Update: As Semiaccurate.com's Charlie Demerjian himself informs us, it was actually he who first wrote about Nvidia halting chipset development, albeit in more dire terms, back in August for his old haunt the Inquirer. Link here. Fair enough. We'll still credit Ryan Shrout at PC Perspective for obtaining what we understand to be the first on the record acknowledgment from Nvidia.
Credit PC Perspective for digging out the news that Nvidia has put its NForce chipset development on hiatus. Nvidia will continue to supply the market with current-generation NForce chipsets as necessary, but due to Nvidia's licensing battle with Intel, Nvidia has halted development of new NForce chipsets for both Intel and AMD CPUs.
The dispute over the terms of Nvidia's license to make chipsets for Intel processors began last year prior to the launch of Intel's first batch of Core i7 processors. Each company has filed suit against the other, although the most recent reports on the conflict had Nvidia moving forward with a Core i7-compatible chipset.
Having only announced its new Fermi graphics chip architecture, Nvidia lags behind AMD in introducing a next-generation graphics product. AMD has already launched its Windows 7-ready Radeon HD 5800-series graphics cards, based on an updated version of its RV770 chip design. Combine AMD beating Nvidia to market with Intel's impending Larrabee discrete graphics product due out next year, as well as combined CPU/GPU designs in the works from both Intel and AMD, and it's easy to suggest that Nvidia now finds itself in a difficult competitive position.
Arguing against that assessment is the fact that Nvidia has worked actively the past few years to expand its business beyond its traditional desktop products. It has spent a lot of time and effort emphasizing its graphics chips for both high-level computing via its CUDA technology, as well as refocusing its GeForce 9300 and 9400 mobile chips with the Ion moniker to help them stand out in the ever-expanding Netbook market. Nvidia also has invested heavily in developing and marketing its Tegra graphics chip family for handheld and mobile devices. None of those strategies guarantees success for Nvidia, but it's also clear that Nvidia has taken steps to expand its interests beyond the desktop products with which we're most familiar.
The new Xbox 360 dashboard
(Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET News)
The E3 conference opened Monday in Los Angeles with a press conference from Microsoft. Here are some highlights.
Microsoft showed off first-ever game play footage from the post-apocalyptic title Fallout 3 and announced that there will be downloadable content exclusive to Xbox Live. We saw real-time action from Resident Evil 5, shipping on March 13. We got a peek at the new co-op feature in the game, where players will be able to team up and make their way through together. Developer Square Enix also made announcements that included the release of four titles for Xbox 360 including Final Fantasy XIII.
Complete E3 coverage
but that doesn't mean Microsoft
and others aren't making noise.
As for console exclusives, we saw in-game action from Fable 2, shipping in October. Players will be able to seamlessly invite other friends who are also playing the game. Finally, we were blown away by the impressive game demo of Gears of War 2 shipping November 7. The game actually looks better than the original and will feature a five-player online co-op mode.
Microsoft will be releasing a new dashboard interface this fall that incorporates an avatar system--the Xbox answer to Nintendo Mii characters. The new feature allows you to join up with other friends to form a "party," a group of up to eight people where you can share multimedia items or start a game. A new mode called Primetime will actually incorporate real-life TV shows like 1 vs. 100 and allow Xbox Live members to play and watch these game shows and possibly even win real prizes.
Microsoft also announced ... Read more
Microsoft on Sunday cut the price of its best-selling Xbox 360 Pro model game console with a 20GB hard drive from $349 to $299.
Microsoft on Sunday unveiled an Xbox 360 with a 60GB hard drive. It's expected to go on sale in August.
(Credit: Microsoft)The company also introduced a new Xbox 360 model with a 60GB hard drive. It will go on sale in stores in the U.S. and Canada for $349 in early August.
Microsoft's announcements, which were widely expected, come on the eve of the start of this week's E3 video game industry trade show in Los Angeles.
Rumors of the Xbox price cut swirled on popular gaming blogs Joystiq and Kotaku last week. The two sites received snapshots of Kmart and RadioShack fliers advertising the $299 price.
Microsoft announced in May that Xbox 360 had become the first next-generation video game console to hit 10 million units sold in the United States. All told, Microsoft said it has sold 19 million Xboxes worldwide.
The Xbox 360 Pro (aka Premium) will now cost $50 less.
(Credit: Microsoft)A couple of weeks ago I wrote about rumors that Microsoft was planning to chop the Xbox 360's price in July. Well, that price cut was all but confirmed today by Kotaku.
After posting leaked photos of upcoming Best Buy, Kmart, and other circulars, the gaming blog now has a GameStop employee's cell-phone snapshots of shelf art and an internal memo announcing that the Xbox 360 Pro (aka the Premium) would drop to $299.99 on Sunday, July 13. Not coincidentally, E3 kicks off the next day with--you guessed it--Microsoft's press conference.
As Sony's PlayStation 3 has come on strong in recent months, sales of the Xbox 360 have been flat, so a price drop seemed likely. The success of Metal Gear Solid 4 continues to give the PS3 a boost, but chances are Sony, too, will have to trim the price of its console before the holiday buying season.
All that said, the big question remains whether Microsoft will announce any new configurations of the Xbox 360. Rumor has it, the company is just using the price drop to clear out inventory of the 20GB Premium before it brings out a new 60GB version. (Of course, if you're willing to take a chance on a refurbished Premium, you can do significantly better than $300). There's no word on whether the Xbox 360 Elite or the Arcade (no hard drive) will also get $50 snips or whether a flagship model with a built-in Blu-ray drive is really in the works.
Personally, I'd like to see Microsoft get rid of the useless Arcade and reduce the number of Xbox 360 choices down to two to avoid confusing consumers. Anybody else want to guess what Microsoft has up its sleeve next week and what Sony's next move will be?
LeapFrog's Didj gaming system.
(Credit: LeapFrog)A few months ago we got a preview of Leapfrog's new handheld learning/gaming systems, the Didj ($89.99) and Leapster 2 ($69.99)--and now they're officially available.
LeapFrog doesn't exactly bill the Didj as a Nintendo DS competitor, but the new device is geared toward 6- to 10-year-olds, an age bracket where the DS currently rules. Meanwhile, the Leapster 2 is targeted at even younger children.
The idea behind the Didj is to up the gaming and graphics ante while continuing to integrate the learning stuff that the company's known for. Those educational elements are starting to show up in a handful of DS games, but LeapFrog's giving the whole educational-gaming slant a harder spin to appeal to parents who would prefer to have their grade-schoolers graduate to something other than the DS.
While the Didj doesn't have a Wi-Fi connection like the DS, there's a whole online angle that LeapFrog's working with its LeapFrog Connect Application. The application lets children customize game content (the device connects via USB to both PCs and Macs).
According to LeapFrog's news release, "Players first select and personalize an avatar. Then they design the game, choosing background scenery, color schemes or music. Most important, parents and kids can then customize content, connecting gameplay with schoolwork. Multiplication hard to master? Kids can choose to be quizzed on the 6s, 7s and 8s tables. Spelling a stumbling block? Kids can create a custom spelling list from the 10,000-word database and practice for next week's test."
The Leapster 2 is also available now.
(Credit: LeapFrog)I saw an early build of the game that ships with Didj and the graphics are indeed--excuse the pun--a nice leap forward for LeapFrog. At launch, 9 games are available for the system, including SEGA's Sonic the Hedgehog, Nickelodeon's SpongeBob SquarePants: Fists of Foam, and Indiana Jones. Another premium title, Star Wars: The Clone Wars, is due out shortly. Didj games carry an MSRP of $29.99.
Here's a rehash of the Didj's key specs:
- Processor: 393 MHz Arm 9
- Display: 320x240 resolution
- One 24-bit 2D layer (no hardware acceleration)
- One 16-bit 3D layer
- One YUV video layer (no hardware acceleration)
- Graphics: API OpenGL ES 1.1--A reduced instruction set version of OpenGL for embedded systems
- Main RAM: 32 MB DDRI 131 MHz
- NAND Flash: 256MB for data storage/download content
- Media Cartridge: 64MB
- System Software: Brio--Firmware is built on an abstraction layer called Brio to make OS and hardware transparent to developers. This means all software must be ported to Brio to run on this device.
- Screen LCD: 3.2 inches, 16.7-Million Color TFT
Anybody think the Didj is a worthy DS competitor? And: Can it appeal to both parents and kids?
With only a couple weeks to go before the 2008 E3 Media and Business Summit, video game publisher Electronic Arts is giving the press a sneak peek at its new video game lineup, including products resulting from its partnership with Hasbro.
Mr. Potato Head hosts EA's game Hasbro Family Night.
(Credit: Electronic Arts)In the forefront is the Hasbro Family Game Night video game for the Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2, a result of the 2007 teaming of the board game company and the video game company. With Hasbro's Mr. Potato Head as host, EA said families can partake in classic versions of Connect Four, Boggle, Yahtzee, Sorry!, and Battleship, as well as versions of these games with new twists.
The game publisher will also debut a digital version of Sorry! Sliders, a board game that Hasbro will be selling this fall.
NCAA Football '09 is just one of the new "All-Play" games for Wii.
(Credit: Electronic Arts)Other games displayed by EA at recent coast-to-coast press events include Wii- and PlayStation-adapted games Boogie:Superstar, Littlest Pet Shop, a new Monopoly game, and Nerf N-Strike, which comes with a Wii remote and Nerf gun duo.
All the above titles will hit shelves during the fall of 2008.
Casual gaming aside, last week EA also announced a new lineup for its "EA Sports All-Play" series, which is introducing games specifically designed for the Wii. EA said the new games will level the playing field between advanced players and new users, because players won't have to remember complicated series of button combinations.
The five All-Play titles will debut starting this month, including '09 versions of Tiger Woods PGA Tour, Madden NFL , NCAA Football, NBA Live, and FIFA Soccer.
The two-day E308 conference kicks off in Los Angeles on July 15.
Update: Sony has suspended the 2.40 upgrade, following reports that it has fouled up some PS3 systems (see Joystiq for more). While the two PS3s we have here at CNET were able to install the update with no adverse effects, it appears that some users were considerable less fortunate.
The 2.40 firmware update for the PlayStation 3 is now available. The free update, which Sony has been talking up for the past several days, adds a smattering of new features, including in-game access to the XMB (Cross Media Bar) home screen, custom soundtracks, a new trophy system, and a shortcut to Google searches.
The new features carry a host of caveats: the in-game XMB, customized soundtracks, and trophies aren't supported on all games; in-game XMB features are fairly limited; and the trophy system (with the a few exceptions) won't be retroactive to already-accomplished goals.
Trophies, for instance, are better viewed as a feature that will begin becoming more useful as future games begin supporting the feature. That said, both the trophy system and in-game XMB help the PS3 better compete with the achievements and Xbox Live or Xbox Dashboard features offered by the Xbox 360.
PS3 users will also notice a handful of other simple but useful touches with this update, including an on-screen clock, a quick shutdown icon, and a shortcut to Google searches. And speaking of the PS3's browser: while it's not new for 2.40, it's worth noting that the Web browser splash screen now includes shortcuts to YouTube, Flickr, and Facebook.
So what do you think? Does the 2.40 update add some worthwhile features to the PS3, or does the Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii still have an edge? And what other features would you like to see come in future PS3 software upgrades?
PlayStation.com: Firmware 2.40 walk-through, part 1 (embedded above)
PlayStation.com: Firmware 2.40 walk-through, part 2
PlayStation.com: Firmware 2.40 FAQ
In the wee hours of August 1, the moon and the sun will pass each other for a breathtaking full solar eclipse, but U.S. residents won't be able to catch a glimpse of the phenomenon because of their location on the planet.
San Francisco's Exploratorium science museum is broadcasting the eclipse to the masses, however, combining science and technology by streaming the eclipse on virtual world Second Life.
In the real world, a team from the Exploratorium science museum will be traveling to the Xinjiang Province in Northwestern China, close to the Mongolian border, to stream a Webcast of the eclipse. The museum is staying open all night to bring the Webcast to museum visitors, as well as its online viewers and members of Second Life.
Second Life avatars view the 2006 full solar eclipse in the virtual world.
(Credit: Exploratorium)Total solar eclipses happen usually only every 18 months or so, and the team must travel to China because the full eclipse is only visible on a narrow slice on the surface of Earth.
Second Life users can view the 45-minute Webcast, starting at 3:30 a.m. PDT August 1, on the virtual world's so-called Exploratorium Island. Avatars can also gather at the Pi Day Theater at the Sploland Sim, at the Science School Sim, and at the Spindrift Sim. The eclipse will be accompanied by video and commentary of Exploratorium and NASA scientists.
Starting July 1, Second Life members and their real-life makers can use Exploratorium Island to learn about solar eclipses, Chinese culture, and solar science.
The Exploratorium has previously paired with Second Life and NASA to deliver space news. In 2006, for instance, the team traveled to Turkey to broadcast the solar eclipse, and NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander team has created an avatar for the exploring robot in the virtual world.
Non-Second Life users can view the Webcast on the Exploratorium Web site, and the CNET News.com multimedia team will provide coverage of the event after viewing the live video in the Exploratorium.
The makers of World of Warcraft are offering players of the online role-playing game an optional layer of security in the form of an electronic token device called Blizzard Authenticator designed to prevent unauthorized access to an account.
The lightweight device, which fits on a keyring, provides a unique, one-time six-digit numeric code that the account holder includes when logging in. It is used in addition to a password and account name.
It was offered to attendees at the 2008 Blizzard Entertainment Worldwide invitational in Paris over the weekend and will be available for $6.50 through Blizzard's online store soon, according to the company.
"It's important to us that World of Warcraft offers a safe and enjoyable game environment," Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment, said in a news release distributed last week. "One aspect of that is helping players avoid account compromise, so we're pleased to make this additional layer of security available to them."
World of Warcraft users have had their share of security issues. Last year, hackers were luring players to Web sites and surreptitiously downloading keylogging software onto their Windows computers through vulnerabilities in Internet Explorer. The software allowed the hackers to hijack the victims' WoW accounts and sell off valuable in-game assets.
WoW players also have been targeted by a password-stealing Trojan sent via e-mail and peer-to-peer file-sharing sites.
It's unclear exactly what prompted the company to release Blizzard Authenticator. A company spokesman said on Monday that representatives were still in Paris where it was late at night and could not immediately be reached for comment.
As I searched for something to talk about today, I came across this article from Joystiq featuring a discussion by Will Wright about Spore and the gaming industry.
For those of you who don't know Will Wright, he's not only the creator of Spore, but he's also the creator of the Sims franchise, and arguably one of the greatest game developers of all time.
And yet, I'd venture to say that at least some of you reading this have never heard of Will Wright before. I'll bet you've played the Sims and may even know about Spore, but you had no idea who Will Wright is.
If that's true, the blame shouldn't be placed on you and you certainly shouldn't be expected to perform research just to find out who develops a specific game. Instead, the blame should be placed squarely on the video game industry, and more specifically, major companies like Take-Two and Electronic Arts, for creating an environment where anonymity is not only accepted, but expected as well.
And if you ask me, that's just wrong.
... Read moreDon Reisinger is a technology columnist who has written about everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Don is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and posts at The Digital Home. He is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure.
