The shrinking game console: A history
(Credit:
Sarah Tew/CNET)
Sony's announcement of the PlayStation 3 Slim on Tuesday was no surprise for most gamers and industry experts. Parts that once cost a small fortune, such as hard drives, processors, and special disc-reading lenses, continue to fall in price and take up less space. It's only natural the machines that use them would shrink as well.
The PlayStation 3 was physically the largest of the three current-generation home consoles, followed by Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii. With never-ending lust by consumers for smaller gadgets, the current configuration was just not cutting it.
What's surprising about the Slim, though, is that Sony was the second-most recent of the three companies to have released its console, yet it's the first to offer a completely new form factor. Microsoft was the first out of the gate with a North America release of the Xbox 360 in late November 2005. Sony and Nintendo followed suit with the PlayStation 3 and Wii, respectively, which were released a week apart from each other in mid-November 2006.
The closest either Nintendo or Microsoft has come to a redesign since is Microsoft, which began including an HDMI port and increasing the included storage, alongside a major revision to the system software which allowed games to be played off the hard drive.
In the case of the PS3 Slim, it's actually the fourth generation of the device. During that three-year period, things like the included storage space jumped from 20GB to 120GB. And a recently unearthed patent at the FCC filing shows that a 250GB model is just around the corner.
So is it normal to release a heavily revised version of a gaming system within three years of the initial release? It depends on who you are. Let's take a look at some notable shrinkage from the last three generations of consoles. I think that you'll notice a trend.
Note: We're not including handheld consoles in this story, but parallels can be made between revisions to Nintendo's Game Boy and DS products, as well as Sony's PSP.
Previous generations
Last generation:
Sony PlayStation 2 (PS2)
Released: October 26, 2000 (North America)
(Left) The original PlayStation 2 design next to (Right) the Slimline model.
(Credit: Sony / CNET)The PS2 was the only console from the last generation to undergo a major facelift. Neither Microsoft's original Xbox nor Nintendo's GameCube underwent any physical changes.
Sony's first major revision was actually its ninth. Sony frequently changed internal components as circuit boards were streamlined, and parts were moved around to deter people from modifying the hardware. The revision, which came less than three years after the launch, added an infrared port to the front of the device, which would allow users to control the built-in DVD player without an IR dongle. It also ran quieter than older versions, which was Sony's nod to the fact that many were using the system primarily as a DVD player.
In 2004, Sony released the Slimline version of the PS2, which moved the power supply outside of the machine, which shrank the size of the device down considerably. It also did away with the tray-loading disc mechanism, and had users place discs inside the device using a flip-up panel. Other changes included the addition of the once-optional (and not free) network adapter inside of the machine so that users could connect their machine to play online matches.
Three years after that, Sony began shipping a version of the Slimline that was a third lighter, followed closely by a version that brought the power supply back into the unit, and did away with the external power brick entirely.
Two generations ago:
PlayStation 1
Released: September 9, 1995 (North America)
(Left) The original PlayStation next to (Right) the PSOne.
(Credit: Sony / CNET)The original PlayStation had the most hardware revisions of any home gaming console due mostly to the fact that it was produced for 11 years and sold more than 100 million units.
While most of the changes were internal parts, its biggest external change was the release of the PSOne in July 2000. This was a much smaller iteration of the hardware and had all new system software and a circuit board that featured smaller chips.
Three generations ago:
Super Nintendo
Released: August 1991 (North America)
To fight some of the attention that had been taken away by Sony's PlayStation, in late 1997 Nintendo released a smaller, simpler, and less-expensive version of the Super Nintendo. It did away with the ejector button for cartridges, and simply let gamers pull them out with their hands. It also featured a slightly different version of the A/V port in the back that was unable to run S-Video or RGB signals. At $100 it also cost close to what a single game did at the height of the system's popularity.
Sega Genesis/Sega CD
Released: Genesis-August 14, 1989; Sega CD-October 15, 1992 (North America)
(Credit: Sega Genesis 1 w/Sega CD 1-Wikipedia, Sega Genesis 2 w/Sega CD 2-Wikipedia, Sega CDX-Wikipedia, Sega Nomad-Wikipedia)
Sega's console combination underwent several distinct revisions over the course of its existence, all of which brought smaller sizes. It's also worth nothing that Sega was not the sole creator of some of its systems, since it allowed licensing to third parties that could build its technology into other pieces of hardware. (For the sake of simplicity we're not including those.)
As for Sega's own hardware, the first and only major change for the 16-bit Genesis was to shrink in size. In 1994, roughly five years after its launch, Sega released a square version of the console which did away with the headphone jack and volume control slider on the front of the unit.
With a smaller version of the Genesis out, Sega had to create a smaller version of its CD-ROM peripheral, the Sega CD to match it. Thus, the Sega CD-2 was born. Instead of sitting underneath the Genesis, it plugged in to the right of it. It was also able to work with the first generation of Genesis hardware via an extender plate.
In 1994 Sega released the CDX, which was a combination of the Genesis and the Sega CD in one piece of hardware. It fizzled with a high price tag ($400) and the impending release of Sony's PlayStation, along with the imminent release of Sega's 32-bit console--the Saturn--and incompatibilities with Sega's third system add-on, the 32X.
Interestingly enough, the CDX was not the end of the line for the miniaturization of the Genesis. In late 1995 Sega released the Nomad, which was a handheld version of the Genesis. It played regular-sized Genesis cartridges and had a 3.25-inch color LCD and button controls that mimicked the Genesis controller. It could also be connected to a TV, so that players could play their games on a normal-sized screen.
Lessons learned
Out of all the console makers, Sony is the only one to completely revise its hardware every few years. What's interesting is that those revisions are coming closer together. In the case of the PlayStation (versions one through three), the time between initial launch and major revision has gone from five years down to just three:
Does that mean it'll creep even lower, into two-year or even yearly cycles between major revisions? Quite possibly, yes. It's worked very well with handheld gaming devices, and even some consumer electronics devices like iPods. Apple has turned out slimmer, more powerful versions of the iPod every year since 2001, and yearly events like E3 put continued pressure on console makers to show off something big.
In the case of the PS3 Slim though, it could just be that the PS3 had to be pushed out to meet its launch window, and that the Slim is what Sony was going for in the first place. Advances in the PlayStation 3's core technology, like the cell processor, also underwent changes since the console launched, including changes to fabrication that have taken the chip down from 90 nanometers to 65, then 45--the size that can be found inside the Slim. These changes meant less power consumption, smaller components, and easier cooling.
The same goes for the blue-violet laser that reads game and Blu-ray movie discs. When the PS3 was first released, it was one of the few players to feature the technology. It was also the cheapest. Blu-ray players have since dropped in price dramatically, and can now be had for under $100.
This generation of game console warfare is also much fiercer for Sony. It has had to defend its once-dominant spot against Microsoft's Xbox 360, which had a one-year lead to market, and Nintendo's family-friendly (and once $250 cheaper) Wii. The new $299 price tag for the PS3 Slim is proof enough of that.
So will Nintendo and Microsoft follow suit with new hardware this year? Not likely.
Just last week Microsoft released a new version of its Xbox 360 system software that added even more features. And at E3 the company announced and demonstrated Natal, a motion-capturing camera that tracks player movement and tacks it onto games. Shortly after that, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer supposedly told an audience that the camera would be built into a new version of the hardware shipping in 2010; a rumor which was squashed by Microsoft days later.
As for Nintendo, new hardware is less of a reality than a good old-fashioned price cut. For $50 more, Sony is now offering a game system that out-matches it on graphical prowess, and doubles as a spiffy Blu-ray player. For new gamers that's a hard sell--especially when new games that are coming out require extra hardware. Nintendo's sales are also slumping. Recent numbers from the NPD Group show that in July the console sold less than half the units that it did the year before, and with the holiday sales season right around the corner, a price cut is very possible.
Just don't expect it to get any smaller...at least until next year.
Josh Lowensohn writes for Webware.com, CNET's blog about Web applications and services. E-mail Josh, or follow him on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Josh. 
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This was a great article, very insightful and a trend i enjoy. Refreshing a console builds new excitement and the PS3 is on everybody radar currently. Whats sad is that Sony built "THE" ultimate gaming machine for the ultimate gaming expirience and we as gamers did not/could not support it. I feel since the Wii was so successful companies will not jump into the staff meetings and say "lets build the best gaming machine" it will be more reserved and perhaps start off with "well maybe we dont need the latest tech and killer graphics to win the crowd" Which is fine but i feel that the PS3 was a shout out to gamers, Sony was calling everybodies bluff- "you want a hardcore gaming system with all the bells and whistles? Well here it is!" sadly many factors came into play and Sony picked a bad time to release such a marvelous system. Even I, as stellar as the PS3 is, held back. I hope this does not deter future console makers from making cutting edge gaming consoles. I am not a PS3 fanboy, i am a smart budget gamer, and despite how awesome the PS3 is/was i opted for the Xbox 360. PS3 slim?-Here I come ! (^_^)
Oddly enough, only 4% of the respondents for the survey claimed that hardware issues would prevent them from purchasing another Xbox360.
http://games.slashdot.org/story/09/08/20/1527212/Xbox-360-Failure-Rate-Is-542?art_pos=1
Some people could argue that the upfront price of the PS3 WAS so much higher that it made up for the subscription cost on the Xbox on-line play. I wouldn't be one of those people. Purchasing is always cheaper than renting in the long run, and people who now buy the Slim for half the cost of the original PS3 are not paying a high up-front cost.
If that's not enough, I'm sure I can come up with more.
I'm not saying Xbox is bad or anything, but the only things it has over the PS3 are a couple of Xbox only games and a slightly better on-line experience. Considering Sony is working on that, I don't really think the Xbox has anything over the PS3 at all.
Admittedly I hold preference to the xbox just because ive owned both and had no problems and found the experience and first party games to be top rate, but still wanted a ps3, but it was cost prohibitive so i waited.
But in reality sony gave us what we wanted, the console with EVERYTHING, to last us 10 years, but we couldnt justify the price, so they were forced to cut the size, burn some features and slash the price. It was such a massive investment with a hugh defiency in sales, they were forced to. But now they have ill definatly be shelling out on one. It is a great system.
And for the record, sony does have the upper hand with support for blu-ray, but microsoft is countering with out of the box support for internet streaming, and both of these are hedging their bets on a different form of content delivery. Blu-Ray is the truely first grade avenue for high def, and there will always be a place to me for physical purchasing, it will always be preferable and im probably speaking for many consumers, but in a digitalised world digital copies are making sence due to use on numerous platforms (xbox, ipod, zune) and convience for the consumer, and digital sales are starting to sore in sales, so the market will speak and say what it wants and each company will react accordingly
And for the record, the Xbox 360 and the PS3 both use the cell processor, just different varients modified to their own needs and spec's, as Microsoft contacted IBM to build them a chip for the 360 so they modified the cell processor without Sony's knowledge as they had a contract clause that allowed them to sell it on. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123069467545545011.html
It's amazing how fast things change. On launch, the PS3's graphics chip wasn't far behind the best the PC world had to offer, powered as it is by a graphics chip very close to the GeForce 7800 GTX. Now you can outdo it with a $50 Radeon HD 4650. (Price from NewEgg, see http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-graphics-card,2387-7.html ). PC and console gaming are different worlds, but if you want to see what a modern console could do, look at the high-end PC cards.
CNET should get one of those. I mean just this week, one of your writers thought this was a pipe dream.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-10797_3-10311394-235.html?tag=mncol
For example, my story had this:
"And if the latest slew of blog and forum posts are right, there's a pretty good chance Sony will formally announce the new console Tuesday at the Gamescom conference in Cologne, Germany. "
Well, that's exactly what happened. My story was about my feeling that the excitement people were expressing over the potential release of the PS3 Slim didn't seem warranted, given the poor performance so far of the PS3. And I still feel that way.
He DID, however, spend the piece on the much-stupider premise of wondering why anyone who didn't want to buy a $400 piece of hardware might want to buy a $300 piece of hardware.
They have sold something like 24 million PS3's. Sure the 360 has sold 31 million, but its been out a year longer and had multiple price cuts.
http://nexgenwars.com/
Or why dont you compare consoles sold per year and see who has the "poor performance" hint its not the PS3.
http://vgchartz.com/hwlaunch.php?cons1=Wii®1=All&cons2=PS3®2=All&cons3=X360®3=All&weeks=156
Imagine if the Zune had sold 24 million, I bet they would be calling it a success.
And as you can tell from this and other articles, most of the people who say things like "PS3 slimmed down for $300? Sold." are people who don't already own one. How does this fit in with your "fanboy theory"?
If you want to write an unbiased article, one of the words you should avoid is "fanboy".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qAadfsJrmM
it's been like 20 years and I still can't get this one out of my head. Calgon take me away!!!
360 has changed the insides multiple times because it's a POS in reliability. It was at a 30% defect rate and even with all the changes new studies are putting it at over 50% defective.
The PS3 has always been a quality piece of equipment and with the new one you can set it vertical just fine without the stand, the extra stand is optional, although I'd suggest it if you have cats.
Go thru every game console generation are there is always some problem that stood out:
-FInd a PS2 who's laser doesn't eventually fail and experience a Disc Read error
-FInd an old Nintendo who's cartridge slot isn't worn or replaced.
-Sega CD had a high failure rate.
-Even your precious PS3 has had it's share of common problems..."Error 80010514". Or the update issue that sent many of the 60gb PS3's in for repairs.
Is that why MS had to spend BILLIONS to extend the warranty on such crappy hardware? People make a purchase decision because they look at what their friends have, what games they want to play, and the purchase price. People keep buying it because MS does give a 3 year warranty against RROD (but not E74). But do you see people lining up to buy used XBoxes from GameStop? Every recommendation I heard was to stay away from used ones and make sure to get a new one with a warranty.
Where are you guys doing your research? The new "Jasper" Chip-set has a roughly 3% failure (overheat, which is the main reason for RROD) and disperses heat better, so it stays cooler and quieter. But your right, it should have stayed cooler and more reliable in the first place.
The PS3 has a better feature set, and a growing game library, (some really good ones) but its stupid to insult the 360 by making up figures about a new CPU + GPU you haven't even used.
To me the PS line has always gone with a slimmer version later on, the reason I have always felt they did this was to get their product back into the limelight. The PS2 slim came out a ways down the road of the PS2 actually debut. Not sure about the PS1 slim, but again I have always felt that a slimmer console redux has always been to gain the attention that had been lost, so this new PS3 slim says to me that Sony is having a time getting their console out and above the 360, which despite the 360's history says a huge amount.
As for the PS3 hardware the PS3 is more powerful, but I own one, and it doesn't even function as a Blueray player in my house, it is a very good dust collector and looks damn good, but despite having twelve games for it, I have never found it to be as satisfying as the 360. MS has the lovely achievements, a welcomed pat on the back for all gamers. LIVE is amazing, its always updating, always fun, and always gratifying.
My PS3 has never failed me, and my 360 has never failed me. The only NG console to fail me was the Wii, that stupid crap about not reading dual layer disks in the first batch is just bogus. Do it right the first time or give up Nintendo.
Be careful what you wish for....
The Sega 32x was a flop from the get go. Saying the CDX failed because it wasn't compatible with the 32x is asinine.
For the record, the 32x does in fact work with the CDX. It was a simple matter of just plugging it in. No tricks, no special hacking, just plug it in. FCC approval was the only thing a CDX & 32x combination didn't have. Plus, the fact that the CDX was designed to be portable and the 32x was not. This created a top heavy monstrousity that was prone to toppling over and added alot of physical stress to the cartridge port of the CDX.
http://www.sega-16.com/feature_page.php?id=6&title=Connecting+a+32X+to+a+Sega+CDX
Anyway, I don't understand how your brain seems to be struggling with the idea of a multitiered pricing and feature structure; it's pretty damned common in virtually every kind of electronics: TV's, computers, portable media players, set-top boxes...some people like to give up features for the sake of price and some prefer to pay more for a bigger and better product. How is that hard to understand, exactly?
People can't complain because if they don't want it or can't afford it, there is a cheaper alternative
Kind of like the Arcade vs Elite price difference. Elite has HDD + HDMI + Headset, etc...
Backwards Compatibility costs b/c of the chip. The software alternative they tried didn't work the greatest, so they dropped it. They chip would be near perfect, and adding back in would be expensive regardless b/c of its age (i assume?). unless they add it back as a firmware update (and it actually works) then that's great and free.
@viper396
I had the 32X and the Genesis/CD side-by-side docked version, and was told that my 32X didn't work with the CDX (which I was looking at when it came out)... it was a while ago though.
regardless, my SNES "JR" fell apart (my SNES still works great), the PSOne my friend had overheated, as did my mother's PS2 Slim (1st rendition) - which is one reason I never got the PS2 Slim to replace my fat one.
My GB-Color screen cracked (my original GB never did) but the GB-Pockets and GB-Advanced (and subsequent versions) never had any problems...
Not all hardware changed go smoothly for everyone... I've had better luck than most, but I know people who everything went wrong...
As for WiFi, perhaps your PS3 is near enough to your router to allow for little lag, but if you experience lag it will be worse than if you are wired. I play my game consoles for games, so lag is a big thing to me and it must die, a cat5 is the easiest, cheapest, and best solution to lag. The only thing I do wish the 360 had that the PS3 does have is the internet, but only for convience, these days though internet is so close anyways who needs it in their TV?
I have Netflix - I "rent" Blu-ray, I don't buy them (but even still, new releases are $40 now, some even come with digital copy or DVD). I stream Netflix through Windows Media Center (Vista) with no hiccups.
The the PS Store has TV Shows, and tons of movies for cheap in HD. If you want to watch and discard, then renting is the way to go, which is just $3 for some movies.
And I haven't check recently, but I've been able to watch Hulu and Youtube for some time now...
And my Wi-fi is (super)G, which has plenty of bandwidth for any online gamimg or streaming I do. Though I admit the cable would be less annoying when the power surges from a storm (the wi-fi tends to go out a bit), I dont notice any difference in speed. I stream media from my laptop and PC to my PS3 with no lag, including videos, but I'm always playing online games and I don't notice any lag at all.
But, I don't have an XBox 360 to compare features to (like movie library, etc). I want to get one, and I might if the Elite drops in price. It would suck to have to pay extra just to stream on the XBox 360, though.
Sony are a hardware company and know how to improve, fine tune and cost-cut without affecting the product. Sure their software may not be as good as Microsoft's, but these days it's pretty darn close, and getting better all the time (unlike the Xbox, which is just as unreliable as it was 4 1/2 years ago).
But the fact that MS is a software company works both ways, it could be said that that is a reason that their title library i s so much more robust, they publish and own many game studios and know (as a software company should) how to make good, playable, and popular games.
game consoles, is a other question altogether.
I got tired of this argument when it was about Mortal Kombat versus Super Mario World. There's nothing wrong with all-ages games, and nothing that says you can't enjoy them AND testosterone-fueled gorefests. (My favorite games of the past couple of years have been The Witcher, Mass Effect, Super Mario Galaxy, and Mega Man 9. How's that fit your adolescent stereotyping?) And the fact that people who have never bought a game console before are picking up Wiis is something gamers should be APPLAUDING, not condemning.
Do grow up.
The only reason that I would want to get a Wii would be for their exclusive franchises like Zelda, Donkey Kong, Mario etc.. but Nintendo is hardly trying anymore and it seems they are relying more on mini-games/cash-ins that don't have epic stories like LoZ: Ocarina of Time. If someone was looking for all-ages games I would heavily recommend a Nintendo DS over the Wii. The DS brought something new and continued to create original titles and great remakes like Final Fantasy III and IV. The Wii must better bring better quality games and maybe even some hardware upgrades but they must definitely drop the price asap.
There you go Sony, you won me!
"How exactly is the PS3 the ultimate gaming machine? How is it a better gaming machine than the 360, first of all?"
-PS3 actually has games coming out for it. PS3 has already had several AAA games this year. 360 hasn't had a single notable exclusive, not one. Also PS3 exclusives consistently have the best sound and best graphics. This isn't going to change either.
Sony decided early on to invest in First party game studios. MS chose to close down or get rid of the majority of their first party studios and decided to pay off third party developers. The problem for MS is now that the PS3 has so many users it's too expensive for them to buy exclusives. MS had a good strategy at the beginning, but Sony has a better long term strategy.
The list goes on, like I forget to add Perfect Dark. Furthermore, you will spin it into a lie of some sort but, MS did announce some impressive new exclusives will be shown later. MS has also proven that their strategy works far better than Sonys. How? Lets see, remind me but this E3 didn't they wrestle two previous Sony hard hitters to their side? Lets see, I think they did, ah yes, the new FF and the new Snake. Seems that muscles win out over a contract and honor agreement sony makes, because lets face it money wins and when it comes to money no one is like MS.
Your the one making up figures. Check on the internet. The X360 has a Design flaw, meaning **all** 360s have the issue. It's not a matter of if your 360 will die just when. Which is why many people are on their third, fourth or more console. And it's not just the RROD that is the issue, my friends have had their DVD drives die on them, some scratch disks and others have had their video go out. 360 is a lemon
Nobody is disputing that the 360 had a high failure rate, what they are disputing is your blatant exxageration of it and your obvious bias and manipulation of the facts just to promote the PS3. By doing so only you've proven that you lack any integrity and all your opinions are best ignored. These fanboy tactics are stupid and the odds of influencing the purchasing decisions of a new console owner are definately small. You failed.
I think Microsoft just try fixed there current version first before they try redesigning a smaller one.
But, most especially thank you to all the comments from all of you. Very informative.
- by easthanse August 21, 2009 1:11 PM PDT
- software is more important than hardware, from a gaming perspective.
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- by iramon07 August 21, 2009 5:34 PM PDT
- I have to desagree, With the past three years being the "Best Years in Gaming"-GameTrailers.com, IGN.com, GameSpot.com, Your argument falls flat. I dont know what kind of games you like, but with games like MGS4, RE5, Uncharted, LittleBigPlanet, Gears of War, Mass Effect, Bioshock, Call of Duty 4, Super Mario Galaxy, Wii Sports (Best selling game of all time), Wii fit, etc...these have been te most exciting times to be a gamer ever. And with Upcoming games like Modern Warfare 2, Uncharted 2, God of War 3, Final Fantasy xiii, Mass Effect 2, Biochock 2, MAG, Super Mario Galaxy 2, Metroid: The Other M, Gran Turismo 5, etc...Its just getting better every year.
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Showing 1 of 2 pages (87 Comments)PS3 might have the best hardware specs but it has lost the battle when it comes to quality software.
actually i find the software libraries of all the current consoles disappointing. at least Wii has the virtual console library of classic games, which gives it an edge.