting at 64 MB

I/O
� Support for up to four wireless game controllers
� Three USB 2.0 ports
� Two memory unit slots

Optimized for Online
� Instant, out-of-the-box access to Xbox Live features with broadband service, including Xbox Live Marketplace for downloadable content, gamer profile for digital identity, and voice chat to talk to friends while playing games, watching movies or listening to music
� Built-in Ethernet port
� Wi-Fi ready: 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g
� Video camera ready

Digital Media Support
� Support for DVD-Video, DVD-ROM, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD-DA, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, WMA CD, MP3 CD, JPEG Photo CD
� Ability to stream media from portable music devices, digital cameras and Windows XP-based PCs
� Ability to rip music to the Xbox 360 hard drive � Custom playlists in every game
� Built-in Media Center Extender for Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005
� Interactive, full-screen 3-D visualizers

High-Definition Game Support
� All games supported at 16:9, 720p and 1080i, anti-aliasing
� Standard-definition and high-definition video output supported

Audio
� Multichannel surround sound output
� Supports 48KHz 16-bit audio
� 320 independent decompression channels
� 32-bit audio processing
� Over 256 audio channels

System Orientation
� Stands vertically or horizontally

Customizable Face Plates
� Interchangeable to personalize the console

Nintendo Revolution Specs There are currently two systems out in the open right now.

System 1:

2.7 Ghz PowerPC G5 Processor
512 Megs total Ram (128 for video, 64 for sound)
600 Mhz graphics chip (Fastest Graphics Chip)

System 2:

Dual 1.8 Ghz IBM G5 PowerPC processors
256 Megs DDR Main memory (64 dedicated to sound, using a 7.1 sound system at 196 Khz)
128 Megs GDDR3 Video memory
500 Mhz graphics chip (ATI developed, 16 Pixel Pipe, 220 Million transistors)

Other Information

Built in 15 or 20 GB hard drive
Blue – Laser Disc Technology
DVD Playback
USB Capability
Wi-Fi Compatible
All – Access Gaming
Backward Compatible

Now that we have seen the specifications on all three systems, let’s sum it up for them all. PS3 looks like it is the most powerful, but with usage like that the power consumption would be extreme. XBox also looks like a powerhouse, which would use a lot of power usage also. Nintendo Revolution is the third powerhouse in the console war, and uses a strong graphics chips, and multiple core processors. So what does this all mean? It means the power is there, but is it hardware that is going to win this times console war? I think not. Every system has it’s strong power points, and it not as strong power points. Nintendo is making the strongest graphics chip and is concentrating on saving power, and making the most out of there extreme gaming library, while PS3 and XBox are concentrating on there speed, and overall hardware ability. I think the software is what is going to be this times main feature, as every system packs a strong hardware punch to it. Sony has dominated the gaming world for a long time, because of it’s massive gaming library. Microsoft dominated the hardware world, while Nintendo dominated an overall feel for everyone, with it’s unique console shape, and strong gaming library that titles such as Zelda, and Mario make it the most dedicated system. While Nintendo probably has the strongest gaming lineup with it’s strong titles, Sony is going to have a strong lineup again as well, along with Microsoft. It is way to early to tell which system is going to be victorious, but I can tell you it is going to be a very close call.

Now… Summing it all up! PS3 looks to have the edge in hardware, with XBox and Nintendo coming close behind. XBox looks to play the part of expanding it’s gaming library, while Nintendo looks to continue on with there gaming library while adding all – access gaming to theres. Many people thought XBox was going to be the strongest system again, but with XBox releasing it’s first system 18 months after Sony released the PS2, it was obvious Microsoft was going to up there power by a lot. Sony is a hardware making company, so it would only be fair that they have the edge in the hardware department. When it comes to entertainment software, Microsoft has the edge, since Bill Gates invented Windows. Nintendo owns the edge with it’s strong gaming lineup with titles such as Zelda, Mario, Metroid, and Donkey Kong. All – Access Gaming is a service that will allow gamers to purchase and download older games from the NES, SNES, and N64 and play them on the revolution. That is what is going to win this times battle of consoles in my opinion, so I would have to give the edge overall to the Nintendo Revolution. I know many people are going to disagree with me, while I have written many articles about Nintendo made video games, it is not true that I am only supporting the Nintendo. I support every console with fairness, and just like to give everyone a good understanding of every system. Still it is WAY to early to tell what these systems have in store for us, so I can’t really give a fact on who is going to win, I just give a bet on who I think is going to win it.