IBM: Cell chip in PS3 underutilized
IBM and Vivendi Games are teaming up to discuss just how underutilized the Cell Broadband Engine (B.E.)is that currently comes in the PlayStation 3 gaming console.
To address the issue, engineers from IBM and developers from Vivendi Games will gather at Vivendi's High Moon Studios in Carlsbad, Calif., for a two-day "jam session" beginning Wednesday, according to IBM. Software development platform provider RapidMind, also an IBM Cell blade customer, will also take part in the conference. (IBM Cell blades use the same microprocessor as PS3s.)
"This is really targeted toward game developers on what the Cell/B.E. can be in the future for online first-person shooters and advanced role-playing games, and moving the gaming experience closer to Second Life in the online world," said Liang.
The Cell, developed jointly by IBM, Sony and Toshiba, offers fast processing for online multimedia entertainment such as wireless downloads, video chat and interactive TV, according to IBM.
"The Cell/B.E. enables game developers to deliver a richer visual experience--to take a game and make it more like a movie," said Liang. "Whether or not people want that is for them to decide, but the Cell/B.E engine allows you to do that with the real-time response time you need to make that a reality."
In a software-driven world, it's easy to forget about the nuts and bolts. Whether it's cars, robots, personal gadgetry or industrial machines, Candace Lombardi examines the moving parts that keep our world rotating. A journalist who divides her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, Lombardi has written about technology for the sites of The New York Times, CNET, USA Today, MSN, ZDNet, Silicon.com, and GameSpot. E-mail her at candacelombardi@gmail.com. She is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET. 
