US Air Force seeking 300 PS3s for "technology assessment"
By Donald Melanson 
posted Mar 5th 2008 5:54PM
posted Mar 5th 2008 5:54PM
We've already seen the PlayStation 3 put to use for some non-gaming tasks (other than playing Blu-ray movies), and it now looks like the U.S. Air Force is aiming to get in on the act as well, with it recently putting out a so-called Request for Proposal that is seeking 300 PS3s for a "technology assessment." Needless to say, their primary interest is in the console's powerful Cell processor, which they say is the "only brand on the market that utilizes the specific cell processor characteristics needed for this program at an acceptable cost." Exactly what that program entails is unsurprisingly being kept under wraps, with the RFP only going so far to state that the Air Force Research Laboratory is "conducting a technology assessment of certain cell processors." Whatever it is, the Air Force certainly seems to be trying to keep costs as low as possible, with them apparently only interested in the 40GB model.[Via Switched]
ohnoes, skynet!
DOD ordinance is having a RESISTANCE LAN PARTY.
My cpu is a cell processor, a pwning computer!
Lol, I can see it now. Judgement Day is a-coming boys! Prepare to meet AHNOLD!
I bet they've been watching that terminator TV show and want to build their own "Turk". So yes, skynet!
this isnt news, they've been buying ps3's for the cell since the ps3 was launched, now that they're cheaper there buying some more, i'm sure they have already bought way more than 300, because they can't buy the cell individually they have to buy the ps3's and take the chip out, ive seen almost 100 empty ps3's in storage areas in an air force research lab where i worked, it has nothing to do with military, its research, i hope you know the laser disc was invented in an air force research lab
actually i think it was that they are available but cheaper to buy ps3's than individual cell processors
They take the individual chip out or the whole motherboard? How do they make them work? What do they put them on?
Wouldn't it just be cheaper to make a deal with Sony/IBM to provide the chips directly?
No, they would have to ask Toshiba nowdays, but toshiba works for "the other side". (U know, the asian guys.. they are the new world dominators last thing I heard)
can they just sell me the blue ray drives then? my hd dvd just got strangled by toshiba. you know, if they just want the cell processor, can they at least sell me the drives or something? maybe work out a deal because it'd be such a waste to take out the cell, and just throw away the rest. what a pity. what a pity. please have pity on those that have seen the wrongs they have commited in buying hd-dvd...
No, it wasn't "needless to say". Sorry to be a stick in the mud, but I'm not the first person to point out the trend for unnecessary use of this phrase here.
Needless to say, you are a douche...
You have needlessly said that it is needless to say, needless to say.
Needlessly Yours...Fred
Well, the Air force obviously needs all those PS3s so they can install them inside the jets, so the pilots will have something to do while they are flying. Duh!
yeah, i'm beginning to think that they just want the sixaxis controllers to sync them up with the jets
Hmm I think the AirForce may be missing something here - isnt the cell chip considered 'at an acceptable cost' because Sony is actually loosing money on each console just so they can gain video game market share?
Why would Sony subsidize the cost of the cell chip in a bulk sale to the Airforce? Sony would have nothing to gain except economies of scale - oh and isnt the blu-Ray laser in these things in short supply as well??
where have you been for the past 6 months?
"where have you been for the past 6 months?"
yes becuase the whole world has been focused on what the airforce is doing with PS3s for the last 6 months
You asked "Why would Sony subsidize the cost of the cell chip in a bulk sale to the Airforce? "
Because it is good free publicity. 300 consoles are a drop in the bucket but being able to point out the supercomputer power of the PS3 can help sell consoles.
Yeah, "technology assessment" of mgs4 I bet...
lmao
That, or they are trying to branch out to COD4 for new battle techniques.
Actually, they are improving their reaction times/agility/weight using DDR.
Just like Otakon said, this will allow the Air Force to win the Console War.
What's the point. I'm sure the military has much more powerful computers to use. I know they always seem to be researching what China is able to do with game consoles but I highly doubt a PS3 will be used to launch missiles.
obviously you havent heard of the new ps3 missle launcher attachment thats coming out
The appropriate moment for Engadget has finally come.
One word: DOOM.
I was wondering why people keep buying PS3s for the cell processor when you only have access to 6 of the 8 SPEs, and then I finally checked the price of a cell blade (which has 2 cell processors in it); 19 grand.
Actually, they have access to 7; Your not running the PS3 OS anymore on that one SPE if the Cell is out of the PS3.
....no, you only have access to 6. Whether or not you're running the PS3's OS, you cannot access the reserved SPE.
the cell actually has 9 cores, can't remember how many work, i think it might be 8.
Oh, and before you reply saying it has only 8, please try researching actual facts such as this:
http://cag.csail.mit.edu/ps3/lectures/
Why aren't they using the XBOX 360 core? Oh wait...I forgot...would probably burn Nellis air force base down! :-D That and the fact that they are no where near as strong as the PS3s! ;-)
Maybe they're using our military might to try to finally bring some good games to that hopped up blu-ray player? The only way they can get any decent exclusives is at gunpoint, maybe?
Is that the only come back XBOTs use anymore? You do realize after 2008, you guys are going to have to come up with a better insult, by then the PS3 will have better games than the 360! :-P
the same reason i wouldn't touch a 360 with a 10 meter pole.
Fascist code signing. Worthless for anything even nearly productive.
I hate you all. Take the fanboyism and shove it up your ass.
Nice to know that the Troops love the PS3 the most ;-)
You know they just want to game.... just kidding.
It's hilarious to me that our own government put that much money into saying 'Give us homebrew.'
...perhaps Sony will realize that unlocking the RSX could put a ps3 into every house as an ubuntu desktop machine.. They could compete with Dell or something..
They saw "Stealth", saw that Sony also made that, and now they want a piece of the action.
Off topic, I know, but that movie sucked balls.
PS3 in the long run is a winner
MS better make a quad core console if it wants to outlast the PS3, even then, when the PS3 is in full swing there could be trouble
Seriously doubt it dude. Sony has almost completely screwed the pooch on the current gen console "war". If they weren't so freaking expensive and Sony wasn't so dismissive of their fan base I'd have bought one. Not only that until Sony can build their own "Xbox-live" style network for games, they're boned.
who makes the ps3's chip set???
ibm
which one is it???
actually the cell chip itself used to be made by sony but the division is being sold to toshiba. idk who makes the rest besides the actual processor tho
"The PlayStation 3 uses the IBM-designed Cell microprocessor as its CPU, utilizing seven of the eight "synergistic processing elements" (often shortened to SPE). The eighth SPE is disabled to improve chip yields i.e. chips do not have to be discarded if one of the SPEs is defective. Only six of the seven SPEs are accessible to developers as one is reserved by the OS. Graphics processing is handled by the NVIDIA RSX, which can output resolutions from 480i/576i SD up to 1080p HD. The PlayStation 3 has 256 MB of XDR main memory and 256 MB of GDDR3 video memory for the RSX."
Wikipedia can be your friend.
WOW...thanks
as a follow-up
Cell is a microprocessor architecture jointly developed by Sony Computer Entertainment, Toshiba, and IBM, an alliance known as "STI". The architectural design and first implementation were carried out at the STI Design Center in Austin, Texas over a four-year period beginning March 2001 on a budget reported by IBM as approaching US$400 million.
So does this mean even at full capacity 6/8 the ps3 isnt using all its potential, could a firmware update change this to 7/8 similar to the psp? or do i not know what im going on about?
Our tax dollars hard at work, I see.
They want to use Crysis for troop training!!
Crysis..on the PS3...
Huh.
CRYSIS is coming to PS3 but not to the Xbox360 ...and certainly not to the wii.
Its time for PS3 to take out the 360 like it did HDDVD.
(and before anyone comments that SONY doesn't own BluRay or that PS3 isn't all Blu Ray - I'd just like to say...PS3 PWNS ALL.)
Flashpoint- you're so damned stupid. Crysis, if it's going to ANY console, it's the 360 because of the 360's similarities to the PC, and the fact that it is the only one that could possibly push graphics anywhere near what the high-end PCs can.
You're just an ignorant fanboy with no real knowledge of what you're saying.
Don't even bother replying- no one will take it or you seriously.
Flight simulators maybe....???
Thats probably a pretty good bet!!
I bet the real reason is so that they can justify playing MGS4 at work.
OH NO! So *that's* how Skynet got started.
Sorry dude but how many times has that phrase been used? it was funny at first but now its getting old...
Hello Sony,
How much for just mother boards with cell processors?
M
I got the refrence, I lol'd, despite not liking the video :D
I have 300 PS3s.......while you only have 3.
if anyone has seen the UK army ads on or something like that they use xbox 360 for windows controllers to control their spy planes xD
http://www.armyjobs.mod.uk
Select the desert looking reel
The 360 controller is actually used in a lot of military applications here in the US too.
As a SSgt of almost nine years, I can say that some of you are way off the mark on this one...
There's no way the Air Force would go to the trouble of pulling CPU's, or any other component for that matter, just to save a few bucks. That's a lot of man hours.
Just for the sake of argument, since we all know that Sony takes a hit on every PS3 sold, let's say that the part of the PS3 that the Air Force wants costs $1000. So, that times 300 = $300,000. Even that total is a fraction of a drop in the bucket of what we call the budget. I've spent ~$500k on replacement aircraft parts in twenty minutes before.
"They can't buy the cells individually" HAHAHAHAHA yeah that's funny. The Air Force can buy whatever it wants. All the research lab has to do is call up Sony, offer way more than it's worth, and bam, they get the processors. Your tax dollars at work.
Things are different when you have a nearly unlimited budget. My money's on the Air Force using the entire PS3 for something. Probably computational based, but it'd be sweet if I saw one for games at work.
If it really was unlimited, they would have paid you better. I already know they do not.
@ BigD145 - That budget is for operations / equipment /etc. If the Air Force (or the whole military, for that matter) had salaries that were too high, people would join for the wrong reasons.
@ Sarge
Hey, if these things help you guys out in any way, by all means, request the Air Force to purchase more.
Here's hoping that a few get "misplaced" and end up in your rec centers. You guys definitely earned it.
America, fock yeah!
They'd join and get booted out very quickly. Nothing says, "I'm employable," more than a dishonorable discharge. That and people DO already join for all the money they think they'll get. I.E. the wrong reasons.
"Join for the wrong reasons"
As in...having not dropped out of high school?
Kidding...kidding...
More Advances in Technology....Good Stuff!
They'll be running simulations and most likely would integrate something like this in the Star Wars space laser program. It'll be a massive waste of taxpayer dollars. That is all.
Remember the story yesteryearsago when Saddam was doing the same with PS2? I suppose the US government finally caught on to this trend called, 'playingvideogames'.
Oh man, this has gotta suck for Sony. They're subsidising the cost of the PS3 for consumers to have a larger install base and move more software, not to help the US government save money on research...
Robert:
"So does this mean even at full capacity 6/8 the ps3 isnt using all its potential, could a firmware update change this to 7/8 similar to the psp? or do i not know what im going on about?"
Any PS3 could potentially have 8 working SPUs, but no PS3 game can use more than 6 of them -- namely because the OS reserves one, and the other can't be guaranteed to work on all PS3s (it does on most these days, however), so some mechanism stops you from using it as well.
This mechanism is likely also in the OS, since the particular SPU that might be nonfunctional would vary, and it'd be cheaper just to disable an extra SPU in the OS than to do it in hardware on the chip.
Sony *could* upgrade the OS to allow 7 SPUs to be used in that case, but they won't -- they want to guarantee that every game made uses no more than 6, otherwise everyone who had a PS3 that actually had only 7 working SPUs would be.. upset. Sony likely regulates this before they will allow a game to come to market.
On the other hand, apps which are NOT games (like Folding@Home), could potentially benefit from bypassing this mechanism. You might find that some PS3's outperform others for such apps, if Sony decided to allow a presumed OS setting for them. I don't think they will though. Folding@Home is kinda unique in that regard -- its a charitable non-profit donation, and likely no one would be upset if their neighbor's PS3 outperformed theirs with it... maybe.
Pfft, I guess if I said I was none too happy about any US government agency spending even MORE money on military ANYTHING means that I have to move to Canada doesn't it?
Argh! We need to build a wall to keep the illegal yanks out of Canada!
No, wait; thats stupid...
If you're willing to work hard, accept our laws, culture & customs then there shouldn't be any problem.
Doors' open.
They just want to use the controller to launch missiles...
http://www.engadget.com/2005/03/18/use-a-ps2-controller-for-your-next-missile-launch/
YellowDog HPC Cluster - 5 Teraflops with 32 PS3's - http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/tss_home.shtml
Of course! They're totally gearing up for the release of GTA4 and Gran Turismo - Prologue...oh wait, that's me. But c'mon, what do they need 300 for?
To be fair, it's not the size of the chip set that matters, it's how you use it...
Its hard to use something so small efficiently...
-Pilot talking to the ground crew working on his jet: "Is it in yet?"
Do you think they will throw them off cliffs like the marines do to puppies?
Being a former marine, I don't approve tossing puppies off cliffs. However, if the airforce would do it, they would slap laser guidance and fins on the pup and drop it out of Stealth fighter.
They will soon realise it only has 512Mb of RAM!
They did not read Dr. Frank Mueller documents!
Did anyone else notice that they are asking for a 40GB hard disk and 4 USB ports and memory slots?
Doesn't the 40GB version only have 2 USB ports and no memory slots?
=========================
Item 1: Sony PlayStation 3 Game Console - 40 GB Hard Drive
Qty: 300
Sony Part Number 98006
Specifications:
Processor: CPU: Cell Broadband Engine. GPU: RSX.
Main Memory: 256MB XDR Main RAM. 256MB GDDR3 VRAM.
Hard Drive: 2.5" Serial ATA Drive- 40GB.
I/O Ports: (4) USB 2.0 ports. Slots for Memory Stick/SD/CompactFlash.
Why does the world have to know about their requiring ps3?
This is ridiculous.
ive heard of some companies contemplating using ps3s as high speed processors
They are using them to backwards engineer alien technology. Wake up people!
Clearly they're just playing some emulated 'shoot the spy satellite down' game so they don't feel left out of the navy's fun.
wait, wouldn't an IBM Bluegene thing be better than the PS3?
er 300 PS3's
Did no one notice that they are asking for the PS3 Memory Card Adaptor as well in the Accessories section? I don't know of any computing application requiring the use of a PS1/PS2 memory card.
Besides, the Air Force Material Command is who is required to buy all items for the Air Force. They just happen to be located at Wright-Patterson AFB. 300 PS3's sounds like 1-3 per Base Rec Center minimum.
My children, gather round! No retreat, no surrender; that is Sony law. And by Sony law we will stand and fight... and compute. A new age has begun. An age of freedom, and all will know, that 300 Playstation 3s gave their last flops to compute it!
[Sorry, the 300 reference was just getting at me, and the Terminator reference was overused]
Two possibilities:
1) they are just buying a bunch to keep the personnel happy in their downtime.
2) they are trying to build a large cluster of PS3s.
While the first is quite likely, the second doesn't initially make sense. The Airforce has a massive budget, and dropping a couple of million for a prebuilt cluster is nothing to them. A prebuilt box would save them many many man hours, and once it is installed it would be fully supported. However, more likely is that their cyberwarfare division is investigating how effective a massive cluster of PS3s is for things like codebreaking and nuclear simulations. Countries like North Korea, Iran and Syria can't get supercomputers, but buying in a bunch of PS3s would be far easier. This was one of the fears the US had when the PS2 was released, and Iraq was trying to buy a bunch of them.
Makes sense to me. The PS3 is possibly the best performance/cost ratio for codebreaking. It can be a real headache and cost a lot of money to set up a big FPGA system. It probably costs as much or more than the equipment itself to get it working (for one specific task).
Not really, Ted- even if it is has a good cost/performance ratio, it is far from the best- and the military obviously wants the best and the most reliable. I doubt jerry-rigging a cluster of PS3s would be very reliable for the type of things they would be doing, and on top of that, a full blown server would perform far better (regardless of what some University techies are paid to say).