Microsoft selects IBM processor for next Xbox
- Thread starter MasterAkumaMatata
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antime
Extra Hard Mid Boss
The press release only states that Microsoft has "licensed leading-edge semiconductor processor technology from IBM for use in future Xbox® products and services to be announced at a later date." The rest is speculation done by "industry analysts".
MasterAkumaMatata
Established Member
Stupid grapevine. 
Pearl Jammzz
Established Member
ya....what des row said!
I found this news quite humerous, IBM is whoring itself out to every console maker. Great strategy though, it can only gain from this. There was speculation of the next M$ box being powered by the powerpc chip, but that idea takes any real chance of backwards compatibility, which microsoft is going to want for sure.
---Ammut
---Ammut
They haven't dropped the XBox, they're just planning the next one much like Sony has been planning the PS3 for a while now.
And nintendo the successor to the cube. Console makers normally plan and do lots of R&D a good 2-3 years before a console ever comes out.
That doesn't eliminate all hope for backwards compatibility, actually. If they're using a future part from ATI for the graphics that would be more or less backwards compatible with the NV2x-based solution in the XBox, then they wouldn't have to emulate that. If the CPU is as powerful as it will probably be, emulation is not out of the question. At least, from a technical standpoint it isn't... I don't know that MS would go this route.
To what Gallstaff said: I'm not even gonna comment on that.... :looney :huh
I highly doubt M$ will use the G5 in it's next console. I'm sure Apple would really get on their ass if they did. Plus, it would greatly hurt relations with Apple and IBM (IBM is currently working on the next iteration of the G3 (1.12 GHZ) and G5 Processors. Dunno about the G4 though), should IBM let M$ use an Apple processor, even if they had Apple's consent to do so. Which even then would be slim to none.
BTW, if anything what I said doesn't seem to make sense, I'm sick has hell. I feel miserable, and I'm not really thinking straight at the moment.
I highly doubt M$ will use the G5 in it's next console. I'm sure Apple would really get on their ass if they did. Plus, it would greatly hurt relations with Apple and IBM (IBM is currently working on the next iteration of the G3 (1.12 GHZ) and G5 Processors. Dunno about the G4 though), should IBM let M$ use an Apple processor, even if they had Apple's consent to do so. Which even then would be slim to none.
BTW, if anything what I said doesn't seem to make sense, I'm sick has hell. I feel miserable, and I'm not really thinking straight at the moment.
antime
Extra Hard Mid Boss
Don't worry, you never make much sense. Anyway, I doubt Apple has much to say about what IBM decide to do with their designs (and make no mistake, while Apple may have requested a specific set of features, the G5 is an IBM design).
But luckily for your little fanboy heart, it is not very likely Microsoft would use a PPC970 for at least one reason: the hardware it is intended for will run a Microsoft-made OS, and Microsoft have never ported any of their operating systems to a big-endian platform. I doubt they'd be interested in a special-designed Power4-derivative with an added little-endian mode (and maybe some x86-compatibility features) either.
But luckily for your little fanboy heart, it is not very likely Microsoft would use a PPC970 for at least one reason: the hardware it is intended for will run a Microsoft-made OS, and Microsoft have never ported any of their operating systems to a big-endian platform. I doubt they'd be interested in a special-designed Power4-derivative with an added little-endian mode (and maybe some x86-compatibility features) either.
That doesn't eliminate all hope for backwards compatibility, actually. If they're using a future part from ATI for the graphics that would be more or less backwards compatible with the NV2x-based solution in the XBox, then they wouldn't have to emulate that. If the CPU is as powerful as it will probably be, emulation is not out of the question. At least, from a technical standpoint it isn't... I don't know that MS would go this route. [/b][/quote]
do XBox games use DirectX?
wouldn't they just have to port the OS/API/whatever to the new CPU?
I think it's quite likely that they'll use an x86 compatible chip; as the article points out, IBM could license one of AMD's chips and manufacture it- although I guess if they were going to do that, MS could have just gone to AMD in the first place. If the chip turns out to be PowerPC-compatible, well, didn't MS buy out VirtualPC ? They could leverage that for emulation purposes if they wanted to. I'm sure they could port DirectX to that architecture if they wanted to (wouldn't be that much effort for them, really), which would also allow them to release a Mac DX version. That would be quite useful for them since they've been trying to kill OpenGL for quite some time now.
Pearl Jammzz
Established Member
isn't that what they use now pretty much?
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