The news that the Microsoft Xbox Series S could have only 20 CU (computing units) of power it left some people feeling a little disappointed. Not that 20CU isn’t much, but given the current generation Xbox One X He’s 40, felt like a strange step back.
Now him Xbox Series S it has an energetic defense, and from an unlikely source. Matt Hargett, a former PlayStation chief engineer, tweeted that, in his professional opinion, “20 5nm RDNA2 CU units seem perfect for a modern 720p / 1080p portable gaming hardware profile that supports 900 games. ”
Tom is often quick and lazy with technical data, but I’m with him to verify people who think that having “only” 20 UC will stop next-gen gaming. Twenty 5nm RDNA2 CU seems perfect for a modern 720p / 1080p portable gaming hardware profile that supports 900 games https://t.co/Lu4nIeQoE32 July 2020
The word “portable” is a bit misleading here, so before we go any further, let’s point out what it means plus portable than the handy Xbox Series X. Looks like it doesn’t mean a Nintendo Switch-style handheld, great as it is.
The key to remember is that Microsoft sold the Xbox One X as a 4K machine, and although the Xbox Series S has yet to be officially recognized, much less marketed, all signs point to an inexpensive console to be announced as reaching resolutions. HD: 720p or 1080p. To that end, having half the CUs of current-generation hardware might not matter much, especially since the architecture of the new machine will likely be more efficient, allowing you to do more with less.
For the sake of comparison, while the Xbox Series S will apparently have 20 CUs of power, the PlayStation 5 will have 36 and the Xbox Series X 52, offering 10.28 and 12 teraflops of performance respectively.
But if the S Series only targets a 1080p game, then players with smaller TVs might be drawn to the cheaper console, even if all the signs point to launch without a disc drive, leaving players price dependent. Download from Microsoft.
In another part of the discussion, Hargett addressed the elephant in the room. If the Xbox Series S ends up using 5nm CU, wouldn’t that lead to a hardware shortage? Okay, yes:
It would totally, but if you need the 5nm efficiency for initial product introduction, and you’re seeing a global recession limiting purchasing power, perhaps limited stock for initial holiday sales is a good pill to swallow. 2020
Hargett says that is something Microsoft could swallow given the likely global recession. We would go one step further and say that a shortage of cheaper next-gen Xbox hardware could do the company a favor: Not only does the shortage increase hype and panic, but it could push eager shoppers toward More expensive X series as an alternative. It seems like a win-win for us.
