PlayStation 3: What's with the watts?

LOBO2999

SatelliteGuys Pro
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Apr 1, 2004
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Cumming, GA
Sony is not a company renowned for its good table manners and self-restraint, but early reports suggest that the PlayStation 3 scoffs 380 watts, more than eight times as much power as the PlayStation 2 (45 watts), and more than twice as much power as the Xbox 360 (160 watts). So, while an Intel Core 2 Duo PC with high-end graphics card chews politely on a 160 watt entrée, the PlayStation 3 gorges itself, splashing electricity about like a toddler with a bucket of fizzy drink.

In these heady days of well-publicised impending global environmental apocalypse, some might think it a little brash of Sony to unleash an electronic Bacchus on the scene. The culprit may be the new Cell processor the PS3 uses. Cell is based on a Power processing core, surrounded by several 'helper' processors. Whether it's related is unclear, but Apple certainly had problems putting G5 PowerPC chips into their laptops on account of heat and power-consumption issues -- eventually it gave up and switched to Intel for this reason, among others.

Last month Sony was reported to have experienced overheating issues in some demonstrations of the new PS3, causing its sterner critics to dub the console the "PlayStation Flee!" -- implying that people should run because the heat might cause scenes like those in the movie Backdraft. Sony denied these claims, explicitly stating that that "PS3 does not suffer from an overheating problem". The complaint stemmed from a report by a Macquarie Equities analyst, David Gibson, who claims to have observed PS3s that "operated erratically and had to be repeatedly reset" at the recent Tokyo Game Show.

The extra power consumption of the PS3 over the PS2 suggests that we're not really getting much better at designing efficient systems, we're just pumping more 'fuel' into existing paradigms.

Crave is reminded of Man's trip to the moon using pocket-calculators, sellotape and bits of bailer's twine. Necessity is the mother of invention, but while console-makers feel content to slurp electro-juice from the wall-nozzle without rebuke, there'll be no real evolution in this field. -CS


http://crave.cnet.co.uk/gamesgear/0,39029441,49284840,00.htm
 
So.. .you might not have to pay for Online Service...

But you are going to have to pay for a higher electric bill? :)
 
ok and this is a big deal b/c. if you can afford the console you can afford the electric bill. Simple enough. this is so stupid

It's a joke...

If you can afford the PS3 (or the XBOX) and can afford Broadband..
You can also afford to pay a $50 fee a year to access that online service.

But on the flip side... if that sucker does draw that much power.
Mix in the power draw for a 1080p TV... 7.1 1000watt sound system..
Couple of DVRs, and other items...

All possible connected to one power strip... or to at least one outlet.
You are drawing a LOT of power over that....

You might now have 20 things plugged into it... but you could have the equivelent power draw of 20 things...

(And this goes for any device... not just the PS3....)
 

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