It's fair to say that there is still a substantial dedicated handheld market that isn't affected by PS4/Xbox competition, but yeah they are going to struggle if it's priced at $250.
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Digital Foundry: Nintendo Switch CPU and GPU clock speeds revealed
- Thread starter Vashetti
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It's fair to say that there is still a substantial dedicated handheld market that isn't affected by PS4/Xbox competition, but yeah they are going to struggle if it's priced at $250.
Maybe we should stop assuming 2 SM's? Because the numbers Eurogamer is saying that dev's say are accurate says 1tf FP16 performance which isn't possible with 2SM's at these clocks.
don't forget the leakers said this and the leakers said that so awesome third party support CONFIRMED
Thanks.
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I think Thraktor had a small margin of error for the 3 SM case?
236 GFlops (rounded up) FP32 in portable mode.
590 GFlops (rounded up) FP32 in docked mode.
As pointed out, the clockspeeds don't tell us much about the components. For the GPU a 3 SM setup would be a best case scenario seeing as it was rumoured how older dev-kits were a Jetson TX1 overclocked on the assumption of the loud fan noise. Otherwise, there shouldn't really be any loud fan noise since it would have been downclocked in the first place right?
If they did go with 2 SM, it brings into question why they would even need a fan but, my guess is that it depends on how hot the Switch is when you pull it out of the dock after playing it for a few hours.
Because of the microarchitecture its based on.
Isn't that less on the Shield and more on breaking whatever encryption that Switch ROMs are bound to have?
Can you please guide me to where this was mentioned
Spiral Insanity
Banned
I wonder if it needs the dock to utilize the additional power. Would be great if I could unlock the full power if it was just plugged in to charge via a wall outlet.
These characterizations feel so outside of my own experience that they feel pointless to bring up. Like, I don't recall a common assumption that the Gamecube was weak tech. It manifestly wasn't. And really, the Xbox was pretty league-of-its-own when it came down to rendering power compared to PS2, and even to a lesser-extent to Gamecube. I can think of two or three titles off-hand that would simply have not run reasonably well on anything other than the original Xbox.
It's not going to struggle any more or less at $249 before or after this clock speed revelation and plenty people were more than fine with the Switch being $249 before this leak.
Article in the OP
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-nintendo-switch-spec-analysis
This spec list
Which came from this thread/tweet
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1297191
Which says
So either the CUDA cores or the flops are wrong.
lol...a couple of years back a member of GAF vehemently believed that the GCN was the weakest console of that generation. Many people believed that the GCN was the weakest of the three consoles.
Sorry, but people made similar arguments back when we found out about the original Wii's specs.
The PS2 may have turned out to be the weakest console of the three, but all three were at least in the same ball park in terms of performance. The Switch isn't even playing the same sport.
edit: Also, too. That tweet from NateDrake couldn't be any more meaningless. lol
Woo glad I'm not the only one excited. Thinking of a next gen Vita has me drooling.
Pokemaniac
Member
If we are to assume this rumor is correct, then I see one of two scenarios here. Either 1) one or more of the assumptions made by this article are wrong, and the Switch is more powerful than the article is suggesting, or 2) something went horribly wrong late in development which forced Nintendo to underclock it.
The chip actually being as weak as Digital Foundry seems to be implying just creates way too many inconsistencies unless it just wasn't actually the planned outcome.
The chip actually being as weak as Digital Foundry seems to be implying just creates way too many inconsistencies unless it just wasn't actually the planned outcome.
I mean in general it's going to struggle at that price point. Whatever dedicated handheld audience is left has clearly shown that price points above $200 are problematic.
GhostTrick
Banned
It's likely only 2SM. It's not the first time Nintendo is conservative with clockspeeds.
plank
Member
In a roundabout way, yes. Because that is what gives Switch the potential to be the more the core console of Japan than past Nintendo handhelds, particularly with respect to software development. I just hope the device does well, support materializes, and support does well, leading to a healthier future for Japanese console gaming.
But beyond these software concerns, I do like gaming in bed or around the house and off the TV, but I tend to use portables minimally when I am on the go, and as to power, as I've always said, as long as Switch replaces Wii U and is more powerful than Wii U, I will be happy. That is a pretty low bar.
Skittzo0413
Member
The only thing throwing me for a loop is the fan and vents. Even docked with those clock speeds there should be absolutely no need for any active cooling.
Ultimately it's comes down to the games. If the library is what people want, it'll sell. Period. Its going to be a nice bump from the 3DS.
AquaWateria
Member
Holy fuck are people really saying 250 dollars is too much?
Like wut. 250 dollar price point is the best thing Nintendo can offer in order to make profit and for it to not be expensive.
Like wut. 250 dollar price point is the best thing Nintendo can offer in order to make profit and for it to not be expensive.
Remember that it was demonstrated on Jimmy Fallon which was the same as in the Switch reveal that the display screen on the Switch is turned off when docked.
Maybe both handheld and dock being made of plastic even smallest heat won't be dissipated efficiently without having small forced airflow? In such case very small airflow may be required. Just guessing off course.
Article in the OP
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-nintendo-switch-spec-analysis
This spec list
Which came from this thread/tweet
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1297191
Which says
So either the CUDA cores or the flops are wrong.
I am pretty sure that tweet took the previous leaks from Emily Rogers and attributed them with this dev board : http://www.anandtech.com/show/9779/nvidia-announces-jetson-tx1-tegra-x1-module-development-kit
plank
Member
They've said $99 was too much for the WiiU.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that if they bothered to include active cooling in the design, it probably needs it. It may even be for hardware longevity more than to prevent acute overheating, but I can't imagine it being an arbitrary throw-in.
hooijdonk17
Member
So basically Nintendo are trying to sell me a worse nV Shield that can run Zelda.. Pass. Interest below zero at this point Whar a wasted opportunity.. That GPU ia juat weaksauce.
longdi
Banned
1. Nvidia has always been full of shit when it comes to collaboration with consoles. Dun trust their lies.
2. I expected nindento to be more aggressive with the specs after the wii u failure. But it seems they are just taking whats available on the market. I think they hope the current (old maxwell) tech produces respectable results(720p, texture filtering,aa), as wii-u was terrible by portable standards even then.
2. I expected nindento to be more aggressive with the specs after the wii u failure. But it seems they are just taking whats available on the market. I think they hope the current (old maxwell) tech produces respectable results(720p, texture filtering,aa), as wii-u was terrible by portable standards even then.
GasProblem
Member
I hope we don't get games that run well in docked mode but sub par in portable mode. Would kind of defeat the point of it being portable for me, and just leave me with an underpowered stationary console.
The Switch is not comparable to past handheld efforts that go in the $200+ range as it is the first game system to go the full seamless hybrid console route and Nintendo specifically markets it that way. And they did a good job convincing people until now.
If there really is a market for that remains to be seen but it struggling at that price is not clear at all.
Skittzo0413
Member
Which is why I doubt the specs that DF are running with (and still haven't confirmed, remember) are 100% accurate. A fan would make much more sense at these clocks if the GPU has 3 SMs for example.
AquaWateria
Member
Your spelling is weaksauce......
lwilliams3
Member
The big question about that is: "what's up with the fan?" Would a TX1 clocked that conservatively in HH mode really need a running fan?
People are dumb. Gamecube lost because Nintedo gimmicked the hell out of themselves with a stupid mini-DVD that offered half the storage games like PS2 and Xbox had so things like music and other features were always cut. Then, they ignored the beginning of multiplayer gaming. Something they still haven't gotten right 15 years later. Aside from Phantasy Star Online they never utilized the broadband and moden capabilities. Unlike PS2 they also missed out media capabilities like DVD. Xbox had a hard drive, Halo 2 pretty much made online multiplayer what it is today. Gamecube essentially became a Nintendo only machine, something all of their last few consoles have become.
The switch is woefully underpowered to where it may just complement the other consoles but will not surpass any as their dedicated machine. Maybe that is Nintendo's goal. Besides, when GTA 6 comes, Red Dead Redemption 2, Destiny 2 and many other AAA third party games, the Switch will struggle.
hooijdonk17
Member
Its still more understandable than this.. device..
GhostTrick
Banned
The reason would be that Nintendo wants to avoid the device to get warm, like so many phones.
There's no doubt the fan is in there for a reason, but the current draws don't really seem to be all that... in need of it. So to include moving parts, especially in the portable (which the patent would suggest actually uses said fan), means it necessary but it just doesn't make much sense given just how low the draws are these clocks.
And if its just for the dock-mode, I can't see why a bunch of very smart engineers would put the fan in the unit rather than in the dock with airflow channels in the portable, that way you don't have a nasty moving part in a portable (or in your console in general).
I'd think they'd rather avoid moving parts than a little heat unless it was dangerous to the system's health.
Both the fans and BotW's improved performance don't seem to make much sense with these numbers and 2 SMs, but we'll see. I would hardly be surprised at Nintendo under-delivering on performance, but I would if they stuck unnecessary points of failure in their console. I'm also not sure why they would need to make the dev kit an overclocked TX1 if the final system is that underpowered.
ShadowFox08
Member
What's troubling for me is that.. AT the end of the day... if its still going to have 32GB(and that's possibly in the bundle version priced at 300), than getting an SD card for means of storage will be expensive. Getting a 512GB sd is $200, and 256 is $100.
The PS4 and Xbone already quite a bit of space out of the bag. sigh.
The PS4 and Xbone already quite a bit of space out of the bag. sigh.
Interpreting performance with the clock speeds alone is a mistake. There's too much we don't know atm.
AquaWateria
Member
January can't come soon enough.
Seriously I just want to get this over with.
Seriously I just want to get this over with.
TheGreatMightyPoo
Banned
100% yes.
I love the Wii U Gamepad and the only thing that bothered me about it and the system is that you can't play it much away from the system and the great first party library was small.
The Switch rights both of those things and the better resolution and power is a bonus.
Also, it drove me bonkers that you couldn't play the masterpiece Splatoon on the Gamepad so this time it's all sorts of awesome to me.
For the longest time I've always wanted a modern "Super Game Boy" for the 3/DS. This seems to be it. As much as I could enjoy games on the go, once I was home, the last thing I wanted to do was play on a small screen huddled in the fetal position. When I had a large TV and couch to enjoy a game on. I still appreciate gameplay over graphics, so I'm really looking forward to the Switch.
The fact that they're uniting their handheld and console divisions means ALL their amazing games will be on one platform.
Hot, you mean hot.
Things can still run fine at a warm temperature, once it runs hot on a phone or tablet throttling occurs so that it prevents the device from overheating.
3DS runs warm, for instance.
EatChildren
Currently polling second in Australia's federal election (first in the Gold Coast), this feral may one day be your Bogan King.
Real world performance will be interesting but I'm sure plenty of diehards will perform standout mental gymnastics to argue that Nintendo's magic and underappreciated to-the-metal optimization and hardware magic will put them on par with the competition's performance standard.
I'm kinda leaning in the direction that rumours of certain multi-platform ports does in fact indicate some degree of architectural compatibility that'll inevitably come at a hefty cost of asset quality and/or performance. But that's better than nothing for those who want a handful of third party titles on-the-go.
Longevity of said support being viable is another matter entirely as is context. Not all titles are made the same, and where one game may leverage modern hardware entirely in asset quality and not much else, others may lean heavily on modern CPU performance and RAM ceilings for more gameplay relevant tasks. So while something like Skyrim is technically viable since, at the end of the day, it's a last generation game, other titles may not be even with heavily reduced asset quality. That's the very wide gray zone the Switch falls into with the current hardware rumours.
End of the day though I still think if you're buying into Nintendo hardware with any expectation of strong compatibility with third party software ten years after the Wii, you've only got yourself to blame for disappointed. If it matters that much to you suck it up, save your pennies, and buy another platform because that's the current state of the industry and Nintendo's direction in particular.
I'm kinda leaning in the direction that rumours of certain multi-platform ports does in fact indicate some degree of architectural compatibility that'll inevitably come at a hefty cost of asset quality and/or performance. But that's better than nothing for those who want a handful of third party titles on-the-go.
Longevity of said support being viable is another matter entirely as is context. Not all titles are made the same, and where one game may leverage modern hardware entirely in asset quality and not much else, others may lean heavily on modern CPU performance and RAM ceilings for more gameplay relevant tasks. So while something like Skyrim is technically viable since, at the end of the day, it's a last generation game, other titles may not be even with heavily reduced asset quality. That's the very wide gray zone the Switch falls into with the current hardware rumours.
End of the day though I still think if you're buying into Nintendo hardware with any expectation of strong compatibility with third party software ten years after the Wii, you've only got yourself to blame for disappointed. If it matters that much to you suck it up, save your pennies, and buy another platform because that's the current state of the industry and Nintendo's direction in particular.
Because I don't really want to pay hundreds of dollars for a console I play 2-3 games on that's severely underpowered and may very well have all of Nintendo's crap with it (OS, restricted online, buy your VC games again etc)
I agree that since Wii it's become apparent that AAA third party has gone. I tried to keep the faith but was reamed by Wii U - Switch is sounding like it's going to be pretty much the same.
As you say it'll be capable of ports, just like someone could take a PS4 game now and make it work on PS3/XBOX 360 if they wanted, but the question is "do they want to". If Nintendo go low power and market to casuals, that's what will be reflected in the software support. They'll get Just Dance, indies and Nintendo games but not a lot more for "enthusiast" gamers.
GhostTrick
Banned
Well in any case, the point would be to keep low temps. That and to cheap out on the battery.
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