New 80GB PS3 provides minimal power savings, might have 65nm RSX GPU
By Darren Murph 
posted August 23rd 2008 10:40PM
posted August 23rd 2008 10:40PM
Last we heard, it was still up in the air somewhat as to whether upcoming PlayStation 3 consoles would house the elusive 65-nanometer RSX graphics processor. According to a curious buyer of Sony's newest 80GB unit, there is a smidgen of data that hints at a 65nm chip actually being under the hood. By using the oh-so-scientific Kill-A-Watt, he discovered that his older 40GB PS3 sucked down 125.8-watts when idle, while the fresh 80GB edition ate up just 111.9-watts. The findings were similar when looking at power draw during DVD playback and while spinning Metal Gear Solid 4. Unfortunately, this mighty fine fellow is planning to return the new unit after being disappointed by the minimal energy savings, so he's not apt to rip the thing open and prove once and for all what kind of GPU is in there. Meanwhile, we heartily suggest that someone do just that and put this question to bed.[Thanks, Khattab]
A Power Saving PS3? That'll be a FIRST!
Er. . . what? The PS3 has been relatively low-power since the 40GB has been released. The Cell has been 65nm for the longest time.
I see what you did there. ;)
Anyways, with the possible upcoming price cut on the BDP-S350, my previous plans to pick up a PS3 are coming to an end. I picked up a BDP-S301 from Costco the other day, but it's slow as a snail to load, or simply eject a disk and it has the latest firmware update. Rumor is the S350 loads faster, but another plus is the way it handles audio. The S300/301 versions aren't that good.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1050507
Yes, but what of the 65nm Cell BE? Will that be getting a 45nm dieshrink?
??? 111w compare to the power killing 175w of the 360..
Clearly you can't count....
@ Mik
The PS3 111w is during idle only. The 360 power supply is 175w MAX, I'de wager that 360 at idle uses less than the PS3 at idle.
@Mik
After a little searching, I found that the 360 only uses 101w while playing Gears of War. So even during intense gameplay the 360 uses less power than the PS3 does at idle.
And 1 more vote for engadget having THE WORST comment system on the ENTIRE Internet.
Jagster, only the newest 360s use that little power. Mine takes about 125W idle and more than 140W when playing games. My PS3 (first week unit) uses even more though.
Both have been dropping in power usage, at equivalent technologies (90nm vs 90nm, 65nm vs 65nm, 45nm vs 45nm) the 360 seems to use a little less power. But at equivalent technologies the 360 most definitely does NOT uses less power playing games than the PS3 does at idle. Also note the PS3 generally moves to the new technology slightly earlier (maybe a few months).
To put it plainly, both are massive power hogs.
@ why not
I know I was referring to the new 60GB 360's power usage.. it was a fair comparison since both the article and Mik were referring to the new PS3. But even when comparing older revisions, the 360 has never used as much power as the PS3 (version-for-version).
Here are the numbers I have dug up:
Idle: (Note it was hard to find any 360 idle measurements during my search)
PS3 80GB Core 112w
PS3 80GB MSG4 180w
PS3 40GB 126w
DVD playback:
360 60GB 81w
360 20GB 111w
PS3 80GB Core 126w
PS3 80GB MSG4 197w
PS3 40GB 148w
PS3 20GB 186w
Gaming:
360 60GB 101W (Gears of War)
360 20GB 160W (Gears of War)
PS3 80GB Core 130w (MGS4)
PS3 80GB MSG4 200w (MGS4)
PS3 40GB 155w (MGS4)
PS3 20GB 212w (Resistance)
So if the 101w figure for the 60GB 360 during game play is correct, then the latest 360 does use less than the latest PS3 at idle. I don't have a kill-a-watt, or a 60GB 360, so I can't test this myself. One thing is clear, that the PS3's with backwards compatibility use significantly more power than their gimped siblings.
But I agree, the continued shrinkages will definitely be welcome.
Some nice assumptions made by the M$ Xbot fanybots here saying xbox uses less power. A simple google search will show otherwise. It runs hotter and uses more power than PS3, especially this new one. Which is one of the reasons Xbox is so damn loud too, other than it's last-gen dvd drive of course.
so get this...in my living we have an air conditioner, not an entirely huge one...but i'm sure it eats up it's share of power. Anyways, we're running the AC at 67....I turn on the tv. Decide i'll play some games in cooler pastures. So I put the ps3 in the living room...as soon as I flick the switch...BAM power gone. I can't even have on just the ps3, tv, and a/c...friggen ps3...even when the thing is idle, any other power source makes it trip. It sucks.
That why most places with window AC have it on a second circuit.
I have my window ac, ps3, tv, laptop, and bass amp all sitting in my living... all on at the same time... no power trips...
Are you even running it on separate outlets? The majority of A/Cs, no matter the size, should have their own outlet to themselves (and not even on a power strip, but straight to the wall). If you happen to have everything plugged in on one outlet, there's your problem.
If not, then the electrical system in your home/apartment sucks.
Damn it people! No wonder global warming is happening so quickly! Stop the violence, if you value your life and of the next generation gez.
@Boo
Most A/C units are on a Dedicated Circuit/Circuit Breaker and no other appliance or electrical item is allowed to or able to run off that circuit or breaker.
Why was that directed @ Boo? That's exactly what he said.
Most respectable window units run off of 240 volts to save power anyways, and like others have said, run on their own circuits...so I guess the moral of the story is, DONT plug your PS3 into a 240 volt socket!
are you running too many things off the same power socket/strip ?
if you're trying to suck down more than 10 amps from a single socket then you will blow something.
using a power strip doesn't change that, it's still connected to a single socket.
Trying to not sound TOO much like a smug Euro here, but the problem you guys have with your electrical wiring is you run it at 110V.
I have:
Quadcore 3.46GHz/GF 8800GTX SLI PC, 3HDDs
3GHz P4/GF 6800 PC 2 HDDs
PS3 (launch-day version)
360 (launch-day version)
Wii (launch-day version)
17" WS LCD + 19" LCD + 24" WS LCD
175W PC surround receiver
105W console surround receiver
Color laser printer
+ Assorted other peripheral junk, router, cordless phone and whatnot
All connected to high-quality power strips leading back to 1 single 230V wall socket. Oh, and there's a 900W microwave oven connected to the other plug-hole in that socket. :P
All that s*** can run all at once, no fuses blowing or nuttin. Room gets pretty hot though with that much stuff going, so I generally have most switched off. Problem with living in Euroland; AC is not standard equipment...
OK, he bought from a bigbox retailer, but I'd hate to be a small shop owner accepting returns from this guy after he tested power consumption and returned it for that reason.
The raw numbers are good to have, though. In all honesty, was he really expecting more significant drops in power consumption?
well, I think it's fairly valid to return a product because it draws more power than you would want it to draw. Purchasing it with the intent of returning it, not so much, but he only returned it after the decrease was lower than anticipated, or hoped for. The switch to 65nm has been in the works for a while, and it's fairly easy to believe that could lead to somewhat more significant drops in consumption. At any rate, The More You Know...
John,
considering that this is a fairly popular product, I'd argue that he'd have that data soon enough from an owner of the device who actually wants to keep it. Just comes across as wasteful and a tad selfish to me to be buying up a new product and returning it soon after for criteria that isn't exactly reasonable (IMO) for data that is easy enough to come by if he waited a bit.
Geezus, he's gonna return it?
Wow, why would you buy a perfectly fine console, just to figure out how much energy it saves? That is just plain wrong.
You know, there are 17 year old kids who make money off of ONLY allowance, who try to save their allowance for a PS3 AFTER their Xbox 360 just got stolen!!!
And they can't get a job because they are too damn lazy to get their grades up so their mother will give them a driver's license!!!
What, don't look at me...
You're 17 and you still get an allowance? Geez, good luck not failing at life.
Ever heard of Asperger's Syndrome?
Maybe you should check it out. Cause I have it.
I don't even want to look it up.
You said yourself you're too lazy to get your grades up. That's YOUR fault. Stop being lazy.
Lazy? Now, I know I said I am lazy, but that is only part of the equation.
People with my disability tend to get worse grades than others, thus, it is not very easy for me to maintain the B average that my mother requires of me to get a license.
What the hell is wrong with you guys? Is it really so fun to make fun of people who are less able to do some things than others?
And for the record, about a week ago, I put my foot down and told my mom that I am going to college, and I am going to try my hardest this year to get at least a 3.5 GPA so that I at least have a chance.
Yeah. Actually people with Aspergers Syndrome have no problem with cognitive development from what I've read.
But good luck. Try. That's all asked of you.
Lars?
I have mild Asperger's and I've had a job since I was 16. Good going, though.
You know you can get in college with a 2.0 GPA. Hey, it may be a community college, but it is college.
@Boo Radley
Kind of off topic, but your username, sir, is amazing. That was such a great book...
But on topic of the PS3, I have one of the original 60GB from the first month, and use it A LOT. Sure, it gets loud once in a while, but the circuit thing? Psh, I have the HDTV, surround sound system, cable box, PS3 + lamps of all sort. Ever had a power failure? Nope.
You're a dick, I know a girl in my grade who has aspergers. As a matter of fact, she does fine in school. It is of course very obvious that she has a disability, but she is in normal grade 12 courses with no teacher assistant. You're just an asshole who takes advantage of the world.
Aspergers? Now it's understandable that many on the autistic spectrum have trouble in many areas of life, but most individuals with Aspergers are "high-functioning" and typically have no trouble whatsoever with intellectual development and critical thinking. In fact, many are brilliant and remain some of the best computer scientists, physicists, and mathematicians in the world. It is all the other areas of life like social functioning, relationships, family issues, etc where they have trouble.
What, we are STILL talking about this? You guys think I don't have a life?
Why don't you guys just all go fuck yourselves cause I have had enough!!! Do you guys have any idea how hurtful you guys are being? I FUCKING HAVE ASPERGER'S!!! I AM NOT LYING!!! So what if I don't get good grades when others do? I AM DIFFERENT THAN EVERYBODY ELSE IN THE WORLD!!! JUST LIKE YOU GUYS!!! WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT, NO MATTER WHAT YOU GUYS THINK!!! EVERYBODY WITH ASPERGER'S HAS DIFFERENT NEEDS AND SKILLS!!!
Thank you, guys, for being complete assholes and making me go into a frenzy. I DONT NEED THIS SHIT WHEN MY SENIOR YEAR STARTS TOMORROW!!! I SAID I AM TRYING TO MAKE A CHANGE FOR MYSELF AND YOU ACT LIKE I DON'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT THE WORLD WHEN I REALLY DO!!! I HAVE A PURPOSE HERE JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE!!! AND EVEN IF YOU DISAGREE AND LOW RANK ME, I AM STILL GOING TO PRESERVER!!! I WILL MAKE IT IN THE WORLD!
I think you mean persevere.
And based on that little outburst, I'd say you're either a really good troll, or you DO have Asperger's Syndrome.
According to Wikipedia: "Individuals with AS experience difficulties in basic elements of social interaction".
Seems to fit the bill here.
Nice Xbox 360 GPU.
Hah! I noticed that too!!!
haha yea i saw that right away, eDRAM = xenos
A PS3 with an Xbox 360's ATI Xenos GPU (according to Engadget's picture anyway) ? Now that is news to me... :P
Looks like PS2 BC is gone forever, even software BC. : (
I was hoping the 160gb model would be like the previous 80gb model, with 4 USB ports, memory card readers and PS2 BC but nope.
PS2 backwards compatibility is overrated anyway. I have an original 60GB PS3 that'll play damn near any PS2 game, and, honestly, I've maybe played one. In fact, I gave away all my PS2 gear as I never touched it anymore.
Acura discontinued the RSX a couple of years ago. Ominous?
The PS3 has Vtec inside...
That would be Honda discontinuing the RSX. Acura is a brand.
does this mean that it will have less graphics or something...........?
Yes, they are making the GPU half the size to reduce power, and the graphics capabilities will be decreased by 25%. So it's a good trade off.
Does this mean less graphics or something?
No, it just means the engadget post system sucks. Don't post twice, just wait five minutes.