AfterDawn: News

Sony aims to cut costs on chip production

A Sony Corp. executive has revealed that the company aims to cut back on chip spending in the future and may not produce advanced chips used in the PlayStation 3 (PS3) console in-house. The Cell chip that powers PS3 is currently being produced with 90nm and 65nm circuitry and Sony hopes to move the "supercomputer on a chip" to 45nm by 2009.

Narrower circuitry makes the overall size of a chip smaller and helps to cut production costs. Sony Executive Deputy President Yutaka Nakagawa revealed that investment in chips would be reduced significantly from the ¥460 billion (U.S.$3.8 billion) allocated over the three business years since April 2004.



The Cell chip, along with the included Blu-ray disc player, has pushed up the retail price of the PS3 console, giving both Microsoft and Nintendo an advantage in their next-gen gaming hardware offerings.

"We tentatively plan to start commercial production of 45-nanometre chips in late 2008 or early 2009. We are going to study carefully whether we should carry out all the capital investment and produce them in-house," Nakagawa said.

He continued: "When we first offered the PS2, there were no semiconductor companies that were able to make chips for the machine, so we did it ourselves. But now, there are companies that specialize in chip production."

Source:
Reuters

Written by: James Delahunty @ 13 Feb 2007 15:13

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• 22 comments

• Moomoo2

  Maybe I'll be able to afford one?

  13.2.2007 15:37 #1

• limelight

  Great plan, Sony.

  13.2.2007 16:08 #2

• pisho

  anyone know if the change will affect the ps3's performance?

  13.2.2007 18:08 #3

• jutsu

  using smaller die is normal in chips, and its always make chip cheaper and make it cooler.
  
  intel and amd and all others, always make their chip smaller and smaller..
  
  Quote:anyone know if the change will affect the ps3's performance?it will not effect the ps3's performance, but it will make PS3 cheaper and cooler

  14.2.2007 00:05 #4

• hughjars

  Hang on, I thought the cell was already supposed to be a "supercomputer on a chip"?!
  
  Oh well, there goes another illusion based on the propaganda.
  
  (they might be better off working on the PS3's very limited RAM and the total lack of ease using the cells)

  14.2.2007 03:10 #5

• iking

  hughjars man your funny. its just, every forum i go u got nothing to say but to bash the ps3. mind you i am not a sony fanboy. i have 360 and ps3 and i actually like my 360 better(maybe because of the games). but damnnnnnn man. that is all you do!

  14.2.2007 04:28 #6

• ZippyDSM

  iking
  well he has a point the ram is kinda the bottle neck,but the system dose not run that badly just not as well as sony claimed.
  
  I don't let MS or Sony or even Nintendo off the hook when it comes to stuidty.

  14.2.2007 05:17 #7

• iking

  im on your side on that zippy. all im saying is that all the forums that hughjars is in, he always bashes sony. talk about being a hardcore fanboy huh.

  14.2.2007 05:22 #8

• ZippyDSM

  Originally posted by iking:im on your side on that zippy. all im saying is that all the forums that hughjars is in, he always bashes sony. talk about being a hardcore fanboy huh.Mmm I would think if anything hes a anti fanboy but what he says dose ring true for the most part sony has fcked up and is a mess,of coarse hes not the only broken record and is more polite than some of the others so meh god knows I whine about games going to hell all the time :P
  
  sony needs to pull tis head out of its arse and fire half the PR and copy protection departments focus on getting the system out at a better price.

  14.2.2007 05:52 #9

• hughjars

  Showing up the liars for their lies is not being a 'fanboy', as zippy so rightly says it's just about as opposite as can be.
  
  The focus is on PS3 right now because it is designed to deliver the DRM over-loaded Blu-ray to so many homes it becomes the de facto replacement for SD DVD.
  
  That would be a total disaster for the consumer and set back consumer interests several years.
  
  I don't know about you but I want to own what I buy, not pay what is effectively a grossly bloated out rental.
  
  So it's doubly worthwhile to be able to point out their false claims, propaganda and lies.
  
  (If it was HD-DVD and the XBox 360 doing this to the same extent I'd be just as anti them......and yes, I know they're not saintly in this either but right now the 'lead' figures in this whole matter are the Sony, the PS3 and Blu-ray)

  14.2.2007 06:30 #10

• ZippyDSM

  hughjars
  now now its not that bad but tis true sony is a sloppy corporation and shouldn't have any hooks into a main stream format,just because they are sloppy.
  
  I dislike MS as much because of their short sightedness making the 360,at least they had the balls to sale it as a game console.

  14.2.2007 07:02 #11

• Rikoshay

  Quote:I don't let MS or Sony or even Nintendo off the hook when it comes to stuidty.Hence, the reason they get away with being "stuid." :D

  14.2.2007 08:14 #12

• plutorash

  Originally posted by iking:hughjars man your funny. its just, every forum i go u got nothing to say but to bash the ps3. mind you i am not a sony fanboy. i have 360 and ps3 and i actually like my 360 better(maybe because of the games). but damnnnnnn man. that is all you do!I agree with you 1000% all he does is complain nonstop. I'm just so use to it now that I unconsciously ignore anything that he writes.

  14.2.2007 09:47 #13

• hughjars

  Originally posted by zippy:now now its not that bad - I disagree mate, this is merely the start of their day-dreams, if they succeed in this then watch out for what they have planned that is just around the corner.
  
  Verified content only? (almost here already)
  
  Specific authorisiation each time for authorised content only? (almost here already)
  
  (and guess who pays for these ridiculous 'systems')
  
  Originally posted by plutorash:I agree with you 1000% all he does is complain nonstop. - How daft do you have to be to insist my comments are nothing but a general 'complaint'?
  
  Originally posted by plutorash: I'm just so use to it now that I unconsciously ignore anything that he writes. - May I just say what a marvelous example of being ignored this is.
  
  LMAO.
  
  Plutorash, the sock puppet account invented to counter 'plutonash' now expects to be taken seriously.
  
  Very funny. Most amusing.
  
  But you know what?
  Any idiots out there who think DRM & all it implies is nothing to comment or worry about are welcome to it.
  Stop giving it any thought whatsoever.
  Go ahead. Be my guest. Sheeple.
  Cos you'll be the very fools whining about it when it comes back and bites you.
  
  I have to admit this idea that to be anti-PS3/Blu-ray means you must "hate" them and "love" someone else is very funny, if somewhat revealing of the mindset.

  14.2.2007 10:51 #14

• plutorash

  Opps, we hit a nerve.

  14.2.2007 11:35 #15

• BobbyBlu

  Quote:im on your side on that zippy. all im saying is that all the forums that hughjars is in, he always bashes sony. talk about being a hardcore fanboy huh.
  I agree its always some deep dark secret or some area 51 type stuff...lol i wish we had a ignore button on the forum.I'm tried of people coming and messing up good news treads with misleading info & sounding like a broken record.The staff writers on this forum deserve better than this.
  

  
  
  
  Microsoft: Ps3 cant do 60fps on 1080p. Guess what they were WRONG!!!!!
  (11/19/05 - 9/19/06) Microsoft: Sony's 1080p support on PS3 is all Hype and Not Needed.
  (9/20/06) Microsoft: Xbox 360 to add 1080p support.
  
  

  14.2.2007 12:08 #16

• hughjars

  Originally posted by plutorash:Opps, we hit a nerve. - No you didn't, you plonker.
  
  You claimed to be "unconsciously ignoring" me.....as you went out of your way to log in and comment about me to another poster.
  
  LMFAO.
  
  Originally posted by bobbyblu:I agree its always some deep dark secret or some area 51 type stuff - Yeah how right you are bb, DRM is "area 51 stuff". FFS.
  
  Go back to sleep.

  14.2.2007 12:11 #17

• borhan9

  I still want to see the price diffrence this will make for an individual unit.

  14.2.2007 14:47 #18

• Nephilim

  Damn near everyone here needs to suck it up and act an adult.
  
  The next person to make any off topic, inflammatory or personal comments will be banned. If you think I'm kidding then ask around!
  

  
  
  The Forum Rules You Agreed To! http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/2487
  My movies! http://www.intervocative.com/dvdcollection.aspx/Rephaim
  "And there we saw the giants, and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight" - Numbers 13:33

  14.2.2007 17:21 #19

• dbminter

  When I read this article, the first thing I have to admit thinking was, "Do we really want Sony making things on the cheaper?" Sony's already notorious for great design, but lousy execution, seemingly using cheap parts. My PS1 needed its entire motor assembly replaced twice within 5 years. Now, I admit, the first time, I played the PS a lot. :) But, I hardly played in after the repaired system arrived back, since the PS2 had come out. I needed something else entirely replaced out of my PS2.5 within a year.
  
  
  While cheaper production costs may reduce the PS3 to the "Finally! I can afford it!" level, is it worth it if the parts are cheap? I'd still just wait until the "new" wears off and Sony has to admit a price dip will be necessary.

  16.2.2007 10:08 #20

• survey77

  Quote:Originally posted by plutorash:Opps, we hit a nerve. - No you didn't, you plonker.
  
  You claimed to be "unconsciously ignoring" me.....as you went out of your way to log in and comment about me to another poster.
  
  LMFAO.
  
  [quote=bobbyblu]I agree its always some deep dark secret or some area 51 type stuff - Yeah how right you are bb, DRM is "area 51 stuff". FFS.
  
  Go back to sleep.[/quote]dood i think he commented to another poster after that poster said something about you ..so theoretically he didn't acknowlege you ..but only agreed with that poster that said you complain.

  17.2.2007 00:43 #21

• Nephilim

  There goes one. Who else thinks I'm kidding?
  

  
  
  The Forum Rules You Agreed To! http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/2487
  My movies! http://www.intervocative.com/dvdcollection.aspx/Rephaim
  "And there we saw the giants, and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight" - Numbers 13:33

  17.2.2007 12:32 #22